The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera. Unabridged downloadable e-audiobook, ~8.5 hours. Read by Frankie Cross. Recorded Books, November, 2021. 9781705044308. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from the public library.)
Teen Tuesday features The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera. It is the first-person narration of twelve-year-old Petra Peńa, who is evacuating Earth with her little brother and scientist parents. A solar flairs have knocked Haley's Comet off course and it's hurtling straight to Earth. Three space ships will transport a select few to colonize Planet Sagan, but they will have to sleep for 380 years. During that time, Petra and her brother will continue their education via programming. Petra is expected to become a botanist, but her passion lies in storytelling. Her abuela was a storyteller and she wishes to become a cuentista as well.
However, a dissident group, know as The Collective, boards the ship and re-programs all on board, wiping away all memories of Earth. Petra learns that her brain has resisted re-programming but hides this when she sees what happens to another girl when she remembers her mother-back for reprogramming. And if that doesn't work?
All Petra knows is that her parents and brother are nowhere to be found.
While fast-paced and suspenseful, the language is lovely. The incorporation of her beloved Mexican folk tales was seamless. Listening to this added to my enjoyment thanks to the fluent pronunciation of Spanish words.
This sci/fi/ dystopian won the 2022 Newbery Medal as well as the Pure Bel Pré Author Award.
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