Summary
Throughout Esperanza's life, she has moved around from house to house and has never had a place that she can truly call home. She feels like she does not really belong anywhere and that she is still trying to discover who she is. Esperanza is a young Latina girl who lives in Chicago. She lives with her mother, father, brothers, and younger sister. She lives in a beat-up old house in a poor Latino neighborhood. As soon as Esperanza and her family move to Chicago, she starts to make friends with people who she ends up learning multiple life lessons from. One of these life lessons is to not have such a negative self-image. Esperanza is always putting herself down, which is probably why she feels like she doesn't belong.
While living on Mango Street, Esperanza begins to develop, both physically and mentally. She hits pubirty in the middle of the book and starts to notice the boys around her. She grows mentally when she experiences situations such as the death of her grandfather. Another growth is when Esperanza learns not to have negative self-image. Esperanza's one dream was to leave Mango Street and have a nice house that is all her own. By learning more about herself and accepting herself for the way she is, Esperanza's dreams can finally come true.