The Pecan Sheller

By Lupe Ruiz-Flores

Book Overview

Winner of the Pura Belpr Children's Author Award

A Kirkus Best Middle-Grade Book of the Year

Junior Library Guild Selection

In 1930s San Antonio, thirteen-year-old Petra dreams of going to college and becoming a writer.

But with her beloved father dead, two younger siblings to care for, and a stepmother struggling to make ends meet, Petra has to drop out of school to shell pecans at a factory. Hoping it's only temporary, she tries not to despair over the grueling work conditions. But after the unhealthy environment leads to tragedy and workers' already low wages are cut, Petra knows things need to change. She and her coworkers go on strike for higher wages and safer conditions, risking everything they have for the hope of a better future.

"Heart-warming and enraging in equal parts, this important American story reveals the power of family, community, and hope."--Laurie Halse Anderson, New York Times-bestselling author

"A powerful, moving story explores the little-known but important story of the six-week pecan shellers' strike."--starred, Booklist

"A poignantly, beautifully written tale."--starred, Kirkus Reviews

"Intimate and well-researched depictions of the Pecan Shellers Strike of 1938 and its impact on Mexican descendants and beyond."--starred, Publishers Weekly

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0D6KR93J1
• ISBN13: 9798765610527
• Release Date: April 2025
• Publisher: Carolrhoda Books (R)
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.6" x 7.8"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9