La frontera

La frontera is the Spanish word for border. In this book, it refers to the border between California and Mexico.

El Rancho Blanco

El Rancho Blanco is the village Francisco and his family originate from. It is a small village in the barren, dry hills to the north of Guadalajara, Mexico.

Noon Train

The Noon Train comes by every day at noon through Guadalupe, a labor camp town near the California-Mexican border. Francisco loves to watch the Noon Train and wave at the conductor, who waves back. One day, the conductor throws Francisco a bag of candy.

Jalopy

A jalopy is an old, broken down automobile.

Tent City

Tent City is a farm worker labor camp owned by Sheehey Strawberry Farms. It has no address. It is the rural part of the town of Santa Maria. The residents are illegals who are pickers like Francisco's family...