FRUIT OF THE DRUNKEN TREE

Narrators Marisol Ramirez and Almarie Guerra team up to deliver this story of how 7-year-old Chula and her family's 15-year-old maid, Petrona, forge an unlikely bond as each struggles to find stability and safety in the waning years of Pablo Escobar's violent hold on Colombia. Early on, Ramirez infuses Chula's irrepressible curiosity and intelligence with naïveté; whereas, Guerra highlights Petrona's hopefulness, buried under the weight of her familial responsibilities. As the audiobook progresses, the narrators adapt their delivery to reflect the escalating fear and violence that surround the girls--one sheltered, one world-weary--as they realize they can't escape their country's woes. This dual coming-of-age story, inspired by author Roja Contreras's own observations, shows how the effects of a guerilla drug culture touch everyone, even children. C.B.L. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2018]