Felita

by Nicholasa Mohr

Book Overview

Felita's parents promise she will love their new neighborhood. Only Abuelita, her grandmother, understands how much Felita will miss her old block, and her best friend Gigi. But her new neighbors taunt and tease Felita and her family because they are from Puerto Rico. First published twenty years ago, Felita's compelling story has resonance for kids today.

"An honest, realistic view of an important aspect of contemporary American life." --The...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0141306432
• ISBN13: 9780141306438
• Release Date: July 1999
• Publisher: Puffin Books
• Length: 112 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.1" x 7.5"
• Age Range: 8 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 7

Customer Reviews

This book is awsome!!

Felita is about a girl named of Felita of course who has moved to a different neigborhood. She is talked about and gets beat up by some of the girls who live around her. I recomend this ook to girs only because the main character is a girl.This book helps people understand that nobody can have a perfect life and you just have to deal with problems in good mater and not hurting someone. When I read thi book I wanted to sop but just coud not stop. Thi sbook will make you want to read so if you are not a reader then try to read this book and I am sure thta you will be able to cope with it. ANd another things is that this book is also good for a family to read because the book is about a family. It would be good for parents to read a hapter every ngith to there child beaue it teaches a lesson. If you and your family are planning on moving then try to read the book and I am sure that if it will help them if they are i the smae situaion as Felita.

Felita

I think this book was very interesting and one of the best book I have ever read.It is about a girl named Felita that has to go through alot of things.She has to move with her grandma.Once she is in her new neighborhood everybody acts so strange and almost nobody likes her.Even though she didn't like it she had to deal with it.I also like this book because she is so brave and funny.In this book there is alot of things that happen.What I like about this book is that yuo can tell when something interesting is going to happen.It also tells yuo every single little thing that is going on.I think that you should also read this amazing book and I hope you also enjoy it as much as I did.

Moving on up

Usually, I don't read the backs or book flaps of the books I intend to review. I like to keep a fresh mind open and to come across a book without any expectations or any plot points given away. But in the case of "Felita", I made an exception. I read that the book was all about a girl's move from her predominantly Puerto Rican neighborhood into a "better" German/Irish neighborhood and the strife that occurs there. And yes, that is part of the book. But what's remarkable about "Felita" is that its more an examination of separate events in Felita's life than a single one that defines her. Her confrontation with racism is, in some ways, just as important as her ways of dealing with the death of her beloved abuelita. This book is one to be taken as a whole. Not glorifying a single plot point. In the course of a year, Felita has a lot to deal with. First there's her family's move to a neighborhood that will provide good schools for Felita and her brothers. When the neighbors turn out to be prejudiced and not afraid to make their threats physical, the family is forced to move back to their old area at a bit of a loss. Then there's the fire that burns down poor Old Bernie's candy shop. Felita also has to deal with her supposed best friend stealing of the lead in the school play out from under everyone's nose. Fortunately, Felita's grandmother, Abuelita, is there to listen to everything her granddaughter has to say and to offer advice. But when Abuelita becomes ill, it's Felita who must find the courage to continue on. The book's an excellent follow-up to the slightly similar, "My Name is Maria Isabel". Both books involve Puerto Rican girls dealing with the problems and prejudices of the adults around them. But "Maria Isabel" is a much younger reader while "Felita" is the perfect reading level for fourth to fifth graders. When I read it, I was initially shocked at the degree of hatred leveled at Felita's family after their move. The book was written in 1979, so it's debatable whether or not you'd find this level of prejudice in any large urban city with a significant Latin American community. Certainly you might find some small growls, but nothing like the concentrated effort on the part of the people found here anymore. One review of this book posed the worry that maybe the children reading this book would automatically dislike Germans and Irish because of their actions here. This is, to say the least, unlikely. At no point does Felita point to her neighbors and say, "I hate those Irish and those Germans!". It's mentioned that that's who originally populated the area. Nothing more. The book is an interesting series of vignettes in the life of a single girl. And it reads as beautifully today as it did in the late 70s. The writing is clear, crisp, and easy to understand. Children will definitely agree with Felita on everything from her anger at her nasty neighbors to her hurt feelings when her best friend doesn't even

Felita Review

Felita is a story of a Puerto Rican family struggling to give their children a brighter future in the face of racism and prejudice. I think these are important issues that need to be addressed with children, in the classroom or in the home. I found it especially poignant that the children immediately accepted Felita as a friend, but it was the adults that rejected differences and cultivated the prejudice in their children. I am confused about the previous review stating that this book is appropriate for chidren ages 4-8. The back of the book states that it is for children 7-11 years of age and the top of this page states that it is appropriate for ages 9-12. Children of these ages should become familiar with short chapter books such as this one. Overall, I found this to be a good addition to a culturally diverse selection of childrens books-- one perspective to add to the many that make up life in the United States.