"Colin Hancock is giving his second chance his best shot. At 28, he's focused only on walking a straight line - getting his teaching degree, working out at the gym religiously, and avoiding all the places and people that proved so destructive in his earlier life. The last thing he's looking for is a serious relationship. But when Maria Sanchez crosses paths with him on a rainswept night in North Carolina, his plans are upended in a way that will rattle...

Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression.

Maria tries on her mother's wedding ring while helping make tamales for a Christmas family get together, but panic ensues when hours later, she realizes the ring is missing.

"The first time she left Freedom, Kansas, behind, she did it by doing everything right. This time, she'll hide from the large Mexican American family welcoming her home and work in secret to break the curse that's erased her magical life. Only by doing it all wrong can Gillian get herself and her two children away from the ghosts of her hometown by summer's end. Nicky Mendoza is an answer to her prayers. He was the practical solution to the problem...

Rafael tries to save his toys from his baby sister, Essie, by building a wall from shoeboxes, toilet paper rolls, and other household objects in this playful exploration of 3-D geometry and spatial reasoning.

When she and her family move from Mexico to the United States, eight-year-old Ana helps her mother adjust to the new situation by encouraging her to learn English.