A revelatory autobiography about a teenage girl's coming-of-age as she seeks her cultural identity as a Latina in America. Following the enchanting story recounted in When I Was Puerto Rican of the author's emergence from the barrios of Brooklyn to the prestigious Performing Arts High School in Manhattan, Esmeralda Santiago delivers the tale of her young adulthood, where she continually strives to find a balance between becoming American and staying Puerto Rican. While translating for her mother Mami at the welfare office in the morning, starring as Cleopatra at New York's prestigious Performing Arts High School in the afternoons, and dancing salsa all night, she begins to defy her mother's protective rules, only to find that independence brings new dangers and dilemmas. "Richly evocative . . . [Santiago has] the skill to render the most minute details of her before and after lives." — Los Angeles Times "Santiago writes with a flair for detail, humor, and complex emotion that draws readers into a delightful . . . if sometimes heartbreaking, personal journey." — Orlando Sentinel "Santiago captures the strength, boundaries, and dynamics of la famlilia latina ." — Latina Includes Reader's Guide