Lone Star Book Blog Tour: Araceli’s Path by Marion Surles (Review)

“Humans were so resilient and resourceful.”

Araceli’s Path by Marian Surles is a fictional account of the stark reality of poverty in Juarez, Mexico. Araceli is young, but she must be the mamá to her younger siblings because their own mamá is negligent and expects her daughter to behave as an adult, even though she is still a child. Araceli is only one of many young girls living in danger of a receiving little education, falling victim to rape or volatile relationships with men, succumbing to prostitution, and having babies at a young age. Araceli, however, is conscientious, a good student, and determined to have a better life and be a better mother to her future children. In contrast, Rubí lives in the same area as Araceli, but her fate is sealed when she is abused and starts having babies at age eleven or twelve and sinks deeper into a life of desperation and poverty.

Marion Surles paints a dismal and all too realistic picture of life in Juarez, Mexico, filled with violence, hunger, fear, prostitution, and utter despair. To balance such misery, Surles introduces characters who make a difference  and offer the promise of a brighter future. Araceli meets a decent young man, Lucas, and they have two sons. Finding work and feeding themselves and their sons are monumental daily tasks, but missionaries come to Juarez to build homes for the poorest of the poor. One such man on the team is Paul, often called Abuelo, who takes photographs and speaks Spanish. Abuelo has a heart of gold and wants only to help both Araceli and eventually Rubí in any way that he can. This beneficence stands in bold contrast to the hopelessness that permeates the lives of those living in such distressed conditions.

The author captures the discouraging life in this area of Juarez, but she also captures the small flickers of hope that refuse to be extinguished. Through Araceli’s bittersweet story, the author shows that beauty can rise from the ashes of poverty through faith in God and from the kindness and generosity of people who just want to help. While Araceli’s Path is a work of fiction, it portrays the real conditions in Juarez, including several photographs, and shows that people can help in many ways. In fact, proceeds from the author’s books support her mission in Juarez called Love and Literacy, as mentioned at the end of the book.

The writing is easy and straightforward, and the story is told through Araceli as she transitions from childhood to adulthood and tries fiercely to avoid her mother’s fate. The story is sad and hard to take in, but this type of narrative is necessary to bring awareness and highlight opportunities for interested readers to get involved and possibly assist those who may be too proud or perhaps too afraid to ask for help. A big Thank You to Marion Surles for bringing this short fiction to the world and for igniting that hope and assurance that good people really are out there working tirelessly to make a difference in the lives of so many.

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I received a free copy of this book from Lone Star Book Blog Tours in exchange for my honest review.