As I read The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child, I couldn't help but be reminded of The Grapes of Wrath. The comparisons are pretty straightforward – a distressed family leaves for California in search of economic opportunity, taking jobs as farm laborers only to be continually met with misfortune and adversity. There are differences between the book as well. Some readers, due to anti-immigrant sentiment, might not sympathize with the Jimenez family as they do the Joads, arguing that the Jimenez family are not entitled to the “American Dream” as they are not citizens. The book is essentially about chasing what we would describe as the American Dream. However, and empathetic reader, armed with the knowledge of the immigration system, would understand the struggle the Jimenezes face. But perhaps the most direct comparison I would draw between the two texts is the ability of the property owners to exploit workers to the greatest extend possible.
The Circuit goes beyond labor issues into other important issues such as language accessibility and education. While the goal of using literature in the classroom should not be to express moral behavior that we want students to emulate, my own personal biases urge me to use this text in hopes that Francisco's desire to go to school and to speak English instill in my students some sense of importance or appreciation towards education. Francisco essentially views being educated and able to communicate as a ticket to happiness. This is a very commendable attribute. On a teaching note, when incorporating this text, I may assign (or at least encourage) my students to emulate Francisco keep a list English words and definitions that they didn't know (something I think is valuable for people of all levels of English proficiency).
Overall, the book strongly evokes sympathy for the main character as well as his family. With little understanding of what it means to be a migrant worker, this text creates a window allowing me to begin to understand that experience (even if just a little). Depending on time constraints in the classroom, this text would work well paired with a text like The Grapes of Wrath.
You wrote a thoughtful reflection on the function of education in the text, and you specifically make a great point about making "word lists" as we all encounter unknown words in the texts we are reading. Admittedly, I have never read The Grapes of Wrath, but I am of course familiar with its subject matter. I too think that the texts would make an excellent pair. What is interesting about such a pair is the fact that Grapes is a Depression-era story while The Circuit appears to be set in more modern times (though correct me if I'm wrong). This allows us as teachers to reveal to students that the same issue still exists today, but new groups are being affected by it.
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