Senior Planet Book Club: My Beloved World

The family dynamics of Sotomayor’s early life had the possibility of being very emotionally damaging. An erratic father who drank, and a mother who was stressed out and mostly wasn’t present might lead to Sonia being very negatively impacted in terms of planning her future, but she gained strength from support of her extended family, in particular, her grandmother. And, at least in retrospect, she provides us with insight and understanding of her parents. Sonia’s remarkable strength and sense of direction in life shines throughout.

I found the various relationship between the parent and the child interesting. When Sonia understands the disconnect between Celina and her father, Sonia becomes determined to work at improving her relationship with her mom. Juli passes early in Sonia’s life but leaves an incredible sense of having been loved unconditionally. I always want the happy ending but Julli’s dead was so heavily foreshadowed that. It was just a matter of when. The explanations of Juli being forced into adulthood prematurely parallels Celina’s lost of childhood. How does the extended family provide supports, or are they another source of disappointment? It will be interesting to see how Sonia uses all of her experiences to become Justice Sotomayor.