The First Rule of Punk

I saw The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Perez on a list of winners/honors of the Pura Belpre Award (for Latino/Latina authors whose books celebrate the Latino cultural experience). This book is about 12-year-old Malu who has to move with her mom to Chicago for two years--leaving her dad and everything else she loves behind. She struggles to find her place in life and at her new school--she's half-Mexican but doesn't speak much Spanish and loves punk.

This was a fun read and well written book. I enjoyed the various characters (especially Mrs. Hidalgo) and enjoyed how Malu was just kind of a classic 12-year-old. The story was engaging and kept me reading, and while I didn't enjoy it quite as much as some other books, I'm still glad I read it. I think this would be a good book for my 9-year-old to read, and I like that it gives a glimpse of a culture outside our own.

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)