Efrén Divided

Chapters 1-4

Reading Check

1. He reads in the bathtub with the door closed. (He has no room of his own, and in fact shares a mattress for a bed with his younger siblings.) (Chapter 1)

2. A meeting for candidates to review the rules of the school election process with Mrs. Salas, who teaches the Leadership class (Chapter 2)

3. At work in a clothing factory (Chapter 2)

Short-Answer Response

1. Answers might include some of these examples: He might be similar to the average seventh grader in that he seeks privacy from his little brother and sister; he is concerned about his appearance; he has a best friend with whom he walks to school; he is close to his parents and sees them as hard workers. He deals with atypical stressors, though, because his parents are undocumented immigrants from Mexico. He is always afraid of ICE agents and his parents being arrested and deported. He knows a “lockdown” at home means locking up quickly when a helicopter flies overhead, as it might be ICE. He stays up late waiting until his mother is safely home from her job. (Chapters 1 and 3)

2. Jennifer is indirectly characterized as a “know-it-all” in classes when she corrects others; when she and Efrén talk, though, he is impressed with her initiative and motivation for change. She is running for president to try to bring change. She also shows fear and worry because her mother is undocumented. (Chapter 2)

3. Efrén appreciates his mother’s skill with making delicious sopes for breakfast in Chapter 1, and he recognizes her sacrifice of time and effort. By Chapter 4, he is the one attempting to make breakfast for Mia and Max, and it does not go well; he spatters oil and ends up with soggy dough. He takes the twins to the free breakfast at their elementary school, something Amá never does. (Chapters 1 and 4)

Chapters 5-8

Reading Check

1. He must get the twins on time from school. (Chapter 6)

2. He sells his tools. (Chapter 7)

3. She cries, says she is mad at Amá, and runs off. (Chapter 8)

Short-Answer Response

1. Efrén wants Amá back home for her own safety as well as the security and comfort of the family. He looks forward to her good cooking, her resumption of care and supervision of the twins, and to his own time for reading in the bathtub. It shows that he looks forward to some time to himself and that he appreciates even more the hard work Amá does to take care of the family. (Chapter 5)

2. Someone in Mexico stole Amá’s purse and all the money Apá sent for her to pay the coyote. Now there is no more money, and Apá does not know what to do next. (Chapter 5)

3. Mr. Garrett decorates his room with posters and puts his Teacher of the Year awards on display. He plans to take students to the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. His new unit will instruct students on those in history who stood up for others when they were persecuted or when basic human rights were not acknowledged. He quotes Martin Niemöller’s “First they came for the socialists, / and I did not speak out—” poem, and he paraphrases the words of Gandhi: “Be the change you want to see.” (Chapter 8)

Chapters 9-12

Reading Check

1. Videorecording his campaign message (Chapter 9)

2. A cundina is a group of workers who pool leftover money in case someone in the group needs to borrow it. The group loaned Apá enough to give to Amá for another coyote who will see her across the border into the US. (Chapter 10)

3. He offers, then convinces Apá to allow him (Efrén) to be the one to deliver the money to Amá in Tijuana. As an American citizen, Efrén cannot be arrested near the border or crossing it the way Apá might be. (Chapter 11)

Short-Answer Response

1. David genuinely wants to be president, but he tells Efrén that he plans to let Jennifer as vice president carry the burden of real decision-making. Efrén questions David’s leadership capabilities, which makes David upset; he complains about others not taking him seriously. Efrén tries to calm him but without success. (Chapter 9)

2. He knows he will no longer seek private time or reading time for himself; he plans to help Amá more. (Chapter 11)

3. Apá will drop him off after driving south; he will cross through the border station alone; take a taxi to a landmark (the Arco on Avenida Revolución), then meet Amá at a nearby taco restaurant. (Chapter 12)

Chapters 13-16

Reading Check

1. Lalo, the cab driver (Chapter 13)

2. That his parents made a great sacrifice for him, and to not waste that gift (Chapter 14)

3. They worry that the check point on the highway is open; if so, Apá might be questioned or arrested, but it is closed. (Chapter 15)

Short-Answer Response

1. He takes out all the money from his satchel, revealing the large amount of cash, when he gives the children $40. Thugs see him with the money and begin to follow him. (Chapter 13)

2. He says he knows someone who can help get Amá safely across the border. Though it will be a desert crossing and not a border station line bribe, he feels he can help partner Amá with a trustworthy coyote instead of a thief. (Chapter 14)

3. After Amá calls to say she crossed the border successfully, Apá, Max, Mia, and Efrén go to Mass, prepare the house for Amá by cleaning it, tell neighbors Amá is coming home, receive neighbors and their generous gifts of welcome-back food. It is ironic that despite all these hopeful preparations, Amá does not come home. (Chapter 16)

Chapters 17-19

Reading Check

1. They use Amá’s head scratches technique (piojitos) to calm and comfort them. (Chapter 17)

2. He intends to quit the campaign for president and to avoid David so he (Efrén) does not get emotional. (Chapter 18)

3. His grandmother told him; she heard it from neighbors. (Chapter 19)

Short-Answer Response

1. Amá made it across the border, but the van in which she traveled north was stopped at the San Clemente checkpoint; she was taken to a detention center. This turn of events was foreshadowed when Efrén and Apá became fearful that the checkpoint was open on their way home from Tijuana. (Chapter 17)

2. The security officer sees David handling one of Efrén’s posters and assumes he is the culprit behind the vandalism. In actuality, David was removing the offensive poster from the wall. (Chapter 18)

3. David tells this to Efrén, referring to their early days as friends when David first moved to the neighborhood and was the only white boy. Efrén did not care and befriended David, introducing him to many others. Today, though, kids boo and hiss when Efrén thanks David for removing the offensive campaign posters, so David thinks they need to be reminded that skin color does not matter to true friendship. He also refers indirectly to Amá’s deportation when he mentions “the whole world” needing a reminder of kindness and tolerance. (Chapter 19)