A Sea of Lemon Trees: The Corrido of Roberto Alvarez

Aguila, Maria Dolores. A Sea of Lemon Trees: The Corrido of Roberto Alvarez
September 16, 2025 by Roaring Brook Press
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

This novel in verse takes us to San Diego in 1931, where Roberto Alverez is attending the Lemon Grove Grammar School. He has some good friends, and enjoys his studies, which he knows are important. When the students of Mexican descent are told that they will now be attending the Olive Street School, which is a converted horse barn, the parents aren't happy. All but one, a farrier who worries that not complying with the demand will hurt his business, refuse to send their children. Eventually, they are faced with the threat of deportation if they don't. The families appeal to the Mexican Consulate, and get help as long as the families help pay for the legal fees. Roberto is made the lead defendant. Raids are prevalent around La Colonia, the Mexican-American neighborhood, and one of Roberto's friends, David, is deported with his family. The trial is difficult, with teachers such as Mrs. Markland wrongly stating that all of the Mexican students are behind in their studies, but the judge eventually decides in favor of Roberto, and the students are sent back to Lemon Grove. 
Strengths: While this topic has been covered in Brimner and Gonzales' Without Separation: Prejudice, Segregation, and the Case of Roberto Alvarez, it is a fascinating and timely one, and this fictional treatment will give slightly older readers a first hand look at a historical event. Readers will be able to put themselves in Roberto's shoes and imagine what their lives would look like if they were suddenly made to go to a different, much inferior, school. The story of the Lemon Grove school is an interesting one, and reading this book might encourage students to investigate this case, and similar cases like Mendez vs. Westminster School District. 
Weaknesses: While I very much appreciated the inclusion of Spanish words, there were quite a number of them, and I was not always able to intuit the meaning from context. Middle school students who don't know Spanish might want to have a dictionary by their side while reading this. 
What I really think: It is sad when history repeats itself, and given the current political zeitgeist, this is a topical read, along with other books about inequities in the educational system like Conkling's Sylvia and Aki, Hitchcock's Ruby Lee and Me, or the nonfiction We Are Your Children Too: Black Students, White Supremacists, and the Battle for America's Schools in Prince Edward County, Virginia by Pearson.