Coming of Age

Esmeralda ages both physically and emotionally over the course of the book, making this an example of a coming of age book. One example of Esmeralda's coming of age is seen when she is faced with the deep disappointment of realizing that she doesn't have her mother to herself but must share with her siblings. Esmeralda believes that she has a lesser share than the younger ones. While she wants to be angry with her mother, she realizes that there is no way to express that anger because it would add weight to that already on her mother. Esmeralda bemoans her lack of maturity while making a very mature decision, a sure sign of maturity. Another point in the maturing process is evident when Esmeralda realizes that her father is not the loving family man she'd believed him to be. Esmeralda is at her grandmother's house...