Efrén must learn to make do in this story about immigration, friendships, and more. Being born in the US, Efrén has US citizenship and thus can continue living in the country. But for his Amá, it isn't that simple. With no visa, Efrén's mom is in constant danger of being deported, but when this happens, Efrén's life falls apart. Now his Apá must work two shifts, one late into the night, to raise money for Ama's return, and it is up to Efrén to manage his extremely excitable siblings, Max and Mía. This includes taking them to school, bringing them home from school, making them breakfast, playing hide-and-seek, etc. Efrén's life becomes even more complicated as he hides his secret from his best friend and the only White person at school, David, and a girl at school, Jennifer Huertas, is deported too. Efrén knows he has to do something, but his attempt to raise awareness rips apart his friendship with David. Efrén, the only person with citizenship, aside from Max and Mía, is faced with making a solo trip to the Tijuanan restaurant where Amá now works. I really enjoyed this powerful tale of coping with life's challenges. Additionally, the dialogue is well-structured and natural-sounding. There were some funny moments in this book, but I feel like there could have been more humor. The writing style was okay, but not too good. Overall, this is a good realistic fiction book about Mexican families.

In this book, six sixth-graders form their own secret society devoted to Egypt-related things. In the beginning, April moves from Hollywood to an unspecified Californian city famous for its university–her mother is busy pursuing a career as an esteemed actress. April, considered eccentric by many, makes friends with Melanie, who lives in April's grandmother's apartment; they discover their shared interest for imagining, and they invent the titular Egypt Game. Melanie's younger brother, a girl living in the apartment, and two boys from school all become involved in the Egypt game. But soon, a murder occurs, and the children are all cautioned to stay indoors–and the main suspect is the Professor, the reclusive man, in whose storage yard the Egyptians worship Egyptian Gods. Who is this strange human? And, who is the real criminal? This is a great book, full of good dialogue and realistic characters. It's witty and the writing is good too, but at times it seems a little dated, such as when the characters say "fink" and other weird words (this was written in 1967). I would recommend this book to people who like realistic fiction, as it focuses more on the friendships developing between the Egyptians than the actual mystery, though it is still important to the plot.

In this book, six sixth-graders form their own secret society devoted to Egypt-related things. In the beginning, April moves from Hollywood to an unspecified Californian city famous for its university–her mother is busy pursuing a career as an esteemed actress. April, considered eccentric by many, makes friends with Melanie, who lives in April's grandmother's apartment; they discover their shared interest for imagining, and they invent the titular Egypt Game. Melanie's younger brother, a girl living in the apartment, and two boys from school all become involved in the Egypt game. But soon, a murder occurs, and the children are all cautioned to stay indoors–and the main suspect is the Professor, the reclusive man, in whose storage yard the Egyptians worship Egyptian Gods. Who is this strange human? And, who is the real criminal? This is a great book, full of good dialogue and realistic characters. It's witty and the writing is good too, but at times it seems a little dated, such as when the characters say "fink" and other weird words (this was written in 1967). I would recommend this book to people who like realistic fiction, as it focuses more on the friendships developing between the Egyptians than the actual mystery, though it is still important to the plot.