In 1956, 12-year-old Carlos and his family live on a sugarcane farm in Ceiba Mocha, Cuba, where life for Carlos is mostly carefree. But political and personal changes are coming. When his papi wins the lottery, the family moves to the city, where Carlos must adjust to a new school with students who call him “country kid” and assume he’s wealthy because his dad has his own business. Carlos also misses his abuelo, and he’s alarmed by the civil unrest in the city. Fidel Castro, recently returned to Cuba after exile, has taken control of the government. Soon Papi’s business is shut down, and suspicion abounds as neighbors begin to spy on one another in search of anyone not in support of Castro’s Revolution. Carlos knows his homeland is in turmoil, but frustratingly, his parents keep him mostly in the dark regarding political events. And then Papi disappears. In this fictional graphic novel based on the author’s father’s childhood experiences, a timeline of historical events is interspersed throughout, drawn in black-and-white and kept short and digestible. The ink-and-watercolor artwork accompanying the primary narrative is detailed and set in an earth-toned palette with pops of oranges and pinks. Life before and during the Cuban Revolution is realistically depicted from a child’s limited perspective, and the ending promises hope and a chance of a new life for Carlos and his family despite a difficult goodbye.