The Secret Story of Sonia Rodriguez

          The book The Secret Life of Sonia Rodriguez by Alan Lawrence Sitomer is about the life of a Mexican-American girl who is stuck between the two different cultures. Sonia Rodriguez is the daughter of Mexican immigrants and even though Sonia was born in the United States, she can't resist the fact that she is Mexican and the stereotypes that follows. In the book, Sonia wants to become the first in her family to attend college but throughout the book, she faced many racism and stereotypes.
          First of all, a situation happens throughout the entire book which frustrates Sonia a lot and became one of her problems. Because that Sonia is a girl and the only daughter of her parents, she is expected to take care of the entire household even it meant dropping out of school. Sonia is constantly forced by her mother and aunt to cook, do chores and babysit her younger brothers. Despite the fact that Sonia needs to go to school for educational needs which she stresses a lot, her family still make her get up early in the morning to cook and do chores such as washing the clothes and cleaning the house. Then Sonia would arrive at school late and continue with her stressful schoolwork. However, even after she gets home, Sonia isn't able to do her homework until late at night when everyone is asleep and there is no one else to take care of. All this work is being Sonia is the only girl and daughter. She is expected to complete everything need to be done in the house. This is stereotype because females are always expected to stay home and do chores. No one would expect a girl to go to school and get an education.
          Another stereotype that occurs in the book is when Sonia appears in public with her twin brothers. Despite the fact that Sonia is still young, people consider her already a mother even though she didn't even finish high school yet. People expect her to become pregnant at a young age and drop out of school. The reason people would think this way is because Sonia is Mexican. Usually, people would consider Mexican women useless other than producing babies. This is a stereotype imprinted in their heads and hard to change,
         In conclusion, Sonia faces many hardships throughout the book such as stereotypes. But she manages to face them bravely and work hard to prove her value. She proves she is capable of graduating from high school and into college without becoming pregnant. This is important because she can prove herself without interfering in any violent actions.