The Value of Family Relationships

Fabiola’s relationships with her mother, aunt, and cousins are integral to her journey and personal story, as her family members serve as the personal touchstones for her sense of loyalty and righteousness. For example, one of the central motivating factors of the narrative is Fabiola’s desire to secure her mother’s freedom from the immigration detention center where her mother is being held. The very first line of the novel reads, “If only I could break the glass separating me and Manman with my thoughts alone” (1). Fabiola feels an immense sense of loss and longing after she is allowed into the United States but her mother is not. Fabiola makes her mother’s release a top priority throughout the novel, thereby emphasizing the bond of love between the two characters and the importance of family ties in Fabiola’s life...