Milagros "Millie" came to the U.S. from Guatemala when she was only months old. Her parents were seeking asylum after living with the constant threat of violence in their homeland. Millie is now about to graduate from high school and has been offered a full scholarship to Stanford.
Everyone in Millie's family is now a U.S. citizen. Everyone that is, except her father, who died before he achieved that goal. Millie's mother works as a housekeeper for a wealthy family so she can take care of Millie and her siblings.
Everything is going just fine until Charles Wheeler, Millie's mother's boss, uses Millie's family as an example of a successful immigrant family story in one of his political speeches. Mr. Wheeler is running for U.S. Senate, and his campaign platform includes helping immigrant families. His intentions might be good, but after Millie and her family come to the attention of the local media, negative things begin to happen. Millie's social media accounts become the target for hateful people making angry comments. The comments spill over into her school life, and one night someone sets fire to their house. It burns to the ground leaving them homeless until the Wheelers invite them to stay in their lovely home.
Millie struggles with the hate she is experiencing from people who dislike immigrants and the generosity of the Charles Wheeler and his family. Wishing her life could just go back to normal, Millie must try to understand the cruelty directed at people like her and the courage she must find to help those less fortunate.
Author Marcia Argueta Mickelson takes on the immigration crisis in WHERE I BELONG. This fictional account of the border crisis will take readers into the thoughts of one girl dealing with her own issues as she witnesses the good and bad intentions of those around her.
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