Migrant Daughter: Coming of Age as a Mexican American Woman

by Frances Esquibel Tywoniak, Mario T. García

Taking us from the open spaces of rural New Mexico and the fields of California's Great Central Valley to the intellectual milieu of student life in Berkeley during the 1950s, this memoir, based on an oral history by Mario T. García, is the powerful and moving testimonio of a young Mexican American woman's struggle to rise out of poverty. Migrant Daughter is the coming-of-age story of Frances Esquibel Tywoniak, who was born in Spanish-speaking New Mexico, moved with her family to California during the Depression to attend school and work as a farm laborer, and subsequently won a university scholarship, becoming one of the few Mexican Americans to attend the University of California, Berkeley, at that time. Giving a personal perspective on the conflicts of living in and between cultures, this eloquent story provides a rare glimpse into the life of a young Mexican American woman who achieved her dreams of obtaining a university education.

In addition to the many fascinating details of everyday life the narrative provides, Mario T. García's introduction contextualizes the place and importance of Tywoniak's life. Both introduction and narrative illustrate the process by which Tywoniak negotiated her relation to ethnic identity and cultural allegiances, the ways in which she came to find education as a channel for breaking with fieldwork patterns of life, and the effect of migration on family and culture. This deeply personal memoir portrays a courageous Mexican American woman moving between many cultural worlds, a life story that at times parallels, and at times diverges from, the real life experiences of thousands of other, unnamed women.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Historical

292 pages, Paperback

First published December 18, 1999

Reviews

[Victoria Bridenbecker · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Migrant Daughter is an interesting story about a young girl named Frances who moved from New Mexico to California to begin college at California State University, Berkeley. She experienced struggles with racism, ethnicity, and immigration. I highly recommend this book.

[Jack Dixon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable book to read. Frances is such an admirable individual who surmounted such difficult obstacles and a life that she desired - truly inspirational!

[Alli Dubin · Rating 4 out of 5]

incredibly inspiring without ever being over-sentimental. this would be my fastball down the middle if i was a teacher trying to get through the importance of education to my students.

[Yazzy Galvao · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deep and insightful narrative that I personally related a lot too.

[Ava Drosos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does a fantastic way of portraying Frances’s journey with independence, and how it can be both liberating and extremely difficult emotionally when breaking away from cultural norms.

[Deborah Cleaves · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspirational memoir of a woman who moved to California during the dust bowl era from New Mexico, later earning a scholarship to Berkeley. Wonderful examination of living between cultural worlds during that era.

[Isabella Moll · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a great book to read as a Mexican American myself. I could relate with so much of her life and connect with the different aspects that she went through as a young girl, teen and adult.

A great book for Anyone who wants to learn more about the culture of Mexicans and mixed families. As well as these families raising their children in America and how that impacts their children growing up in a different country that has different values, societal norms etc.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Migrant Daughter recounts a powerful memoir of Fran, a young Mexican American, as she migrates from New Mexico to California and attempts to build a life for herself. Fran is inspiring and motivating as she unapologetically strives to carve her own path in a world where her race provides intricate obstacles. Her ability to recount these details of her young life is beyond impressive. I found the circumstances of Fran’s young life to be unrelatable yet her feelings and thoughts spoke to me. More specifically was that I saw her situation through the lenses of my parents and felt an undeniable appreciation and love for them.

I do wish that at some points the writing didn’t seem like it was meant for a textbook. Many moments were powerful but I could see myself having a more intimate connection if this was written in a narrative form.

[Julia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really did not like the writing style of this book. It's like what you would see in an essay with a lot of "futhermore" and "however" and blatant explanations of what each experience taught her. Another autobiography I've seen this in is Misty May's Digging Deep in Volleyball and Life. I just don't like this style of writing at all. I prefer more subtlety and structure that is more like that of a story than that of a series of academic essays.