EasterBlack-owned or founded brands at TargetGroceryClothing, Shoes & AccessoriesBabyHomeFurnitureKitchen & DiningOutdoor Living & GardenToysElectronicsVideo GamesMovies, Music & BooksSports & OutdoorsBeautyPersonal CareHealthPetsHousehold EssentialsArts, Crafts & SewingSchool & Office SuppliesParty SuppliesLuggageGift IdeasGift CardsClearanceTarget New ArrivalsTarget Finds#TargetStyleTop DealsTarget Circle DealsWeekly AdShop Order PickupShop Same Day DeliveryRegistryRedCardTarget CircleFind Stores

Sponsored

A Dream Called Home - by Reyna Grande (Paperback)

A Dream Called Home - by  Reyna Grande (Paperback) - 1 of 1
$10.79 sale price when purchased online
$18.99 list price
Target Online store #3991

About this item

Highlights

  • "Here is a life story so unbelievable, it could only be true.
  • About the Author: Reyna Grande is an award-winning author, motivational speaker, and writing teacher.
  • 336 Pages
  • Biography + Autobiography, Personal Memoirs

Description



Book Synopsis



"Here is a life story so unbelievable, it could only be true." --Sandra Cisneros, bestselling author of The House on Mango Street

From bestselling author of the remarkable memoir The Distance Between Us comes an inspiring account of one woman's quest to find her place in America as a first-generation Latina university student and aspiring writer determined to build a new life for her family one fearless word at a time.

As an immigrant in an unfamiliar country, with an indifferent mother and abusive father, Reyna had few resources at her disposal. Taking refuge in words, Reyna's love of reading and writing propels her to rise above until she achieves the impossible and is accepted to the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Although her acceptance is a triumph, the actual experience of American college life is intimidating and unfamiliar for someone like Reyna, who is now estranged from her family and support system. Again, she finds solace in words, holding fast to her vision of becoming a writer, only to discover she knows nothing about what it takes to make a career out of a dream.

Through it all, Reyna is determined to make the impossible possible, going from undocumented immigrant of little means to "a fierce, smart, shimmering light of a writer" (Cheryl Strayed, author of Wild); a National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist whose "power is growing with every book" (Luis Alberto Urrea, Pultizer Prize finalist); and a proud mother of two beautiful children who will never have to know the pain of poverty and neglect.

Told in Reyna's exquisite, heartfelt prose, A Dream Called Home demonstrates how, by daring to pursue her dreams, Reyna was able to build the one thing she had always longed for: a home that would endure.



Review Quotes




Praise for The Distance Between Us

"In this poignant memoir about her childhood in Mexico, Reyna Grande skillfully depicts another side of the immigrant experience--the hardships and heartbreaks of the children who are left behind. Through her brutally honest firsthand account of growing up in Mexico without her parents, Grande sheds light on the often overlooked consequence of immigration--the disintegration of a family."--Sonia Nazario, Pulitzer Prize winner, and author of Enrique's Journey

"Candid and emotionally complex, Grande's book celebrates one woman's tenacity in the face of hardship and heartbreak while offering hope to other immigrants as they "fight to remain" and make their voices heard in a changing America. A heartfelt, inspiring, and relevant memoir."-- "Kirkus Reviews"

"A Dream Called Home is a deeply moving, beautifully written portrait of a young woman's journey to her own best life against the odds. Reyna Grande is a national treasure; her vision is not only singular, but essential to our contemporary culture. This is a beacon of a book."--Carolina De Robertis, award-winning author of The Gods of Tango

"A brutally honest book...akin to being the Angela's Ashes of the modern Mexican immigrant experience."-- "LA Times"

"An important piece of America's immigrant history."-- "BookPage"

"Eloquent, honest storytelling. This book would be fabulous required reading for college freshmen or, even better, for freshman members of Congress,"-- "Washington Independent Review of Books"

"Grande (The Distance Between Us) writes with strength and passion of her life's journey....This uplifting story of fortitude and resilience looks deeply into the complexities of immigration and one woman's struggle to adapt and thrive in America."-- "Publishers Weekly (starred review)"

"Grande consistently displays a fierce willingness to ask tough questions, accept startling answers, and candidly render emotional and physical violence."-- "Kirkus Reviews"

"Grande never flinches in describing her surroundings and feelings, while her resilience and ability to empathize allow her to look back with a compassion that makes this story one that everyone should read."-- "School Library Journal"

"Grande's engaging and frank narrative flows painlessly, leaving no stones unturned...She carries off these scenes and the accompanying interior dialogues with humor and panache."-- "Booklist"

"I've been waiting for this book for decades. The American story of the new millennium is the story of the Latino immigrant, yet how often has the story been told by the immigrant herself? What makes Grande's beautiful memoir all the more extraordinary is that, through this hero's journey, she speaks for millions of immigrants whose voices have gone unheard."--Sandra Cisneros, bestselling author of The House on Mango Street

"Powerful, harrowing."-- "San Antonio Express News"

"Reyna Grande is a fearless writer and a tireless warrior for the unrepresented and silenced. Her power is growing with every book."--Luis Alberto Urrea, Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of The Devil's Highway

"Reyna Grande is a fierce, smart, shimmering light of a writer with an important story to tell."--Cheryl Strayed, New York Times bestselling author of Wild

"Reyna Grande's A Dream Called Home is a moving memoir about building a family, becoming a writer, and redefining America. Writers in need of inspiration should read this book."--Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author of The Sympathizer

"Reyna Grande's march towards her brilliant career astonishes me. She makes seemingly-disastrous choices, but bobs and floats through as buoyant as cork. Her mistakes are familiar, but her recovery is unique. Here is a life story so unbelievable, it could only be true."--Sandra Cisneros, bestselling author of The House on Mango Street

"The poignant yet triumphant tale Grande tells of her childhood and eventual illegal immigration puts a face on issues that stir vehement debate."-- "Booklist"

"When the spark of a fierce intelligence touches a soul deep and true, an entire world is born. Writers like Reyna Grande give us more than a story, more than a book, more than just a slice of their experience or their imagination; they give us a world in which to dwell, a place we can always return to when we need to make sense of the chaos that surrounds us. A Dream Called Home is such a place."--Valeria Luiselli, award-winning author of Tell Me How It Ends

Grande captivates and inspires in her memoir. She deftly evokes the searing sense of heartache and confusion. Tracing the complex and tattered relationships binding the family together, especially the bond she shared with her older sister, the author intimately probes her family's history for clues to its disintegration. Recounting her story without self-pity, she gracefully chronicles the painful results of a family shattered by repeated separations and traumas.-- "Publishers Weekly (starred review)"



About the Author



Reyna Grande is an award-winning author, motivational speaker, and writing teacher. As a girl, she crossed the US-Mexico border to join her family in Los Angeles, a harrowing journey chronicled in The Distance Between Us, a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist that has been adopted as the common read selection by over twenty schools and colleges and fourteen cities across the country. Her other books include the novels Across a Hundred Mountains, winner of a 2007 American Book Award, and Dancing with Butterflies, and The Distance Between Us, Young Reader's Version. She lives in Woodland, CA with her husband and two children. Visit ReynaGrande.com.
Dimensions (Overall): 8.35 Inches (H) x 5.5 Inches (W) x .9 Inches (D)
Weight: .8 Pounds
Suggested Age: 22 Years and Up
Sub-Genre: Personal Memoirs
Genre: Biography + Autobiography
Number of Pages: 336
Publisher: Washington Square Press
Format: Paperback
Author: Reyna Grande
Language: English
Street Date: July 2, 2019
TCIN: 76425638
UPC: 9781501171437
Item Number (DPCI): 248-66-2571
Origin: Made in the USA or Imported
If the item details above aren’t accurate or complete, we want to know about it.

Shipping details

Estimated ship dimensions: 0.9 inches length x 5.5 inches width x 8.35 inches height
Estimated ship weight: 0.8 pounds
We regret that this item cannot be shipped to PO Boxes.
This item cannot be shipped to the following locations: American Samoa (see also separate entry under AS), Guam (see also separate entry under GU), Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico (see also separate entry under PR), United States Minor Outlying Islands, Virgin Islands, U.S., APO/FPO

Return details

This item can be returned to any Target store or Target.com.
This item must be returned within 90 days of the date it was purchased in store, shipped, delivered by a Shipt shopper, or made ready for pickup.
See the return policy for complete information.

Related Categories

4.8 out of 5 stars with 6 reviews
100% would recommend
1 recommendations

Emotional visualization of sacrifice and hard work

5 out of 5 stars
AHSMR - 3 years ago
I read this book in my 12th grade English class as a required reading. Although the text was required for my class, the book quickly grabbed my attention as soon as my teacher gave a brief introduction into the book. The book has an emotional appeal that attracts readers like myself. This memoir’s audience feels adequate to almost everyone, but I’d specify those freshly out of high school, or early college students. This book would be ideal to first generation students- like myself, who are struggling to find a purpose in life or pursuing a further education. Like Reyna, many of us can relate to the struggles she descriptively shares. Author, Reyna Grande shares her story through this book in a relatable fashion to many first generation students. I found it a bit eerie how much I could relate to her life. I could picture myself in her shoes, and relate first handedly to many of the issues she would write about. From her family issues and upbringing, I almost found this book to be a copy of my life in literature. Reyna Grande’s memoir follows her life after her move to Santa Cruz in her attempt to pursue her education. Reyna wishes to break a cycle as a first generation college student who wishes to become a writer. Throughout her life, Grande has encountered many struggles financially, romantically, and emotionally. She describes her journey in her attempt to pursue a career as a published author. Grande’s structure of this book follows a chronological order of events starting with her move to Santa Cruz. From there, she proceeds to detail her life from then, including some flashbacks. Grande often taps into her thought process during certain moments in her life, which I believe captivates the reader to a more personal level. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a motivating, refreshing book to read. This book definitely checked my headspace and helped me check my priorities in my own pathway to becoming the first person in my family to attend college. The chapters are extraordinarily written and captivating to the audience. I applaud Reyna Grande for publishing this book for readers like myself to grow inspired from.
Did you find this review helpful?

ADCH Review

5 out of 5 stars
Alejo Rosas - 3 years ago
In the novel "A Dream Called Home," Author Reyna Grande writes about the challenges and heartaches she had faced at a young age and fulfilling her American dream of graduating college and becoming an author. Grande puts her readers in the perspective of not only building her writing potential but building her true self-worthiness from the moment she first came to the United States from Mexico at the age of nine years old. Grande often talks about how difficult it was to embrace her Mexican heritage and culture. The author gives a voice to those who live and or lived a similar life and those who had migrated to the United States to better their lives. She shows her audience her journey of going and graduating from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and how the experience had widened her view of the world and herself. She also shares the hard work and dedication it took in college and finds her true meaning in life . Throughout the book, Grande often shows her audience the phases she had to go through. Throughout the book, there are moments where you see Grande grow from her old self. The readers have a sense of growing up with the author. You view the difference between the author from the beginning to the end of the book. The author grew up in a toxic household and later created a home that she longed for throughout her life.
Did you find this review helpful?

Fantastic

5 out of 5 stars
Thumbs up graphic, would recommend
Mloz2013 - 5 years ago
I picked up this book after reading “The Distance Between Us”. I really loved “Distancr Between Us” but I gotta say I loved this one even more. “A Dream called Home” is beautifully written. I love Grande’s style of writing. She took me on a journey with her and I became nostalgic about my own college experience etc. it’s a great read for anyone but especially for someone who’s a first generation college graduate, an immigrant to the United States or just someone who wants to learn about what immigrant youth go through when coming to the United States. I hope to read more of her work in the future.
Did you find this review helpful?

Get top deals, latest trends, and more.

Privacy policy

Footer

About Us

About TargetCareersNews & BlogTarget BrandsBullseye ShopSustainability & GovernancePress CenterAdvertise with UsInvestorsAffiliates & PartnersSuppliersTargetPlus

Help

Target HelpReturnsTrack OrdersRecallsContact UsFeedbackAccessibilitySecurity & FraudTeam Member Services

Stores

Find a StoreClinicPharmacyOpticalMore In-Store Services

Services

Target Circle™Target Circle™ CardTarget Circle 360™Target AppRegistrySame Day DeliveryOrder PickupDrive UpFree 2-Day ShippingShipping & DeliveryMore Services
PinterestFacebookInstagramXYoutubeTiktokTermsCA Supply ChainPrivacyCA Privacy RightsYour Privacy ChoicesInterest Based AdsHealth Privacy Policy