Anita de la Torre never questioned her freedom living in the Dominican Republic. But by her twelfth birthday in 1960, most of her relatives have immigrated to the United States, her Tío Toni has disappeared without a trace, and the government's secret police terrorize her remaining family because of their suspected opposition to Trujilo's iron-fisted rule. Using the strength and courage of her family, Anita must overcome her fears and fly to freedom,...

Juanita and Miguel's great-aunt, Tia Lola, comes from the Dominican Republic to help take care of them after their parents divorce, and soon she is so involved in their small Vermont community that when her visa expires, the whole town turns out to support her.

In the early 1960s in the Dominican Republic, twelve-year-old Anita learns that her family is involved in the underground movement to end the bloody rule of the dictator, General Trujillo. Anita de la Torre es una niña de 12 años que vive en la República Dominicana en los años sesenta. La policía secreta ha comenzado a atemorizar a su familia porque se sospecha que están en contra del dictador, General Trujillo.

When three girls and their father visit for a week in the summer, it takes Tia Lola to make Miguel forget his unhappiness at the absence of any boys and embrace the adventures that ensue.

Although ten-year-old Miguel is at first embarrassed by his colorful aunt, Tia Lola, when she comes to Vermont from the Dominican Republic to stay with his mother, his sister, and him after his parents' divorce, he learns to love her.

Juanita and Miguel's great aunt, Tía Lola, comes from the Dominican Republic to help take care of them after their parents divorce, and soon she is so involved in their small Vermont community that when her visa expires, the whole town turns out to support her.