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Meet Josefina (American Girl: Josefina #1) by Valerie Tripp

 

Summary (from the publisher): Josefina Montoya is growing up on a rancho near Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 1824. Ever since Mamá died a year before, Josefina and her three sisters have been struggling to carry on without her. One bright fall day, happy news arrives--their beloved grandfather is returning home after a long trading trip. Josefina knows that he will bring exciting stories and wonderful treasures from his journey. But this time he brings something more--a great surprise that Josefina and her sisters never even dreamed of!

Review: In this first book in the series, we meet Josefina Montoya, a young girl living on a rancho outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1824. Josefina is the youngest of four sisters and the family has been struggling since their mother died about a year before. The girls are thrilled when their grandfather returns from a long trading trip with their aunt, who they haven't seen in years, in tow. 

I am really enjoying re-reading this series with my own daughters! Josefina feels important because she is the only Spanish-speaking American Girl. Her home (which technically wasn't even part of the United States at the time the books were written) feels very different in setting than the other books. My girls had a lot of questions about the style of house, clothing, and Spanish words in this book. It was a great introduction to the time period and geographical area during that time period in history. It was also striking to read a book about a young child who has lost a parent and is navigating that loss. 

This novel felt positively tame in comparison to some of the other American Girl books. No dead bodies were discovered. There were no house fires or tragic deaths. Josefina doesn't take dangerous risks that endanger her safety like Felicity is prone to doing. But it did feel like a compelling story. I felt particularly drawn to Josefina's yearning to know her aunt, who is the younger sister of her late mother. It felt natural that she would want to get to know one of the last links to her mother in her absence. My daughters did struggle at times keeping the four sisters in the family straight but otherwise no complaints with this read. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to re-reading book two in the series. 

Stars: 4

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