With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo
Hi, I am Sarah. I am fourteen years old and an avid reader; it is one of my favorite things to do. Inspired by authors’ creations of magnificent places and surprising havens built by simple letters, I aspire to be an author and, meanwhile, nurture the love to write.
Emoni Santiago has magic fingers. Get her in the kitchen with some food and a few spices, and she can make a dish to serve a king; a dish to pluck a tune on your heartstrings, to uncover your deepest memories, to leave you licking the salty taste of your happy tears.
In the kitchen, Emoni feels free.
Free of the responsibilities of navigating her senior year of high school and caring for her daughter, of choosing what she wants to strive for in this life or to sacrifice it for her child, to steer through the struggles of being part grown-up and part still growing.
When her school begins a culinary arts program with a final trip to Spain, Emoni knows she shouldn’t apply. She knows she doesn’t have the time. She knows she doesn’t have the money. She knows she has responsibilities that make being just a normal high schooler with dreams and ambitions more complicated.
But she can’t help her magic fingers, and the talent that explodes inside.
Written with her trademark beauty and care, Elizabeth Acevedo digs deep into the complicated world of one girl, and yet gives voice to many—she gives voice to the kids with responsibility, to the children who bridge cultures and people, to the high schoolers with sons and daughters to care for, and most of all: to anyone and everyone who’s ever had a dream.
