New book tells true story of community resilience from Lemon Grove's past

S1: Welcome in San Diego. It's Jade Hindman on today's show. Author Maria Dolores Aguilar shares a story of Chicano resilience in her book , A Sea of Lemon Trees. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. Through books like Menudo Sunday , author Maria Dolores Aguila writes stories of San Diego's Mexican-American community , often telling true stories of resilience. She's the author of the 2024 one book , one San Diego Kids Selection , Barrio Rising The Protest That Built Chicano Park. And she's back now with a new book , this time a novel for young readers called A Sea of Lemon Trees. Maria Dolores Aguila , welcome back to Midday Edition.

S2: Thank you. I'm so excited to be here.

S1: So glad to have you. So your latest book tells a story from nearly a century ago.

S2: And so the Mexican community was not happy with that. And they fought back against that. Americanization school is what they called it. And they took the school board to court and they won.

S1: And tell me a bit more about that.

S2: They didn't want to be in a separate school because they were concerned about the quality of education. And of course , we know , you know , separate is never equal. So they , you know , fought back against it. And it was during the time when it was at great personal risk because it set in the Great Depression. And it's also set in the Mexican repatriation. So not only were they facing economic risks like losing jobs , but also being deported to Mexico.

S1: This is not a picture book , but a novel.

S2: And as soon as she said that , the first poem came to me and I was like , oh , okay. Like , yes , let's do this. Like , let's write this as a novel. And I found in the novel , I was able to add so much more layers and so much more texture to the story than I could in a picture book. So I think that with this layered and textured approach , you get a real sense of the time and the place and what Roberto had to go through to be successful in this court case.

S1: Well , can you read something for us ? Yes.

S2: Let me read one of the first poems. I live in a sea of lemon trees , rows and rows of trees studded with bright yellow globes tightly tucked within glossy green leaves that rake your hand when you reach in to touch the sour scented , cream colored blossoms. I live in a sea of lemon trees atop a mesa. Las reyes de mi familia stretching from the south , a volcanic quarry to the north , the foothills of Mother Miguel rimming the east , and blinding glimpses of the Pacific Ocean to the west. On the best days , the faintest briny breeze plays with the flower sack curtains on my window. I live in the sea of lemon trees. With small patches of wild , where narrow leaved Romeo , velvety salvia blanca and golden yarrow grow. I live in a sea of lemon trees , where the newspapers proclaim the greatest climate on earth. And it is.

S3: Oh , that's beautiful. And it really.

S1: Takes you. There.

S3: There.

S1: Yes , the texture , the colors , the scent.

S2: I don't need to like , know where the story is going. That's going to hinder my creative process. But I never was able to finish anything. So now I'm very organized. I , you know , used the save the cat method where they have 15 beats from , you know , the final image , first image to the final image. And , um , you know , I lay out what I'm going to write and I'm very organized on how I do it because that's how I can finish something , even though it doesn't feel very artistic. It actually is because there's freedom in the structure of it.

S1: Well , I imagine research , too , was an important part of telling this story.

S2: Like I can go down a rabbit hole and , like , read all these old articles and , um , you know , there's a letter that one of the parents wrote for the , um , for the Mexican consulate. And I remember , like , I found and I was like , oh , my gosh , I get to read it. I'm so excited , I know. So for me , research is the funnest part. Like , you'd you literally have to pull me away from it. But I enjoyed it so much. And there's a bibliography in the back with all the research that I did.

S1: Oh , wow.

S2: I didn't know about this court case , lemon Grove incident. And so I always grew up learning stories about what Chicano communities had done in other parts of California. So like the grape boycotts in Central California , you know , the East L.A. things , but never nothing in San Diego. And I was like , why have we not done anything ? But , you know , come to find out through research , like the community in San Diego has accomplished things and they've just been buried or not told for whatever reason. So I wanted to create this story. So kids that live in San Diego , kids like that were like I once was can see that. Wow. You know , I come from a powerful place , like from powerful people that have accomplished amazing things.

S1: And it's so interesting that that's not like the first thing that , you know , people are taught in school and your research.

S2: So , you know , he wasn't one to to his own Horner to be like , I was a lead plaintiff in the , you know , the this case. No , he was just really quiet. He , you know , he went to World War two and then , you know , he had a business and that was it. He just never really talked about it. Interesting.

S1: Interesting. Well , you know , like like all your books , the the setting is here in San Diego , as you mentioned. This time your story takes place in Lemon Grove. Of course. How did you want to capture Lemon Grove.

S4: At the time ? This story takes place back in the 1930s ? Yes.

S2: So 1930s. It's funny because Lemon Grove is considered a rural area , right ? Not like not right now , but in that time is a rural area. And I got to see a lot of like little papers and like advertisements for people to buy property in Lemon Grove. And it had stuck out to me. One of them has said a sea of lemon trees as far as the eye could see. And I don't know why that image just like , stuck with me. And I was like , wow. Like I really like that. So , so , um , that was one of the things that really stood out to me during the research and like portraying Lemon Grove.

S1: Yeah , it's almost hard to see Lemon Grove as a , as a rural area.

S4: Looking at it now. Yes.

S1: Yes. You often incorporate real.

S4: Events into your writing , like here in a sea of lemon trees.

S1: How do you.

S4: Approach finding a balance in.

S1: Being historically accurate while also making.

S4:

S2: So it's a tricky balance , and I always skew to the side of like , I want to be exactly right , like , this is how it happened and this is how it should be portrayed. But that doesn't always work when you're trying to create a narrative. And I rely a lot on my on my heritage as a Chicana writer to know that , you know , in my community , we do things a certain way and make sure that I portray them accurately. So it's it's a balance of trying to make sure that I stay as close as possible , but also forgiving myself for having to take creative liberties in the story.

S1: As with any author , yes , you know. Well , so the book comes out today. And.

S4: And.

S1: It already has.

S4: Been nominated.

S1: For the long list for a National Book Award. So congratulations to you on that. Thank you. Tell us about that and what else you have planned for the book.

S2: So I had no idea that it was nominated for to be on the longlist for the National Book Award. And that morning , you know , I had been snoozing my alarm. And then finally , when I snoozed it , I , my phone was blowing up and I was like , what ? What's going on ? Did I do something wrong ? Like what's happening ? And so I was like , congratulations , congratulations. I was like , what ? And so then come to find out , you know , the book has been listed as one of the longlist for young people's literature for the National Book Award. And , I mean , it's my debut book. Like , I didn't even know what to think. It was just such an honor to be , like , listed among these other authors with these prestigious backgrounds and their amazing literary work that they do so. It's an honor , and I'm so excited that other people can see San Diego history and kind of pull more of a universal lesson from it. Um , um , even though it's such a local story. It.

S1: It.

S4: Very much. Is.

S1: Is. I tell you what , uh. Even though the snooze button and the alarm didn't get you out of bed. A slew of congratulations will always do the trick. That's great. It's a great way to wake up. And. Yes , it is. Um , well , so , you know , the events in your novel took place nearly 100 years ago now , yet feels very resonant to.

S4: Things happening today.

S1:

S2: I started writing it in 2021 before this kind of happened , and I thought I was going to be sharing a history lesson. And with everything that's going on right now , I'm like , wow , we really do live in the echoes of the past. Like , this has happened before , and now I feel like it's not just a history lesson , but it's also a guide to coming together as a community and fighting back.

S1: And what do you hope readers take away from this story ? On that note.

S2: What I hope more than anything that readers take away from this story is to feel empowered to create change in their community , and to feel proud to stand in community.

S1: Maria Dolores Aguilas. New book is called A Sea of Lemon Trees and it's out today. Her previous books include Barrio Rising and Menudo Sunday. Maria , congratulations. Again.

S4: Again.

S1: And thanks so much for joining us.

S2: Thanks so much for having me.

S1: Thanks for joining us today. If you missed anything , you can download KPBS Midday Edition on all podcast apps. Don't forget to watch Evening Edition tonight at five for in-depth reporting on San Diego issues. Also , you can always share your feedback or segment ideas at midday at KPBS. Or just give us a call. The number is (619) 452-0228. I'm Jade Hindman. We'll talk again tomorrow. Until then , have a great day on purpose , everyone. That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.