"The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom" by Margarita Engle
Bibliography
Engle, Margarita. (2008). The Surrender Tree. New York, NY:
Henry Holt & Co. ISBN: 978-0-8050-8674-4
Summary
This is a compilation of short poems playing the part of
diary entries of a few important people that convey the fear, pain, and hatred that
pervaded the Cuban independence movement.
Review
This
book is just a collection of vignette poems about the experiences of nearly 10
people who all had totally different perspectives of the years and years of war
the plagued Cuba during its fight for independence in the late 19th
century. To say it “just” a group of poems, however, does not do it justice.
Each of the very well-crafted vignette poems gives a little more insight into
the characters and their involvement both in the war, and with each other.
We see
the main character, Rosa, grow up from an enslaved “little witch” into an
accidental revolutionary whose reputation as a healer becomes legendary. She is
protected by a husband, Jose, who is not embarrassed to work at her side
healing people, a skill seen as feminine.
On the
other end of the spectrum is Lieutenant Death, a young slave hunter who uses
Rosa’s talents to make more money off his prey and thrives on lies and
exaggerations to inflate his sense of self-importance. We get to see him grow
up as well and refuse to relent in his pursuit of slaves even after Rosa spares
his life and heals him. Rosa comments
that “hatred must be/ a hard thing to learn.” The statement is in regard to the
hunting dogs bred and trained to find slaves but the underlying implication is
that children of the slave owners and hunters know nothing better than what they
were raised on and are therefore little better than trained animals.
This is
a very powerful book with a very powerful message. You must always have the
courage to do what is right, even for people who are wrong. The strong female lead character is
inspiring, as is the male who is not afraid to be outshone by a powerful
female. This book would be a wonderful addition to a unit in a history or literature
class for a variety of topics. Poetry, feminism, Cuban history, American
history or slavery to name a few.
I did
not originally want to read this book. I am now very grateful that I did
because it reminded me that, even in a divided society, one healer can make the
difference and healing peoples spirits is just as important as healing their
bodies.
Awards
Newberry Honor Book
Pura Belpre Award
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