Malu

Malu is the nickname for Maria Luisa O'Neill-Morales. Malu is 12 years-old as the novel opens. She and her mother make the move from Florida to Chicago, Illinois, where her mother has a teaching job. Malu's mother is Magaly Morales, and her father is Michael O'Neill. Malu is struggling with several issues during this time of her life. The move has been difficult because she and her father are close and she misses being at his record store. As an adolescent, she is also trying to figure out who she is at this point in her life. She embraces a punk lifestyle, but she has always felt that being punk and being Mexican are mutually exclusive, which puts her at odds with her mother. Magaly is proud of her heritage and is disappointed that Malu tries to distance herself from the Mexican culture. Malu's first fried in Chicago is...