Under the Same Sky

by Cynthia C. DeFelice

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 is fifty dollars, and his dad wants Joe to earn the rest of the money himself and 'find out what a real day's work feels like.' Angry that his father doesn't think he's up to the job, Joe joins the Mexican laborers who come to his father's farm each summer. Manuel, the crew boss, is only sixteen, yet highly regarded by the other workers and the Pedersen family. Joe's resentment grows when his father treats Manuel as an equal. Compared with Manuel, Joe knows nothing about planting and hoeing cabbage and picking strawberries. But he toughs out the long, grueling days in the hot sun, determined not only to make money but to gain the respect of his stern, hardworking father. Joe soon learns about the problems and fears the Mexicans live with every day, and, before long, thanks to Manuel, his beautiful cousin Luisa, and the rest of the crew, Joe comes to see the world in a whole different way.

Genres: Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Contemporary, Historical Fiction, Middle Grade

Hardcover

First published April 7, 2003

About the author

Cynthia DeFelice is the author of many bestselling titles for young readers, including the novels Wild Life, The Ghost of Cutler Creek, Signal, and The Missing Manatee, as well as the picture books, One Potato, Two Potato, and Casey in the Bath. Her books have been nominated for an Edgar Allen Poe Award and listed as American Library Association Notable Children's Books and Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year, among numerous other honors.

Cynthia was born in Philadelphia in 1951. As a child, she was always reading. Summer vacations began with a trip to the bookstore, where she and her sister and brothers were allowed to pick out books for their summer reading. “To me,” she says, “those trips to the bookstore were even better than the rare occasions when we were given a quarter and turned loose at the penny-candy store on the boardwalk.” Cynthia has worked as a bookseller, a barn painter, a storyteller, and a school librarian.

When asked what she loves best about being an author, she can’t pick just one answer: “I love the feeling of being caught up in the lives of the characters I am writing about. I enjoy the challenge of trying to write as honestly as I can, and I find enormous satisfaction in hearing from readers that something I wrote touched them, delighted them, made them shiver with fear or shake with laughter, or think about something new.” Cynthia and her husband live in Geneva, New York.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/cynthi...

Reviews

[Tena Edlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread: November, 2024
I still love this book. It's an everybody book, and I'm really glad I chose it as an option for literature circles this fall. My groups had excellent discussions. I can't get kids to read this book when I just book talk it for independent reading, so I'm thrilled I found a way to get it in kids' hands and in kids' heads.

[JennyC · Rating 4 out of 5]

UNDER THE SAME SKY, Cynthia DeFelice. This story takes place on a farm 8 miles from town in the middle of nowhere. The main characters include Joe and his family, Manuel, Luisa, and the farm crew. I picked this book because it seemed to be the most interesting.

Joe wanted a very expensive gift for his 14th birthday. His dad thought it was time for him to start working for the things he wanted so for the summer Hoe started working on the farm. Over time he and Luisa talked about the different things they were going to do with their money and Joe soon realized what he wanted wasn’t so important.

The book had a very good ending, Joe opened his heart and matured very much. My favorite quote in the story was on page 214, close to the end when Manuel told Joe Luisa had a message for him and she wanted him to know, “she was looking at the same sky.”

I enjoyed the book. Some places seemed to drag in but in the end it all tied together to make a great story. If you’re into drama and a little bit of romance this may be the book for you.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The migrant farm worker experience, seen from the point of view of the farmer's son. Joe learns compassion and gains a new understanding of morality after working alongside Manuel and his cousin Luisa. He gains a new perspective when he witnesses some ugly incidents directed at the farm workers, and has to decide whose side he is on in the dilemma that farmers and the illegal aliens they depend on are caught up in.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Cynthia DeFelice's works for upper elementary and middle school readers. This book would be an excellent way for a young person to understand the migrant dilemma playing out in front of us right now. Novels give us time to walk around in each others' shoes and feel hurt, compassion, problem-solving, moral ambiguity, and so much more. Highly recommended.

[Lucia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a really good historical book. It doesn't have so much information it's like a text book, but it has enough information to learn about Mexican immigration. The story is a really good one, that could happen in real life, while learning.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very moving , sensitive story about immigration and migrant workers. This is considered a middle grade reader but is a great read for all ages.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. Will definitely read to my kids when they get older. Like it says, "This story will make readers think twice about their own prejudices."

[MJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's about a boy who really wants a moter bike but it is so expensive so he has to work on the farm.

[Shelly Beauchamp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read aloud with my 14 and 10 year olds. Great book to explain immigration and Mexican/American relationships. Excellent storyline too.

[Zaira]

What is the rising action

[Jen S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story. Super relatable for students. As a cool bonus, it takes place near here!

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meh I was forced to read it but Meh.

[Audrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I could see this being useful as part of a middle school unit on migration and farm labor, but only if it also included texts incorporating actual voices from people with those experiences. The protagonist, the white son of a farm owner, spends part of his summer working with the crew on his dad's farm to save money for a motorbike. And then, obviously, through watching their struggles he Learns About Himself and realizes the cool, popular kid he considers his best friend is racist.

The narrative is engaging enough, and it does bring up issues like minimum wage, immigration, the INS, and how undocumented people are at risk of wage/labor exploitation.

Problematic things: The protagonist really begins developing empathy after he develops a crush on the Mexican girl who is part of the crew, so in addition to the white boy's burden narrative, there is some pro to-fetishization, too. There are also ethnic slurs being used by the racist characters, which only kind of get addressed because the protagonist has a limited understanding of why they're problematic. (He also, at one point asserts: "There are no good jobs in Mexico, in case you didn't know.")

Also, the protagonist's little sister names a giant stuffed panda "Jing-Ming-Ling" because "[i]t sounds kind of Chinese."

So yes, if you were to teach this book, I hope you'd be prepared to have discussions about it. But that's why literature, right?

[TuckerT · Rating 5 out of 5]

Under the same sky was a good book, it is about a boy named joe who just turned 14 and is wanting a mortorbike that costs $899 dollars but his mom and dad quickly turned him down. When is father refuses to purchase the bike for joe, he offers an alternative: joe can earn money by joining the Sumer migrant workers on his family farm... I think this story will make you think twice about their own prejudices. Soon when joe realizes that it's harder than it looks and lens that if he really wants this Motorbike he will have to work the whole summer. Around the July he is called little boss and picks up some Spanish from the works and becomes friends with all of them. Then in Augusts the I.N.S shows up and asks for the migrants papers joe finds out that 3 of the workers luisa, frank, and Rafael had fake papers. But they gave them a warning and left a couple weeks later the I.N.S comes back and luisa, Rafael, and frank run in the woods to hide.the I.N.S could not find them and they chose to leave but keep an eye on them. One night joe and Manuel "the boss of the migrants and also luisa cousin" takes one of the farm trucks and picks up luisa, frank, Rafael and takes them to a farm safely. Now they have to get back to the farm but soon a car pulled up behind them and flicked on his lights it was a cop car, the man gave joe a ticket and said they would have to go to a family court but they did get back to the farm.

[Tina P. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Generally, i enjoyed reading this book, besides of some things that always were unclear to me. One of the things that i didn't like was that i thought that the characters, specifically the immigrant workers, weren't developed and the nicknames where confusing because each had multiple different nicknames. I did, however enjoy the small passages in spanish, the moral of the story, and also the strategies that the main character had to do to get the motorcycle, different from his old friend. Talking about that i really liked that the main character raised his self of steem and realized that he was better then his "old friend". I can relate to that and the idea of satisfaction he felt once he earned his new motorcycle. I recommend this book to anyone that likes books with overcoming a fear, or something that is hard for you, also to people who like reading fiction books that have comedy, action, drama , and a little romance. Also this book was a sunshine state book ; just in case your one of those people that only read sunshine state books.

[Yalil Nieves · Rating 3 out of 5]

Under the Same Sky

Life is not fair! It’s not fair! Can you believe Justin Bieber got a customized motorcycle for his birthday and he complained about having the worst birthday ever? I cannot believe it! For my fourteenth birthday I asked my father for a motorbike and instead gave me $50.00 and lectured me about how a motorcycle costs too much and that if I wanted it I would have to work for it. Unbelievable! I have to work at my family’s farm to earn the rest of the money. I wish I had a father like Justin Bieber’s. You know what? Fine, I will work at the farm alongside the Mexican laborers who come here to work. I will show my father I can work just as hard. I will show him and everyone who doubts me. By the end of the summer I will have the $1000.00 I need. I can do it. I can do. I can do it. Can I really do it? Will I endure all those hours of work in the farm? Am I sure I want to give up my summer for a motorcycle? Can it really be that hard?

[Camdend · Rating 5 out of 5]

the book under the same sky by cynthia defelice is fiction, was published in 2003 and takes place in California on a farm. the main person is Joe Pedersen and all he wanted for his birthday is a moterbike that cost $899+tax and his father wants him to work on the farm for the money. Joe is now working with migrant works from mexico and he thinks its gonna be boring but he learns that not all work is boring and that he may not want the motorbike after all. When joe meets the crew he thinks that they are different from him and that he doesnt belong but he learns everyone is alike and that everyone belongs.

[Doug Cannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book myself, then read it to my children a short time later.

It's a great book about a young boy understanding the values of hard work. He also learns about illegal immigrants, and the grey lines surrounding those issues.

In my opinion, anyone who says that immigration is a an easy black-or-white answer has not studied the subject nor spent enough time dealing with it honestly. There are many grey issues, and this book brings out many of them.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really really liked this book. I liked the characters and the lessons they learned. I liked the subject -- immigrants, particularly the illegal kind. This book took a controversial subject and put it into terms that middle school or upper elementary children would understand. It doesn't preach, and it doesn't even give a clear "side" to take, but it gives the reader enough information to make their own decision. I'd recommend this book to youngsters and oldsters alike.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. I thought it was an good introduction to part of the (very complicated and complex) immigration issues currently facing the US. Ideal for middle grade and junior high readers, it asks questions concernening right and wrong. Do you follow the law or do you follow your heart?

[Andrea Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a pretty good basic introduction to immigration issues and migrant workers, but it was too simplistic and too sugarcoated in favor of migrant workers that it failed to grab me. And I'm pro gentler laws for illegal migrant workers. It would probably be a good book for a seventh/eighth grader as a springboard for a more serious discussion of the issue.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was really cool for a normal kid to work on the farm for a summer. I really liked how he became friends with the migrants. It really made me count my blessings about being born in America and not having to be in the difficult situation that the migrants were in. I also learned about illegal immigrants and migrant workers. Read it and you won't be disappointed.

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A suggestion from my nephew who read it for school. It is a fun book about a boy working on his dad's farm with a group of Mexican workers. Very sweet, but also powerful. It is a great way to better understand the immigration issue and learn some empathy towards migrant workers, and also challenges adolescents on the topic of when is it okay to break the law.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was very well done. Gave me a whole new perspective of what it is like to be a migrant worker. The main character, Joe, grew as a person as he was "sentenced" by his Dad to work on the farm and interacted with the migrant workers as their peer. I loved the fact that his attitudes changed over the course of the summer.

[Mimi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one wasn't half bad. It makes you see things from an unexpected point of view, and even though the events are unlikely, the book is still awesome. The title sounds like something out of an anime...

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story for intermediate and middle school readers! A like-able, 14 year old male protagonist and a fast-paced story. Local author, local setting, local issues. A wonderful launching point to talk to kids about immigration, where your food comes from, and prejudice.

[Monique · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really made you think. Most about how people are influenced by family and how those kind of prejudices grow ever deeper as they grow up to be prejudiced adults. Sad, twisted cycle that man cannot break(fully). Really loved the Joe guy and the main 'boss' on the farm.

[Chey · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent to see the plit of so many illegal immigrants great heart warming story ,a little romance and bullying .I recommend as a lesson.

[Mariana Tukia · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was an ok book. . .. .

[Mishal · Rating 4 out of 5]

i finally finished this book and i loved the message of it too, definetely one of my favorites!