Carlos and his twin brother Cris were looking forward to their school dance, but an encounter with a pair of bullies on a slick road during a terrible thunderstorm leads to a horrific auto accident and the deaths of two people—including Carlos. Cris, who was driving the car, is overcome with guilt, and their mom is devastated at the loss of her son.
The hazy details of the crash and its fallout are narrated in the alternating voices of the brothers, one a survivor and the other a ghost. No one can see or hear Carlos despite his efforts to let them know he is still there, so he is able to listen in on numerous conversations. One of the bullies that died in the crash was the son of the local sheriff, and the ghost learns the lawman intends to place the blame for the accident on his brother!
As Cris navigates his sorrow, he is intent on getting to know his father, who has been absent all their lives. To complicate matters, he meets and falls head-over-heels in love with Selena, who has secrets of her own, including knowing more about the crash than she lets on. Exploring death and grief from a young person’s perspective, this absorbing novel for teens set in South Texas brims with the cultural traditions and beliefs of the Mexican-American community.
Click here to watch Sylvia Sánchez Garza in the APP Authors Speak series talking about her creative process.
Honorable Mention, International Latino Book Awards
“Garza offers a profound depiction of grief in this supernatural tale… An understated but insightful ghost story that shows how misery affects people in unpredictable ways.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Sylvia Sánchez Garza creates a compelling story that is about far more than grief and recovery alone. As she probes the roots of this Mexican-American Texan town, she also reveals the wellsprings of tradition and culture which lend to survival and diverse viewpoints about how best to live… Libraries seeking a gripping YA story immersed in bigger-picture thinking about ethics, survival, and love will find Ghost Brother a major attraction.”—Midwest Book Review
“Sylvia Sánchez Garza gives her YA readers a lot to think about in their personal lives as the reader watches Garza’s characters struggling with emotional depths familiar to numerous teenagers—an absent father—and events a kid doesn’t want to consider…”— La Bloga
“The story is rich in cultural detail, including Latinx language and cultural references, that lend authenticity to the first-person narrative. The dual narrative perspective allows the serious issues of bullying, discrimination, and grief to be explored in a multifaceted and sensitive manner… Exciting and thought-provoking, this novel is sure to have readers intrigued until the last page.”—The Children’s Book Review
SYLVIA SÁNCHEZ GARZA is the author of Cascarones: Growing up in the Río Grande Valley (Crimson Cardinal Press, 2024) and Awaken! (White Bird Publications, 2022). She holds a BA in English from Pan American University, an MA in School Administration from Lamar University and a PhD in Leadership Studies from Our Lady of the Lake University. She lives and works in Edinburg, Texas.
