“Esos temblores fregados, “ Ama said; they were creeping up on us, almost every day. One night when I was four, I opened my eyes wide when I felt the bed sink under me and heard Lety crying out, “Ama! Apa!What's going on?” Then the door swung open. Two hands grabbed me by the ankles and pulled me to the foot of my bed.

In The Jumping Tree Rey and his family go through a massive earthquake in California that ruins their house. So they move to Nuevo Peñitas in South Texas. In Nuevo Peñitas he meet a boy named Chuy. Chuy and Rey go through many humorous and exciting adventures, like the time Rey broke this wrist after swinging from a tree. Rey, Chuy, and other friends play a game called King of the Mountain. But Rey later faints after getting a really bad cut from a piece of glass on the mountain. Eventually Rey and Chuy's friendship breaks after Rey refuses to smoke with Chuy. They later send Chuy to Houston after he gets druged up and steals something from the grocery store. The end is really tragic. His Tio Angel dies, his dads little brother. At this point, Rey sees his dad cry for the first time. But his dad tried so hard to be strong for his family. That's when Rey realizes his dad is the right person to look up to. After, Rey knows that he wants to be exactly like his father.

Saldaña does an amazing job of getting readers into the book. He makes the readers wonder or imagine and even predict whats going to happen next. What makes things better is that he makes you laugh when reading about his adventures.

I would recommend the Jumping Tree for Readers looking for adventures. This book will bring a smile to your face after reading each chapter, and I promise you that. So beware of the laughter!