the surrender tree: poems of cuba's struggle for freedom written by margarita engle

Engle, Margarita. The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom. New York: Henry Holt, 2008. ISBN: 9780805086744

Plot Summary:
     Rosa is a young nurse/healer who makes it her duty to help those in need of medical attention. Despite the circumstances during Cuba's struggle for independence from Spain, she helps those in need of her gift. Through her journey to help, she becomes a target in Lieutenant Death's eyes because she aides the wounded runaways that he hunts. However, a time comes when even Lieutenant Death seeks the medical attention from Rosa.

Critical Analysis:
     The Surrender Tree is a compilation of poems organized in narrative form to articulate the story of Cuba's struggle through the eyes of the protagonist, Rosa. The author, Margarita Engle, organizes this story within five separate parts detailing significant events surrounding Cuba's fight for freedom. Three of the five parts includes descriptions of The Ten Years' War, The Little War, and The War of Independence. Within these segments, the author accurately incorporates historical markers portraying the time period that of which is being described. Lines such as, "Ten years of war are over. A treaty. Peace...The Spanish Empire still owns this suffering island," are examples of the details utilized to strengthen historical context. Along with historical inclusions, the author also incorporates interlingualism; these examples can be seen in sentences such as, "Quien vive? Who lives?" The utilization of interlingualism strengthens language introduction to his audience. Lastly, the author also incorporates cultural markers through the descriptions of the types of foods prepared, such as yams, cornmeal, coconuts, and pineapples -- these foods are indigenous to Cuba. Through the usage of various cultural markers, the author provides his audience with varied cultural authenticity.

Review Excerpts:

"A powerful narrative in free verse . . . haunting." - The Horn Book

"Tales of political dissent can prove, at times, to be challenging reads for youngsters, but this fictionalized version of the Cuban struggle for independence from Spain may act as an entry to the form. The poems offer rich character portraits through concise, heightened language, and their order within the cycle provides suspense. Four characters tell the bulk of the story: Rosa, a child who grows up to be a nurse who heals the wounded, sick and starving with herbal medicine; her husband, Jose, who helps her move makeshift hospitals from cave to cave; Silvia, an orphaned girl who escapes a slave camp so that she may learn from Rosa; and Lieutenant Death, a hardened boy who grows up wanting only to kill Rosa and all others like her. Stretching from 1850 to 1899, these poems convey the fierce desire of the Cuban people to be free. Young readers will come away inspired by these portraits of courageous ordinary people." - Kirkus Reviews

"Often, popular knowledge of Cuba begins and ends with late-20th-century textbook fare: the Cuban Revolution, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Fidel Castro. The Surrender Tree , however, transports readers to another, though no less tumultuous, era. Spanning the years 1850-1899, Engle's poems construct a narrative woven around the nation's Wars for Independence. The poems are told in alternating voices, though predominantly by Rosa, a "freed" slave and natural healer destined to a life on the lam in the island' s wild interior. Other narrators include Teniente Muerte , or Lieutenant Death, the son of a slave hunter turned ruthless soldier; José, Rosa's husband and partner in healing; and Silvia, an escapee from one of Cuba's reconcentration camps. The Surrender Tree is hauntingly beautiful, revealing pieces of Cuba's troubled past through the poetry of hidden moments such as the glimpse of a woman shuttling children through a cave roof for Rosa's care or the snapshot of runaway Chinese slaves catching a crocodile to eat. Though the narrative feels somewhat repetitive in its first third, one comes to realize it is merely symbolic of the unending cycle of war and the necessity for Rosa and other freed slaves to flee domesticity each time a new conflict begins. Aside from its considerable stand-alone merit, this book, when paired with Engle's The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano (Holt, 2006), delivers endless possibilities for discussion about poetry, colonialism, slavery, and American foreign policy." - School Library Journal 

Connections:
Customers who purchased this title also purchased the following titles: Savvy, After Tupac and D Foster, and The Underneath.

Interactivity:

• Ask children if they are familiar with The Ten Years' War, The Little War, and The War of Independence.
• Facilitate a discussion on the similarities between the Underground Railroad and how Rosa created her own makeshift hospitals for the wounded and sick.
• Ask children if they think they are brave enough to help those in need vs. not helping them because they are told not to.