Journey of the Sparrows

Journey of the Sparrows (1991) by American children’s author Fran Leeper Buss follows refugees from El Salvador as they make a living in the U.S. Buss worked with Salvadorian poet and activist Daisy Cubias to make the story as authentic and accurate as possible. Journey of the Sparrows was Buss’s debut novel. Cubias brought much of her personal experience to the story; her entire family was murdered in El Salvador and she fled to the U.S. as a young woman.

Journey of the Sparrows has the themes of survival, family, courage, faith, and immigration. It is told in the first person from the vantage point of the protagonist, Maria.

The novel opens to 15-year-old Maria struggling to breathe. She, along with her six-year-old brother Oscar, her older sister Julia, and another child from her village named Oscar, are being smuggled across the border into the U.S. They have been nailed into a shipping crate so as to appear like cargo; the shipping crate is lodged in the back of a truck that is heading to Chicago.



To get through this harrowing and claustrophobic ordeal, Maria’s mind drifts to memories of her homeland of El Salvador: from the good, like the mesmerizing flowers and a brightly colored bird—the quetzal—to the bad, like the fact that her family was severely poor and her father was recently murdered. Maria has an artistic temperament and wants to work as an artist, but she’s willing to work hard at just about anything to ensure the survival of her family.

Maria’s mother agreed to smuggle her out of El Salvador so that her children could not only have a better life in America, but also so that they have the chance at survival. It’s not only the economic and physical prosperity Maria’s mother wants her children to have; it’s also that if they stay in the country, they will surely be killed as an act of revenge. Maria’s father was a revolutionary figure who was killed by government soldiers (Guardias). After his death, the family was constantly harassed. Making matters worse, government soldiers then also killed Ramon, the husband of Julia.

Considering how many people suddenly “disappeared,” Maria’s mother knows that she or her children may be murdered one day. After the Guardias rape Julia, the mother decides that her children must leave El Salvador. Maria’s mother promises to meet her children in Chicago; for some time, she will stay in El Salvador and take care of her new baby.



All of the children are (eventually) safely transported over the border. They must now head north to Chicago where some family friends will help them out. They are assisted by a coyote. During this trip to Chicago, Oscar becomes very sick and close to death; fortunately, he recovers.

In Chicago, the odds are stacked against Oscar and Maria as soon as they land. They live in constant fear that they’ll be forced out of the country if ever apprehended; their vulnerable status also makes them susceptible to be taken advantage of. Maria finds work in a sweatshop. Because she is an illegal immigrant, Maria is paid below minimum-wage and always with cash. Despite working 16-hour days, she isn’t making enough money to help feed Oscar and Julia. Her manager at the factory also repeatedly harasses and treats her like an object; he claims that he can do anything to her because she’s an illegal immigrant and there’s no one looking out for her.

When her older sister Julia becomes pregnant, Maria becomes the family’s breadwinner. She improves her English rapidly and becomes a more valuable worker in America. Fortunately, the children are able to find shelter with a Chicago family from El Salvador; the family helps Maria adjust to her new life in America. This includes Tomas, a teenager Maria’s age who acts as an English mentor and later a boyfriend, and Marta, Tomas’s kind and intelligent mother.



One day, the sweatshop Maria works at is seized by federal authorities. Maria escapes, and now must find alternative employment. Without any money, Maria and her siblings go hungry. To find food, Maria breaks into a church. It’s through this break-in that Maria meets Father Jonathan, a priest who supports El Salvadoran refugees in the U.S. He gives Maria a cleaning job at the church.

For some time, the family is stable. Maria passes the time creating detailed drawings. They’re good enough that she can sell them and add to her income as a cleaning lady. One day, Julia goes into an early labor. Fortunately, the baby survives, and Julia names him after his father, Ramon. After the birth, Julia finds a job and helps add to the family’s fortune.

Maria’s mother arrives in Chicago, and she is reunited with her children. Unfortunately, the reunion is brief; Maria’s mother is deported from the U.S. This means that Maria must return to Mexico, where the baby is being held.



The novel ends with Maria journeying to Mexico to help her baby brother. It is implied that she is successful.