City News

Laura Resau and María Virginia Farinango’s The Queen of Water shows the

strength of unfaltering hope and the human spirit through the true story of a hopeless

future turned to an accomplished lifestyle. In other words, it is a rags to riches story, but

with unexpected turns and twists along the way. Virginia Farinango, an indigenous girl

living in a small village in Ecuador, enjoys her days freely and playfully alongside her

working parents in the fields. Although Virginia is poor, she is beautiful and has a

passionate personality – which causes her to be the perfect house servant for a white

couple, one of whom is the son of the farm owners. When she is only seven years old

and is taken from her home and family by the couple, she tells herself that her own

family will eventually take her back to her rightful home. However, once days, weeks,

months, and even years pass, the promise becomes a forgotten, broken memory, and

she becomes accustomed to her new lifestyle as she realizes that there is no escape

from her bosses’ house. The next years are filled with more broken promises and

betrayals, promises of a school education and the betrayal of parental love.

But her spirit allows her to still find education. She secretly teaches herself how

to read, write, and eventually understand science. This spirit and determination takes

her to her freedom, and eventually, to a prestigious school. On the other hand, when

she is no longer a servant and finds herself back in the dwelling of her povertized home,

she starts to wonder about where she belongs: with her indigenous culture and her real,

but poor family, or with her wealthy school friends who know nothing about her

background. Even with her close friends, she is afraid to associate herself with her

indigenous culture.

The society that Virginia Farinango lived in made me realize that even to this

day, there are areas where people are divided by their skin color. Children like Virginia

were influenced by this division in such a way that even their vivid spirit could not stop

them from hiding their traditional values in yearning for respect.

As I watched an indigenous woman’s childhood story play before me, I was able

to envision t love, betrayal, and shame that shaped her from a rebellious, helpless girl to

a mature, powerful young woman – the Queen of Water. As she encountered obstacles

without a real family by her side, she learned to depend on her imagination and her

strong will to push her through her abusive owners and her imprisonment within their

house. Following her through this journey, I admired her stubborn, but lively spirit and

her hope for an educated future, despite her “knowing” that in such a racially divided

environment, her indigenous self would never win over her white owners’ power.

I would rate this book a 9/10, and I would recommend this coming of age book to

teenagers or young adults, especially those who also enjoy learning about indigenous

cultures.