Description: Marcus Vega is six feet tall, 180 pounds, and the owner of a premature mustache. When you look like this and you're only in the eighth grade, you're both a threat and a target. Marcus knows what classmates and teachers see when they look at him: a monster. But appearances are deceiving. At home, Marcus is a devoted brother. And he finds ways to earn cash to contribute to his family’s rainy day fund. His mom works long hours and his dad walked out ten years ago—someone has to pick up the slack.
   After a fight at school leaves him facing suspension, Marcus and his family decide to hit the reset button and regroup for a week in Puerto Rico. Marcus is more interested in finding his father, though, who is somewhere on the island. Through a series of misadventures that take Marcus all over Puerto Rico in search of the elusive Mr. Vega, Marcus meets a colorful cast of characters who show him the many faces of fatherhood. And he even learns a bit of Spanish along the way.

Review: Pablo Cartaya delivers another compelling read about the meaning of family, identity, and culture, set in pre–Hurricane Maria Puerto Rico in Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish. Marcus is an intimidating middle schooler due to his sheer size: six feet tall and 180 pounds, but he is gentle and devoted to his mom and younger brother, Charlie, who has Down syndrome. He is aware of his mother's struggles in working long hours and being absent from home due to financial constraints. One of the ways he “helps out” is earning extra cash by charging schoolmates protection money to keep them safe from the real bullies. When one of those bullies insults Charlie, Marcus uses his immense strength to put the bully in his place. The fallout from Marcus’s violent act leads to his suspension from school and a family crisis. Marcus’s mother decides the family needs a week in Puerto Rico, where Marcus was born and where his absentee father’s relatives still live, to figure things out.
 Spending time with his extended family and traveling across the Puerto Rican countryside (pre-Hurricane Maria as noted in the author’s note) opens Marcus' eyes to his heritage. He learns about his Puerto Rican culture despite the re-occuring refrain that he doesn't speak Spanish. Eventually he learns that speaking a language does not prevent you from understanding family and familial love. As his cultural bonds tighten, Marcus gains a new understanding of his mother’s struggles and his own important roles as both son and older brother.

Rating: 4 stars


Words of Caution: There are scenes of bullying and a derogatory word is mentioned for a special needs student. Recommended for Grades 5 and up.


If you like this book try: The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Perez and Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly