Gabi, A Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero

Quintero, I. (2014). Gabi, a girl in pieces. El Paso, TX: Cinco Puntos Press.

In Gabi, A Girl in Pieces, Quintero creates a flawed character who is making her way in the world as best she can. Gabi is an overweight 16- year old high school senior who dreams of dating popular boys and going to Berkeley. Unfortunately, her mother doesn’t think that “good Mexican girls” should attend college unless they are trying to be or act like a “white girl”. She also thinks college is for “bad girls.” But her life is so full of demands and everyday serious drama due to her family’s roots, heritage, and believes. She’s constantly thinking of her weight, yet always thinking of food since she’s “Gordita.” It is not easy being Latina.

It is amazing how she can even get up in the morning after all that she’s experiencing. Her father is a drug addict who moves in and out of her life. She hates and loves him in equal measure. Her mother does her best to keep the household together but holds Gabi and her brother to different standards.  It is sad to see that her brother gets off easy for delinquent behavior while Gabi gets blamed for things she is not responsible for. She’s also coping with her best friend’s situation as Cindy gets pregnant by German, and Sebastian, Gabi’s other friend, gets kicked out of his house when he tells his parents he is gay.

Gabi wants to be a writer and her writing talents are nurtured by her creative writing teacher who encourages her to write poetry and perform it in local coffee houses. In one of the poems, Gabi writes about what it was like having a grandmother with Alzheimer's disease. In another poem, she explores her feelings about her father and his addiction. Through poetry Gabi finds her voice.

In the end, she can’t walk with her graduating class for slapping a rapist as she says it herself. She’s suspended and can’t participate in any school related activities. She sits at Pepe’s House of Wings waiting for Martin, her boyfriend, thinking of her possibilities to still attend Berkeley with Martin since he has been accepted too.

While I saw the year through Gabi’s life, I also witness her growth right up to the point where she can finally stand up for herself and as the reader, I know she will be able to make it on her own in college. Life and her everyday harsh experiences mold her into a stronger Gabi. It is not easy overcoming stereotypes for been Latina or Hispanic but she surpasses them like a champion and reflects on the positive sides of her experiences. I’m Hispanic and unfortunately, the topics discussed in this book are subjects I’ve seen growing up in a Hispanic family.

This book could be used by a high school language arts teacher or history teacher to teach stereotypes surrounding Hispanics during Hispanic month. Students ages 14 through 18 could easily be motivated to read Gabi, A Girl in Pieces. Students with a Hispanic or Latino background could easily make a connection to Gabi’s everyday experiences.

If you enjoyed reading Gabi, A Girl in Pieces, which consists of 284 pages, perhaps you may enjoy reading, Cool Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Growing Up Latino in the United States by Lorie Mary Carlson, here are poems about families and parties, insults and sad memories, hot dogs and mangos, the sweet syllables of Spanish and the snag-toothed traps of English. Read about the glory and pain of being Latino American.