Esperanza Ortega adores her family's beautiful El Rancho de las Rosas. Like her father, she loves the land, the grapes, the bird songs, even the servants, all part of her privileged life. But her contentment dissolves with her father's brutal murder. Forced to flee, 14-year-old Esperanza and her mother escape Mexico to a migrant camp in California with nothing more than the goodwill of their former servants. Trini Alvarado gives the lyrical text a sensitive reading, faithfully portraying Esperanza's transformation from a pampered, self-important rich girl to a generous and self-aware young woman. The richness of Alvarado's Spanish infuses the reading, and the text affords her an opportunity to display her beautiful singing voice, as well. Rich in history and culture, this novel is all the more successful in the audio format. T.B. (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine