Esperanza Rising: A Graphic Novel - by Pam Muñoz Ryan (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

This timeless modern classic byNew York Timesbestseller and Newbery Honoree Pam Muñoz Ryan is now a stunning graphic novel!With cinematic illustrations by award-winning artist Andrés Vera Martínez, it is sure to engage and excite a new generation of readers.

In Mexico, Esperanza Ortega lives like princess: She has fancy dresses, a beautiful home in the bountiful region of Aguascalientes, and the promise of one day rising to Mama's position and presiding over all of El Rancho de las Rosas.

But a sudden tragedy shatters that dream, forcing Esperanza and Mama to flee to California and settle in a Mexican farm labor camp. There, they confront the challenges of hard work, finding acceptance, and financial difficulties. When Mama gets sick and a strike for better working conditions threatens to uproot their new life, Esperanza must find a way to rise above her circumstances--because Mama's life, and her own, depend on it.

Inspired by the author's grandmother's story, Esperanza Rising is a modern classic that has been embraced by millions of readers across the world since it first published in 2000. Esperanza Rising: The Graphic Novel is a faithful adaptation that will dazzle fans and is perfect for lovers of graphic novelizations of other award-winning classics such as Anne of Green Gables and A Wrinkle in Time. Brought richly to life with striking, masterfully composed visuals, it resonates with fresh meaning and speaks directly to today's readers.

About the Author

Pam Muñoz Ryan is the recipient of the NEA's Human and Civil Rights Award, the PEN Center USA Award, and the 2024 Children's Literature Legacy Award for her body of work. She was the 2018 and is the 2026 US nominee for the international Hans Christian Andersen Award. She received a Newbery Honor Medal and the Kirkus Prize for her New York Times bestselling novel, Echo. Her other celebrated novels, Esperanza Rising, The Dreamer, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi León, Paint the Wind, and Mañanaland, have received countless accolades, among them the Pura Belpré Award, the Jane Addams Children's Book Award, and the Américas Award. Her acclaimed picture books include Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride and the Sibert Honor book When Marian Sang, both illustrated by Brian Selznick, Mice and Beans illustrated by Joe Cepeda, and Tony Baloney illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham, as well as a beginning reader series featuring Tony Baloney. Ryan lives near San Diego, California, with her family. Visit Pam at www.PamMunozRyan.com.

Andrés Vera Martínez is a cartoonist and illustrator. He is the co-author of the graphic memoir, Little White Duck: A Childhood in China as well as the illustrator of the Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust and Monster Locker. Andrés' work has been recognized by The Society of Illustrators, American Illustration, 3x3, Junior Library Guild, Slate Cartoonist Studio, School Library Journal, Horn Book Magazine, NPR, and the New York Times. He currently lives in New England with his family. For more, find Andrés at andresvera.com.