Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews (Tue Feb 28 00:00:00 CST 2023)

Romance blooms against a backdrop of adversity and environmental conservation efforts.It's 2018, and Soleida, a 16-year-old Cuban girl, lives with her artist parents, who create sculptures protesting government laws that criminalize some forms of artistic expression. When a climate change–fueled hurricane destroys their home and exposes the art in their garden to authorities, her parents are arrested, and Soleida must flee, seeking asylum. Cuban American Dariel, also 16, has traveled to Costa Rica with his Abuelo to help him write the story of los caminantes, Cuban migrants fleeing oppression who have been stranded at the border with Nicaragua, unable to continue their journeys. Dariel comes from a wealthy celebrity family in California and has been affected by climate change in the form of dangerous wildfires that destroyed his home. When the two teens first meet in a refugee camp in the Costa Rican jungle, Soleida is traumatized by her journey, and Dariel is unable to connect with her. But slowly they begin a relationship centered on a mutual reverence for nature and a proclivity for the arts-Soleida is a painter, and Dariel is a musician. Chapters with alternating perspectives move the story forward briskly. Luscious verse and beautiful descriptions of the flora and fauna bring attention to the impacts of the climate crisis and the urgent need for change.Inspiring and hopeful; young love and the call to action resonate. (author's note) (Verse novel. 12-17)

School Library Journal Starred Review (Fri Dec 01 00:00:00 CST 2023)

Gr 6 Up —Amid the verdant foliage of a secret sculpture garden, 16-year-old Soleida and her Cuban dissident parents try to flee after their illegal artwork is revealed by the ravages of a storm. Disguised as tourists, they arrive at the airport, where her parents are apprehended as she boards the plane. Lifting off should feel like freedom, but Soleida feels trapped and alone, a refugee in flight. At the same time in the California hills, teen Dariel and his famous telenovela-actor parents flee the wildfires that ravage their lavish home and threaten the surrounding wildlife. Both cataclysmic events were caused by global climate change, leaving the teens uprooted, desperate and angry. Drawn together by tragedy and determination, the survivors undertake a human rights campaign to help free incarcerated dissidents, and a reforestation project to protect endemic and endangered flora and fauna. The Cuban teens are from different backgrounds, but their divergent paths cross in Costa Rica, where, like lush rainforest flowers, a romance blooms. Masterful storyteller Engle uses non-rhyming verse in concise stanzas, isolating single words for emphasis. Told in alternating chapters, lyrical verse flows in evocative forms. Symbolism is evident throughout with references to birds and wings for flight and freedom. Other themes center around climate change and activism, connecting with one's roots, and the transformative and healing power of music and song. VERDICT Readers who enjoyed Engle's past works will get swept away, and new readers are given many points of entrance and connection in this relevant and poignant work. Hand to fans of Ellen Hagan's Don't Call Me a Hurricane .—Rebecca Jung

ALA Booklist (Mon May 08 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Pura Belpré winner Engle touches on topical climate and social issues in her newest verse novel, told from two viewpoints during 2018 and 2019. The first belongs to a young Cuban girl named Soleida, whose parents face criminal charges for breaking Ley 349, which censors artists from expressing themselves. She is also concerned about natural disasters occurring in her country. The second viewpoint comes from Dariel, a Cuban American boy from California with celebrity parents. To escape the destruction of wildfires, Dariel's grandfather invites him to Costa Rica to help refugees. Thus, Soleida's and Dariel's paths cross, leading to a bond that builds on trust and trauma recovery. Drawing on their talents for music and art, both teens beautifully and uniquely express themselves as their romance unfolds amid real-world catastrophes. Readers will admire the determination of both young activists as they rebel to make the world a safer place to inhabit. A must-buy for schools and public libraries eager to build on their collection of social issues.

Horn Book (Tue May 09 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Can a "tocororo-girl" and a "song-boy" find love in the mountains of Costa Rica? In this novel set in 2018, two teens from vastly different worlds tell their stories in free verse poems, alternating points of view. Soleida, a talented painter, must leave Cuba after a catastrophic hurricane destroys her home and her parents are imprisoned when the "art police" discover their unsanctioned sculptures. Her journey is harrowing and mirrors the plight of many present-day "climate migrants." In California, Dariel, a gifted guitarist, flees the mansion he shares with his telenovela-star parents when wildfires destroy it. He accompanies his Cuban American abuelo to Costa Rica. The teens meet and begin to share their gifts of music and art. Dariel slowly uncovers Soleida's horrific story, and she begins to heal and feel empowered to search for her parents and help a cousin with a local reforestation project. Engle (Your Heart, My Sky, rev. 3/21) weaves a compelling love story balanced with an invitation to readers to consider the impact of climate change and the necessity for action now. She populates her poetry with vivid descriptions of many colorful bird species alongside lyrical references to musicians and poets giving us "something magical and scientific / at the same time." An author's note details the story's real-life inspirations. Sylvia Vardell

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

Romance blooms against a backdrop of adversity and environmental conservation efforts.It's 2018, and Soleida, a 16-year-old Cuban girl, lives with her artist parents, who create sculptures protesting government laws that criminalize some forms of artistic expression. When a climate change–fueled hurricane destroys their home and exposes the art in their garden to authorities, her parents are arrested, and Soleida must flee, seeking asylum. Cuban American Dariel, also 16, has traveled to Costa Rica with his Abuelo to help him write the story of los caminantes, Cuban migrants fleeing oppression who have been stranded at the border with Nicaragua, unable to continue their journeys. Dariel comes from a wealthy celebrity family in California and has been affected by climate change in the form of dangerous wildfires that destroyed his home. When the two teens first meet in a refugee camp in the Costa Rican jungle, Soleida is traumatized by her journey, and Dariel is unable to connect with her. But slowly they begin a relationship centered on a mutual reverence for nature and a proclivity for the arts-Soleida is a painter, and Dariel is a musician. Chapters with alternating perspectives move the story forward briskly. Luscious verse and beautiful descriptions of the flora and fauna bring attention to the impacts of the climate crisis and the urgent need for change.Inspiring and hopeful; young love and the call to action resonate. (author's note) (Verse novel. 12-17)