Lupita, the oldest of eight siblings, is used to taking the lead—and staying busy behind the scenes to help keep everyone together. But when she discovers Mami has been diagnosed with cancer, Lupita is terrified by the possibility of losing her mother, the anchor of their close-knit Mexican American

family. Suddenly Lupita must face a whole new set of challenges, with new roles to play, and no one is handing her the script.

In the midst of juggling high school classes, finding her voice as an actress, and dealing with friends who don’t always understand, Lupita desperately wants to support Mami in whatever way she can. While Papi is preoccupied with caring for Mami, Lupita takes charge of her siblings. As Lupita struggles

to keep the family afloat, she escapes the chaos at home by writing in the shade of a mesquite tree.

Overwhelmed by change, she seeks refuge in the healing power of words.

Told with honest emotion in evocative free verse, Lupita’s journey is both heartwrenching and hopeful. Under the Mesquite is an empowering story about the testing of family bonds, the strength of a teenage girl navigating pain and hardship with surprising resilience, and the kind of love that cannot be uprooted.