Parrot in the Oven, Mi Vida by Victor Martinez

Parrot in the Oven, Mi Vida. Victor Martinez. HarperCollins Children’s Books, c1996. 216 pages.

Plot:

Victor Martinez’s Parrot in the Oven, Mi Vida is a coming of age story following Manuel Hernandez, a fourteen year old Mexican American boy. The novel follows Manuel’s life in the year leading up his test of courage and initiation into a neighborhood gang. Manuel, who is smart and well behaved, struggles to find his place in the world while battling hardships often brought on by his dysfunctional family. Though he must contend with an alcoholic and sometimes violent father, a mother who turns a blind eye to his father’s behavior, poverty, bullies, racism, and more, Manuel does discover in the end what being a vato firme, a guy to respect, means to him.

Review/personal thoughts:

Though highlighting issues such as alcohol abuse, violence, poverty, bullying, and racism, Parrot in the Oven is a beautifully told story that I believe mature tweens will find benefit in reading. Martinez’s descriptions are rich and always right on, and were a delight to read.

Even more valuable than Martinez’s stunning prose, however, is the message his novel delivers. Growing up with a dysfunctional family in the projects, Manuel knows that it’s difficult for a kid like him to make something of himself. In his neighborhood, a man earns respect by joining a gang.

Manuel passes the Test of Courage to become a member of the Callaway Projects gang, but discovers soon afterward that the gang’s definition of a man to respect differs greatly from his own. He realizes this when he witnesses Eddie, one of the gang’s members, mug a woman coming out of the bank. “It was like I’d finally seen my own face and recognized myself; recognized who I should really be. Then I didn’t feel like catching up to Eddie anymore. Instead, I wanted to grab him, and scold him about how to treat people, how to be somebody who knows how to treat people: like my sister; like that lady” (Martinez, 1996, p.210). 

Though Manuel struggles with the difficult circumstances of his environment, in the end he doesn’t allow himself to fall victim to it. Through Manuel’s journey, Martinez demonstrates to his readers the importance of not allowing outside factors (whether these be your neighborhood, parents, peers, friends, race, social class, etc.) to define you. Tweens will benefit from Manuel's demonstration of self-determination and empowerment. 

Genre: contemporary realistic fiction

Reading level: ages 12-up

Awards:
Pura Belpre Author Award, 1998
Americas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, 1996
National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, 1996