Under the Same Sky

by Cynthia C. DeFelice

Book Overview

A teenager discovers racism and romance on his father's farm For his fourteenth birthday, Joe Pedersen wants a motorbike that costs nearly a thousand dollars. But his mom says the usual birthday gift... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0374480656
• Release Date: April 2005
• Publisher: Square Fish
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.8" x 0.6" x 5.0"

Customer Reviews

Emma's Review

Under the Same Sky Recently, I read a great book called "Under the Same Sky" by Cynthia DeFelice. It is a realistic fiction piece set on a present day New York farm. The book revolves around a fourteen year old boy named Joe. He is your average teenage farm boy except that he hates farming. He is working with a Mexican crew. Some of the crew members are Manuel the crew leader, Luisa his cousin whom Joe likes, Mula who is very lazy and David who has one arm. They all work for Joe's father. Joe's family is his mom, dad and two sisters- LuAnn who is older and Meg who is younger. The story is that Joe really wants a motor bike for his birthday. So he asks his dad who is not willing to pay the $800 that the bike costs. So to teach Joe the value of a dollar, he tells him he can work with the Mexican crew on the farm this summer. Joe grudgingly accepts the offer, knowing there is no other way for a fourteen year old to earn money. At first he is very slow and bad at working in the fields. He feels that he can't keep up with everyone else. Also Joe is having a hard time concentrating on his work because he has a crush on Luisa. As the summer goes on though, Joe gets better and better at working. All of a sudden the summer is stopped with a bang. When the I.N.S comes, it is discovered that Luisa, Rafael and Frank are illegal immigrants who have to leave America. They must decide whether to stay or leave. My favorite of the story was when Joe's mom was explaining to him about the immigration system. The author said something that everyone who is against migrant workers should hear. She talked about the fact that people think that Mexicans are stealing jobs but really there are not a lot of people in this country willing to do back breaking labor for what is considered low pay. In the story Joe's mom had placed ads in the local newspaper looking for workers, but not one person answered. That really made me think about migrant workers and illegal immigration. I would recommend this book to anybody who is interested in stories about the plight of Mexican farm workers or if you like realistic fiction. You can learn a lot about farming and differences in people's lives and beliefs. It is a great book with an even greater message. I loved it and you probably will too.

Austin the great has a review

Austin's Book Review LA #2 11/20/06 I read a great book titled Under The Same Sky by Cynthia DeFelice. It is a realistic fiction book that could possibly happening now somewhere in the United States. The book takes place in the countries of New York State. The main characters in the story were Joe (the farmer's son: 14), Jim (the farm owner and Joe's dad: old), Manuel (one of the migrant workers from Mexico: 16), and Luisa (Manuel's cousin also from Mexico: 14). In the book you learn a lot about migrant workers. Like why they don't work in Mexico, why Americans give them a hard time and what they do with their paychecks. At the beginning of the book Joe doesn't really care about the migrant workers but at the end he risks his life to save them. The main problem is when the I.N.S. (border patrol) comes to the farm to make sure all the workers went into the United States Legally. Unfortunately 3 of the workers have been caught red handed. All I can tell you is they get away without getting arrested. My favorite part of the book is when Joe (the farmer's son) drives his father's truck on the road at 35mph on a high way where he was supposed to be going 65mph. All of a sudden a car pulls up behind his car and doesn't put in any effort to get by his. Joe is very scared so he goes faster but that was the wrong thing to do. The sirens of the police car go on and he is caught driving a unlicensed vehicle without a license. If you read the book you can find out what happens next. This is my favorite part of the book because it keeps you hanging. It really kept me hanging probibobly like I'm keeping you hanging. After you read what happens you with be sweating with relief. I really liked this book because it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time I read it. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes books that are intense.

Powerful

This book is awesome. I read it in one night. Everything started with a motorbike. Joe Penderson figured his parents would give it to him for his birthday. Instead,they gave him a job. Planting cabbage,picking strawberries,weeding and hoeing with a crew of Mexicans. Joe thinks it is a lousy way to spend a summer. At the end of the summer,however,he thinks differently. He realizes that no matter how people look,think and act,we are ALL under the same sky.

See How the Rest of the World Lives

I thought this was a great book. Once I started reading it, I didn't want to put it down. The characters are well-drawn, especially Joe and Luisa. The ending is quite suspenseful. The situations are thought-provoking. This is one of the best multicultural books I have ever read. I recommend it highly, especially for every American kid who feels deprived because they don't have enough.