 Cover Illustration: Dana Sanmar Today we celebrate the book birthday of Cruzita and the Mariacheros. We sat down with Ashley Granillo to learn all about the inspiration behind this book. But first, a little bit about the book: Cruzita and the Mariacheros is a middle grade book. In it, Cruzita believes she is going to be a pop star and put all of her family's financial hardships to an end, so long as she can win the Rising Star contest at local theme park, Encore Island. However, her family insists she work at the family bakery, which has not been the same since Tío Chuy died. Cruzita does her best to stay grounded despite her family's arguing, but her dreaming gets in the way. Luckily for her, her grandma believes in her musical ability. But there's one problem: it's for mariachi. Cruzita must learn how to navigate parts of her culture she hasn't explored and others she's failed at, all while staying true to herself. What inspired you to become a writer? I grew up surrounded by stories. My initial exposure to them was in the form of Disney movies and Disney Sound Books. As a child, I obsessed over how song and animation merged in the same medium and produced an emotionally resonate piece. I’d often play in the backyard, making up songs and sequences of a story with anything I could find--a glass jar, a stuffed animal--you name it. It was no surprise, then, that when my elementary school introduced the Student Author Project that I was drawn to the process. Because I was only 5, I couldn’t spell all of my thoughts, so my fifth-grade book buddy, Lupe, translated the story as I told it to her. She would ask a lot of questions in order to get it right. When we felt it was complete, I drew the pictures to match the scenes. Of course, the story involved some fairy tale magic, but at the heart of it—my home. Where did you get the idea to write this particular story? Much like I did when I was 5 years old, I paid homage to a neighborhood I called home for thirty years of my life. During the pandemic, I longed to be with my grandparents who passed years before lockdown. My family inherited a lot of paperwork and tucked in the folds of old bills, a document detailing the family history. My family-owned bakeries and shops--things I never knew about. There wasn’t much detail, which left me up to my own creative imagining. Along with grief comes the yearning to know all of the things you never asked, and regret. I had so many questions, and so many things I wish I would have done with them when they were alive. One of those things was taking violin and mariachi lessons. My grandma always wanted me to, but I had other plans when I was a kid. What was the most difficult scene to write in this story? Writing about Cruzita leaving the airport alone was difficult. She’s walking away from a long time and valued friendship, which for anyone who has lost a friend, is so emotionally complicated. She’s walking away from history and familiarity--into the unknown. There could be serious consequences from her family and her newer friendships waiting for her back home. Essentially, she might not have the support of anyone. Although I knew it was the right decision for her, to finally use her voice in a non-musical way, it didn’t make how visceral that moment was for me as a writer. What message are you hoping readers will take away from this story? Essentially, I want every child and adult who reads along with them to know that they are enough. That as Mexican Americans, there is no time limit to learn something about your culture, or even Spanish. It’s important to walk away from this book knowing that our experiences as Latin folk and with culture are all going to differ, but that difference does not mean we’re not all part of the larger community. Can you share if you used any mentor texts for your story? If so, how did you use them? Jennifer Torres Stef Soto: Taco Queen was the first middle grade book I picked off of the shelf. I needed to get a sense of how middle grade is written--what’s a middle grade voice and how is the writing paced differently from that of adult genres. I examined the themes and dynamics of the family to see how much could fit into a book for children without the larger story getting lost. For me, Jenn’s novel was the perfect roadmap--a great resource--to learn about the function and art of middle grade writing. Luckily for me, after writing Cruzita, I was matched with Jenn in the Las Musas Mentorship program, so I got one-on-one support from my middle grade hero!
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