Esperanza cannot wait to be mature and sophisticated. She is at the point in her life when she is looking to branch out and be more independent and in charge of her life. She describes her mother’s hair “like little candy circles”. I believe she is very attached to her mother at the start of the book and she looks up to her admiringly. Esperanza also finds security in her mother’s embrace (hair) during the times in which her mother allows her to sleep in her bed. “my mother’s hair, my mother’s hair…sweet to put your nose into when she is holding you, holding you and you feel safe,… it is the smell when she makes room for you on her side of the bed”. Esperanza’s description of her mother’s hair tells you of mother’s importance to her. It also sets the tone for Esperanza’s immaturity at the start of the