Gabi, A Girl in Pieces

Gabi, A Girl in Pieces by Quintero, Isabel. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9781935955948.

Named to Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2014 Named to School Library Journal Best Books of 2014 Gabi Hernandez chronicles her last year in high school in her diary: college applications, Cindys pregnancy, Sebastians coming out, the cute boys, her fathers meth habit, and the food she craves. And best of all, the poetry that helps forge her identity. July 24 My mother named me Gabriella, after my grandmother who, coincidentally, didnt want to meet me when I was born because my mother was unmarried, and therefore living in sin. My mom has told me the story many, many, MANY, times of how, when she confessed to my grandmother that she was pregnant with me, her mother beat her. BEAT HER! She was twenty-five. That story is the basis of my sexual education and has reiterated why its important to wait until youre married to give it up. So now, every time I go out with a guy, my mom says, "Ojos abiertos, piernas cerradas." Eyes open, legs closed. Thats as far as the birds and the bees talk has gone. And I dont mind it. I dont necessarily agree with that whole wait until youre married crap, though. I mean, this is America and the 21st century; not Mexico one hundred years ago. But, of course, I cant tell my mom that because she will think Im bad. Or worse: trying to be White. Isabel Quintero is a library technician in the Inland Empire. She is also the events coordinator for Orange Monkey and helps edit the poetry journal Tin Cannon. Gabi is her debut novel. Named to Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2014 Named to School Library Journal Best Books of 2014 Gabi Hernandez chronicles her last year in high school in her diary: college applications, Cindys pregnancy, Sebastians coming out, the cute boys, her fathers meth habit, and the food she craves. And best of all, the poetry that helps forge her identity. July 24 My mother named me Gabriella, after my grandmother who, coincidentally, didnt want to meet me when I was born because my mother was unmarried, and therefore living in sin. My mom has told me the story many, many, MANY, times of how, when she confessed to my grandmother that she was pregnant with me, her mother beat her. BEAT HER! She was twenty-five. That story is the basis of my sexual education and has reiterated why its important to wait until youre married to give it up. So now, every time I go out with a guy, my mom says, "Ojos abiertos, piernas cerradas." Eyes open, legs closed. Thats as far as the birds and the bees talk has gone. And I dont mind it. I dont necessarily agree with that whole wait until youre married crap, though. I mean, this is America and the 21st century; not Mexico one hundred years ago. But, of course, I cant tell my mom that because she will think Im bad. Or worse: trying to be White. Isabel Quintero is an award-winning writer from the Inland Empire of Southern California. She is also the daughter of Mexican immigrants. In addition to Gabi, A Girl in Pieces, she has also written a chapter book series for young readers, Ugly Cat and Pablo (Scholastic, Inc.), a non-fiction YA graphic biography, Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide (Getty Publications, 2018), which received the Boston Globe Horn Book Award, and most recently, a picture book, My Papi Has a Motorcycle (Kokila, 2019). Isabel also writes poetry and essays. Her work can be found in The Normal School, Huizache, The Acentos Review, As/Us Journal, The James Franco Review, and other publications.