Becoming a woman is never easy, but for Julia, there's just so much getting in her way. Her parents are restrictive, her friends unhelpful, even her hometown forces her to stay locked up in her house. It only gets worse when Papa gets a new job and is never home and Mama is always worried about the shootings in downtown Juárez. Julia's diary is her only true friend sometimes, and even that can be torn away.
Now, you might be thinking, Sirah, are you really reviewing another young adult coming of age story? I thought you didn't like those. You'd be right; I typically don't. It's fair to say that I dislike them because they're often so poorly done. The Everything I Have Lost has some grating moments, but unlike many similar books, it uses these to make the story stronger. Julia is rather like many young teenagers and doesn't always know what she wants, but she's not afraid to speak up about what she doesn't want. She doesn't want to be a child. She doesn't want to be abandoned. She doesn't want to be taken advantage of. She doesn't want to be ignorant. Even though Juárez and El Paso are so far from my own daily life and childhood experiences, I can't help but feel a bit of the hate, the longing, the hope, and the satisfaction that Julia feels as her life changes around her. This book rings true in so many ways, and despite the differences between us, I think that Julia and I are not so different.
TW swearing, guns, physical violence
Special thanks to the audiobook narrator, Lori Felipe-Barkin, who did an excellent job reminding me that Spanish accents are a thing of beauty.