Down to the Bone | 
 enlarge | Author: Mayra Lazara Dole
Publisher: HarperTeen
Category: Book
List Price: $16.99
Buy New: $1.66
You Save: $15.33 (90%)
New (41) Used (13) from $1.65
Avg. Customer Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 678693
Media: Hardcover
Reading Level: Young Adult
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 1.6
ISBN: 0060843101
EAN: 9780060843106
ASIN: 0060843101
Publication Date: March 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Here's what it means to be a tortillera. It means you're a girl who loves girls. Which means you get kicked out of Catholic school faster than Mother Superior Sicko can say "immoral." Which means your wacko Mami finds out. Which means you're kicked to the curb with nowhere to go, and the love of your life is shipped off to Puerto Rico to marry a guy. But this is Miami, and if you have a bighearted best friend and a loyal puppy at your side, and if your broken heart is still full of love, you just might land on your feet. In a first novel as crazy, joyful, hilarious, and painful as your first love, Mayra Lazara Dole goes beyond the many meanings of tortillera to paint a vivid picture of a girl who gets kicked out of home only to find a new kind of family.
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| Customer Reviews:
Fun to read May 9, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I picked up the "last" copy of "Down To The Bone" at Border's and read it in one night. I couldn't put it down!! So much of Down to the Bone described my own experiences growing up. Finally at 4:45am, I turned my night light out and went to sleep smiling. Thanks for a great night, Mayra Lazara Dole!... : )
Grisel
 Courtesy of Teens Read Too April 16, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
How mortified would you be if one of your teachers read one of your private notes or letters out loud in front of the class? Take that mortification times one hundred, and that's what happens to Laura Amores on the last day of class. Except this letter is from her girlfriend and describes in detail their forbidden love. By the end of the school day, previous friends have deserted her, the nuns at her school have expelled her, and her mother has kicked her out of the house. At least until she changes her ways and falls in love with a boy.
Thankfully, Laura (who has many nicknames throughout the story) has a good friend in Soli and her mother, Viva. They let Laura stay with them indefinitely.
The story only gets worse for Laura. The girl she is in love with leaves Miami for Cuba. To add pain to heartache, Marlena tells Laura over the phone that she realizes their love was wrong and sinful and she is going to marry the man her family wants her to wed.
Laura struggles throughout the book to come to terms with who she is. She has dated boys in the past, but only Marlena has sent sparks through her body. Is she gay? Is she bi-sexual? Was it only Marlena that caused these feelings?
Laura meets many interesting people during the course of the story. They all help Laura define who she is and who she will become. She is determined to win back her mother's love. But in the end, is it really so important to have someone love who they want you to be but not who you are? Laura struggles with society's negative opinions of anyone not heterosexual or who is different from the norm.
Ms. Dole is a fresh new voice in the GLBTQ genre. She speaks frankly about the issue for teens to grasp and understand. The story is not always easy to read, but it's one that you'll be glad that you have. It will bring a deeper understanding of those that may seem different than you, but who just want to be loved and understood like everyone should be.
Reviewed by: Jaglvr
Great book! A must read for everyone. March 22, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I'm a cuban born lesbian raised in Miami, and this book really resonated with me. It took me back to my coming out days and all those emotions I went through with my family. The story was moving, uplifting, funny, sweet, and a little bit sad at times. By the end it had me in tears of joy. I loved this book and recommend it to anyone because of the message it brings. It's about being true to yourself regardless of what people think. And it doens't matter where you are from or what your story is we can all relate to this message.
Books like these are what kept me going when I was a teenager.
A book not to be missed! March 18, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
As a retired high school teacher, I highly recommend Mayra Lazara Dole's "Down To The Bone" to anyone who wants to read a very entertaining book with a deep social message. The reader is immersed in Laura's life and in her struggle to assert herself as a lesbian, in spite of family and friends' pressures. I particularly liked Laura's unique and picturesque expressions, and I truly enjoyed meeting her unconventional friends. Young gays will particularly treasure this book: they will feel that they are not alone- that many others share their concerns and their fears. Down to the Bone should become a bestseller!
Flaming Fembo Frijoles & Homo Hummus, please! February 26, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
I'd love Homo Hummus, Faggy Frijoles and Dripping Dyko Donuts, please. If this doesn't sound like a "different" dinning experience, I don't know what does! Mayra Lazara Dole's new first novel, Down to the Bone, will not only entice you with wild, lively characters, and a Miami setting so alive it will make you want to pack your bags and head here, but also with unique humor that will make you laugh out loud. There's a scene when the group of teen characters are talking about Soli attempting to burn her quinces photo album that will make you laugh your heart out! You can't help but be intrigued with Laura's uniqueness and her friends, all different in their own special way: Marlena, Laura's Puerto Rican sexy, religious lost love. Tazer, the handsome B.O.I playwright (have you ever meet one?). Viva, the way cool New Age Mima. Chispita, the loving, loyal puppy you wish you had who wears a "size three bikini." Pedri, Laura's adorable little bro. Mami, the "wacked-out" homophobic mom. El Gringo and his dearly missed "sister." Diego, Soli's slick, DJ rapper boy-toy. Francisco, the Cubanito musician/hairstylist GUY of Laura's life? (Say what?) Gisela, the temptress and, the Crew. Will they support or judge Laura? This book will have you thinking, asking questions, laughing and crying all in one reading. It's a serious and joyous story that will touch many lives. And by the way, I think I'm going for Number 7, the Flaming Fembo Frijoles. How about you?
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