The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez by Adrianna Cuevas

Reviewed by Abby

The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez follows titular character Nestor as he tries to adjust to a new school and new surroundings. He and his mother have just moved to the home of his abuela (grandmother) in Texas while his father is on military deployment.  Nestor is upset about the move in part because he believes he won’t be in Texas long before his family is uprooted and forced to move again. If this wasn’t enough of a problem, Nestor has a secret: he can talk to animals.

Nestor still tries to enjoy himself at his new school and makes friends with classmates Talib and Maria Carmen. They tell him how there have been several cases of missing animals throughout town. With his ability to talk to animals, Nestor hears rumors from the woodland creatures about a witch who can shapeshift. Nestor feels obligated to take action and find the witch before more animals are taken or harmed. Even worse, Nestor’s abuela has been accused of stealing the animals by witnesses who claim to have seen her running around the forest at night. 

The witch, known as the tule vieja to Nestor and his abuela, is a mighty, mystical force to be reckoned with. Nestor is unsure if he can stop her on his own. With his friends as backup, Nestor attempts to learn as much as he can about the tule vieja before pursuing her. He learns that she can obtain the power of an animal by biting it during a solar eclipse. Unfortunately for him, the date of the next eclipse is quickly approaching. Nestor has to muster up as much courage as he can to battle the tule vieja to clear his abuela and to save the animals. But will it be enough?

 (Fun fact: the tule vieja, also spelled as tulivieja, in this novel is loosely based on a Central American folktale about a woman who was punished and transformed into a monster after she killed her baby.)

I typically do not read children’s or middle grade books as pleasure reads. I was introduced to this novel as a reading assignment for one of my college classes, so I decided to check it out from the library. I am grateful for the introduction. This book was quite entertaining! I had no clue what to expect at first. All I knew was that The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez was about a boy who could talk to animals. I assumed the story was aimed more towards juvenile audiences, so I did not have high expectations of relating to the plot, but I ended up really enjoying it!

I am a big fan of multicultural literature and will always advocate for others to read it when the opportunity arises. This novel is a prime example of how diverse authors are able to effortlessly include their culture into their writing. Cuevas does this in several ways: when Nestor and his abuela occasionally speak in Spanish, when his abuela makes Cuban inspired recipes for her family, and the inclusion of the Panamanian folklore of the tule vieja. This book appears lighthearted from the cover alone, but does touch on more mature topics that can easily attract the attention of older audiences. It is certainly a unique story with its combination of realistic and magical elements. I would highly recommend it!