In this biography in verse, based on the life of Juan Francisco Manzano, a Cuban slave, Margarita Engle tells the story of a young boy who begins life as a young slave to an old mistress who calls him “the child of [her] old age.” His real mother and father are slaves owned by the same woman. The woman, Doña Beatriz, promises Juan his freedom upon her death, and sets a price of three hundred pesos each for his parents to buy their freedom. She teaches Juan all sorts of verses and languages so that he may recite them to amuse her friends. However, upon her death, Juan is not granted his freedom, but is instead taken to the Marquesa de Prado Ameno. Regularly beaten and tortured, his love of beauty and verse continues, as he comforts himself and his mother, who comes to visit him regularly now that she and the rest of the family are free. Eventually, after many years of pain and torture, Juan escapes into the mountains.
Written in verse, this biography is presented in a very nontraditional format, which may appeal to some students who would not typically be interested in the traditional biography genre. I liked the fact that, as a reader, this book really made me feel that I personally knew Juan Francisco Manzano.
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