Javier Zamora

Hai Dinh/Aden

a nine-year-old, he makes the 3,000-mile journey from El Salvador to the United States to reunite with his parents, who left years earlier due to the civil war. (Protagonist of the book).

mother figure to Javier during the long journey. She protects and cares for him, even pretending to be his mother in dangerous situations.

develop from a child's initial innocence into a mature understanding of migration's difficult reality.

The Reunion with His Parents: Javier's reunion with his parents in California after several challenges.

The first country the boy travels through after crossing the border from El Salvador. 

The starting point of the journey, where the boy leaves his home and extended family. 

The final destination of the journey, where the boy hopes to reach his parents. 

Part of speech: Noun

Definition: A student who has achieved the highest academic standing, usually based on their grade point average (GPA), within their graduating class. 

Sentence usage: "I'm my grade's valedictorian; I get a diploma every year for being the best student" (Zamora 6).

Part of speech: Noun

Definition: Called the cashew apple, better known in Central America as marañón, it ripens into a yellow or red structure about 5–11 cm (2–4+1⁄4 in) long. The true fruit of the cashew tree is a kidney-shaped or boxing glove-shaped drupe that grows at the end of the cashew apple.

Sentence usage: “I was playing by the marañón trees next to the mangos” (Zamora 14).

Part of speech: Noun

Definition: A slang term for a person who smuggles immigrants across the U.S. border for a fee.

Sentence usage: "Don Dago is the coyote who took Mom to La USA four years ago” (Zamora 6).

Impact: It contrast between a child's perception of the journey and the harsh reality.

Impact: It creates a powerful sense of foreboding from the very beginning.

Impact: This show his sense of reality, security, and family has been upended.

Impact: The innocence of Javier at the beginning then shift to a tone of anxiety is crucial for the reader's to understand Javier emotion.

cadejo, a spirit from Salvadoran folklore, as a protective force that travels with him.

Throughout the book, Javier encounters different dialects and slang as he passes through Guatemala and Mexico.