Another great read from Christina Diaz Gonzalez! While her books are written for middle grade readers, I love that all of them have appealed to me as an adult as well. I didn’t know much about the history behind the storyline before reading, and jumping into Hector’s world made me feel like I was experiencing it right there with him. Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!

Oh wow! Just finished and still on an emotional roller coaster! Christina Diaz Gonzalez does it again with Bluest Sky. I loved Red Umbrella so I wasn’t sure how this would compare and love it even more. Growing up in South Florida in the 80s I heard of the “Mariela boat lift” but had no clue what happened. This is a fantastic book for middle grade readers & adults alike!

Hector lives in Cuba with his mom and older brother in a communist-controlled state that imprisoned his now exiled dad. He loves math and his friends. He doesn’t understand why his mom would want to leave Cuba for the U.S. — and doesn’t see the lack of freedoms at first until, at his communist abuela’s prompting, their neighbors turn on them, and something unthinkable happens. Hector’s mom applies to leave Cuba during a short window where it might be possible for gusanos (worms) to leave. Their journey is fraught with complications and dangers. Every second of this book, I felt like I was living in Hector’s shoes. This book is excellent on every level– character development, plot, history, and writing. Highly recommended.

I remember being a child and seeing on the news, people in boats that were filled to bursting arriving on the shores of Florida. While I understood that these people had come all the way from a country named Cuba, I did not understand the politics surrounding the Cuban people and why so many of them would embark on a dangerous journey in an attempt at for what they hoped would be a better life in the United States. I do not remember when I stopped seeing news coverage of Cubans seeking asylum waiting just off the shores of Florida, but as I grew older I studied and learned more about the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro coming to power and I came to better understand why so many Cubans wanted to come to the U.S.

As with many topics that deal with history and world politics, there is always more to be learned. This was a wonderful book that I found helped to deepen my understanding of what life was like in Cuba in the 1980s. Héctor’s story was both powerful and insightful not only because of the turmoil that Héctor felt when his Mom informed him that they were going to leave Cuba to be with his father in the United States, who had been exiled years before following his release from a Cuban prison for being a traitor, but also because of the way his neighbors and classmates reacted to the news. I never knew just how difficult life became for those who petitioned the Cuban government to leave with mobs showing up at the persons home to shout insults to the holding area where families were kept while waiting for their boat to arrive.

Knowing that members of the author’s family left Cuba in 1980 through the Mariel boatlift and that they would’ve experienced the same treatment that Héctor and his family does, made the story that much more powerful. This is a wonderful historical book for both young readers as well as older readers as it helps to shed light on a period in Cuban history that those who are not from Cuba are not familiar with, and for other millennials who were remember seeing news coverage of Cubans arriving in boat after boat, seeking asylum in the U.S. and not fully understanding why, this book will help.

This story is set during the 1980s in Cuba. What started out as a slow beginning, quickly turned into a run for your life kind of story. I really enjoyed learning more about a time that I don't know too much about when some of the Cuban population was trying to leave their own country to come to Florida for freedom. The main character I wasn't a fan of in the beginning, but I did really like the understanding that he learned throughout the book on what was happening to his country.

A story of friendship and family. An emotional rollercoaster.

Almost a 5 star read for me, but I found the beginning a little slow and there were a few instances that the book didn't need to make it a great story.

And my Cuban history knowledge grew even more with this book which is a companion to The Red Umbrella but in a way that makes them both standalones but with a secret connection. The Bluest Sky, which comes out next week, is another historical fiction masterpiece by Gonzalez which once again tells us a moving story within the context of engaging history.

What a powerful and emotional book! I loved every page. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me a copy. This book opened my eyes to experiences that are not my own and I think it is such a great story to share.

My Review:

There is something about Middle Grade fiction that just gets to my heart. It’s tender and emotional and raw in a way that YA tends to be angsty and Adult fiction tends to be jaded. There is an earnestness to Middle Grade fiction and a longing for the world to make sense that I remember so well still from those years. The Bluest Sky is all those things and more. It’s hopeful and optimistic in a time when neither is really a thing to be. Héctor is the perfect MG hero – longing for a place in the world, wanting to fit in, scared of the future, but also unsure of the past.

Héctor is an outsider in a country full of them. Branded a traitor to the communist regime, his father is in America, and his mother wants the whole family to join them there. But Héctor loves his Cuba, his friends, and his chances of folloiwng his dreams. Until the world comes crashing down around him, that is.

At times dark and scary, The Bluest Sky is about the bonds of family, the power of friendship, and finding yourself in the middle or a changing world.

What a great story about a period in history that I didn’t really understand. Told from the perspective of a Cuban person, show a side of the story that I didn’t understand. I never knew how cruelly people who chose to leave Cuba were treated. It demonstrates how difficult immigration and leaving one’s family and culture is. I can see many students reading this book during our historical fiction unit.

Wow. It's not often that a book brings me to tears, but this one did. Twice. While this is a middle grade read, it is anything but light. The Bluest Sky is a powerful story, full or heartbreak and confusion, and such complex emotions. I literally gasped out loud on at least one occasion in addition to the tears. I will recommend this book far and wide. I think it's very important to read books about other cultures and backgrounds different than my own and this story left me feeling deep gratitude for the comparatively very easy life I've led.

Hector is your average sixth grade boy in most ways. His life although, is complicated, as he struggles under Cuba’s oppressive communist regime.
It is 1980 and the Cuban government has opened the port of Mariel, permitting those who could obtain visas and arrange for boat passage to emigrate. These tasks are intentionally not made simple. When Héctor was 5, his father was jailed for speaking out about the lack of freedom in Cuba. Now his father has been sent to the U.S. as part of a political exchange. They have not seen him in six years. But when his mother poses to her sons the possibility of reuniting with his father in Miami, Héctor doesn’t want to go, even though the family is living in constant fear and the imperative need to keep up public appearance of support for Fidel Castro’s repressive policies. Yet, Héctor is ambivalent about leaving. His life has always been in Cuba where his friends are and everything familiar. He’s a math whiz on track to represent Cuba at the International Math Olympiad and naturally wants to remain close to his friends and his Abuela. Now his Abuela complicates the issue because her status as a delegate to Cuba’s National Assembly enables her to confer privileges on Héctor’s family. Naturally she wants them to remain in Cuba. Choosing to leave comes with a price. Those who want to flee are denounced as traitors by family and friends. There are violent acts of repudiation, and no one knows if they will truly be allowed to leave the country or not. Then a tragedy within the family and friends closeness occurs and now nothing is left for Héctor and his family but to painfully wait for their exit visas.

I found the account a bit wordy and wished the story would move faster but when I got to the part where they were attempting to leave, I read with fear and near panic as this innocent family risked everything to get to the United States. Even with the problems of 2022 in America I am so thankful to be privileged to live here.

Historical fiction. 10-13 as well as adults will find this very engaging.

“Author, Christina Diaz Gonzalez’s great-grandmother, great-uncle, and extended family came to the U.S. through the Mariel boatlift. She vividly remembers meeting them all for the first time in the summer of 1980 and is proud to share this part of her family’s history.”

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: The Bluest Sky

Author: Christina Diaz Gonzalez

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 5/5

Diversity: Cuban MC and characters

Recommended For...: middle grade readers, historical fiction, Cuba, 1980s

Publication Date: September 6, 2022

Genre: MG Historical Fiction

Age Relevance: 9+ (activism, refugees, dictatorship, violence, death, grief)

Explanation of Above: The book discusses 1980s Cuba and it showcases a lot about activism and the dictatorship. It also talks about refugees. The book shows some physical violence and there is one death on scene and grief shown.

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Pages: 320

Synopsis: There are two versions of Hector: the public and the private. It's the only way to survive in communist Cuba--especially when your father was exiled to the U.S. and labeled an enemy of the people. Hector must always be seen as a fierce supporter of the regime, even if that means loudly rejecting the father he still loves.

But in the summer of 1980, those two versions are hard to keep separate. No longer able to suppress a public uprising, the Cuban government says it will open the port of Mariel to all who wish to leave the country--if they can find a boat. But choosing to leave comes with a price. Those who want to flee are denounced as traitors by family and friends. There are violent acts of repudiation, and no one knows if they will truly be allowed to leave the country or not.

So when Hector’s mother announces that she wants the family to risk everything to go to the United States, he is torn. He misses his father, but Cuba is the only home he has ever known. All his dreams and plans require him to stay. Can he leave everything behind for an unknown future?

In a summer of heat and upheaval, danger and deadly consequences, Hector’s two worlds are on a collision course. Will the impact destroy him and everything he loves?

Christina Diaz Gonzalez's great-grandmother, great-uncle, and extended family came to the U.S. through the Mariel boatlift. She vividly remembers meeting them all for the first time in the summer of 1980 and is proud to share this part of her family's history.

Review: I adore this book so much! The book did so well to talk about 1980s Cuba and it offered so much information and insight into an area of history that I don’t know a lot about. The book had a math prodigy MC and featured a lot of Spanish phrases. The book also had a really good message, about making your dreams follow you. The book did well with the worldbuilding and character development as well.

The only issue I really had with the book is that it feels like a series book, the ending is a bit open-ended. I want to see more of this universe in other books, because I think the MC is a strong enough character to build on what America looks like in immigrant lenses.

Verdict: It was great! Highly recommend!

"The Bluest Sky" by Christina Diaz Gonzalez is a new middle-grade book that older readers would also enjoy and find enlightening. It combines historical events with fictional ones that could easily be the backstories of many Cuban refugees that literally landed on these shores. There are moments of complete heartbreak but also hope for new lives and freedom.

Although Hector is content for much of the first part of the book, it becomes clear he is so because he’s never known life to be anything different. The author envelops the characters and reader in an atmosphere of oppression, fear, poverty, and lack of the freedoms we know as fundamental to our lives in the U.S. But as the reality of life is revealed to Hector, he quickly loses that contentment. Just the effects the American embargo had on the Cuban people’s ability to maintain their homes (they couldn’t get the materials to do so) was eye-opening. The author has put names and faces, albeit fictional, to those suffering, personalizing it and making it real.

Besides the oppressive setting, the plot quickly becomes tense and dangerous. I held my breath numerous times during the family’s harrowing process of leaving the country and teared up with both sadness and relief at others. It may take me a while to get over this story.

The juvenile main characters are engaging, strong, and brave: boys and girls with whom young readers will readily feel a connection. The plot includes features of their everyday living, home life, food, and growing up. The dialogue is liberally sprinkled with Spanish words and phrases whose meaning must be construed from context or looked up. Although it slowed the reading process down somewhat, I enjoyed looking up those that I didn’t recognize or couldn’t translate on my own.

With its taut storyline and engaging characters, THE BLUEST SKY would be a great book to share and discuss. I recommend it for middle-grade or older readers, which was well worth the reading.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author or publisher through "NetGalley" and "TBR and Beyond Book Tours."

An absolutely beautifully written story that will absorb you from the get go! The characters are written in such a way that you can’t help but care for them as if they were your own family. The story is a page turner and leaves you wanting to keep going without taking a break. Really well done! Really tugs at the heart strings. Book after book, Christina Diaz Gonzalez has demonstrated a true gift for storytelling.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Children's Books, and Christina Diaz Gonzalez for the opportunity to read this e-ARC!

This historical fiction book is set in communist-ruled Cuba in 1980. Hector is torn between the life he wants to live in Cuba, joining the International Math Olympics, with the life he could have in the United States. His father was exiled to the U.S. and labeled an enemy of the state, so Hector has been separated from his father for a long time. When Cuba opens up the port in Mariel for anyone who wants to leave Cuba - provided they can find a boat - Hector's mom makes the tough decision that the family should leave and reunite with their father.

Hector's relationships with his friends and family were relatable, even though this book was set in a country that I didn't know much about. Emotional and eye-opening, I'd recommend this book especially to students who love learning about different parts of history.

Set in Cuba in 1980, Hector's life seems to be ordinary. He enjoys hanging with his 2 best friends, Teo and Isabel, he mostly gets along with his older brother, and he's a math whiz working his way to join the Cuban National Math Olympiad Team. Under the surface, tensions are bubbling in Communist Cuba and anyone who denounces the government or tries to leave is publicly shamed and even worse, like his father who has been exiled to the United States. Unbeknownst to Hector, when the Cuban government allows those who wish to leave exit visas, his mother plans to get their family out of Cuba to reunite with his father. But for Hector, this means leaving his home, his friends and destroys the likelihood of his ever making the Math Olympiad team. But when tragedy strikes, Hector's life changes in an instant and so does his perspective on what's important.

This middle grade novel provides an insight perspective on how life in Communist Cuba might be perceived from a child's point of view. When you don't know anything different, you just accept the world as it is. This is a coming of age story of a young naive boy who is just learning about his world and the larger world outside his bubble. He has dreams and hopes and is fiercely loyal to those he loves. I read this with my 6th grade son and it was a gem of a book to share together.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House and Knopf Books for this early review copy. This review can also be found on IG @maria.needs.to.read and on Goodreads.

Eleven-year-old Héctor lives in Cuba and his mother and older brother Rodrigo in 1980. His father is in the US after having been imprisoned for his outspoken political views. Héctor is much more concerned with qualifying for a math competition and fishing with his best friend Theo and his twin sister Isabel than he is with politics, even though his abuela (his mother's mother) is a delegate to the National Assembly and a staunch supporter of Castro's Communist government. The government has opened up some avenues for people to leave the country, but they are difficult: people are allowed to leave from Mariel, but have to have passage on a boat and get permission. As more and more people in Héctor's world leave, and his older brother approaches draft age, Héctor's mother makes plans for the family to join the father in the US. His abuela is not happy and wants the boys to stay with her, expressing the opinion that the father was always no good. When crowds attack Héctor's house because word has gotten out that they are leaving, a tragedy occurs. Luckily, the family is still able to leave, and are ready to go when the government officers come to take possession of their home. There is a long and unpleasant wait to get permission from the authorities, and when they finally are next in line, things do not go easily. Will the three be able to start a new life in the US with the father?
Strengths: The most effective part of this book is Héctor's friendship with Theo and Isabel and their every day lives in Cuba. Like the descriptions in Senzai's Escape From Aleppo or Warga's Other Words for Home, these details make it easier for young readers to understand that people forced out of their countries are just like them, and have everyday concerns about school and friends, and would prefer to stay in their country if it were safe to do so. Héctor's love of math and his success at the competition, along with his teacher's support, offered an insight into his character, and the fact that he called his father hoping to stay in Cuba so he could compete is absolutely typical of how tweens can sometimes have a narrow outlook centered on their own concerns. The fact that the grandmother was in a political position to make things easier for the family showed how powerful the government could be, and also how families can be split in their political views. The friendship with Theo and Isabel was both heart warming and heart breaking. This is a fantastic book for building empathy for others, like Dassu's Boy, Everywhere or Athaide's Orange for the Sunsets, and made me realize that I really need to read a heavy duty history of Cuba in the twentieth century to remedy my lack of knowledge about this country.
Weaknesses: While I love the boats on the cover, this book begs for a photographic cover of Cuban coastline, and the blue sky of the title.
What I really think: The details about what Héctor went through were gut wrenching, especially in light of so many similar situations in the world today where children are forced to leave beloved countries. There have been a number of books about Cuba set in the 1950s and 60s, so it's interesting to know more about the events of the 1980s. I hope that the day will come when there are happier stories coming out of this country.

Oh my! So good! I laughed, I cried, I felt all the emotions! Every library needs this book! Such a great story that helps build empathy for those who don’t have the same freedoms we sometimes take for granted. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Slow start but do yourself a favor and keep reading. This is an engaging book which is a window into the lives of people living in Cuba. This is one of those books where you lose all track of time and place. The descriptive setting details makes you feel like you are there in Cuba. Warning there is a violent incident included which may trigger some readers emotionally. Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the early access through ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this book started off quite slow and I genuinely almost quit. I’m so glad I didn’t! It ended up being a beautiful, heartbreaking story about a family living in and trying to leave Cuba under Fidel Castro. Man, there were tears but there was also a lot of joy. A great book!