Blanca is five years old. Is she thinking about college yet? Probably not. She just graduated from preschool (www.escuelasayulita.org) and shared these words written by her family, “Thank you Cooperativa School of Sayulita for planting in us a love of learning and a passion for the world. We leave with the happiest memories carried forever in our hearts.”

What does the juxtaposition of the two words: fragile and courage mean to you? I have chosen these words as the title for my debut novel that describes two women from very different backgrounds whose courage is threatened by the constant tug of cultural expectations they thought they had left behind. Have you ever summoned the courage to follow a dream only to have it interrupted by something you cannot control? Let’s talk about it.

For five years, my colleague Sharon Silverman and I interviewed students who faced substantial challenges as they grappled with our educational system but persisted and achieved their goals. We listened to many stories about what contributed to their success. At the heart of their success was having someone who believed in them. One student who violated his probation while in college had six professors show up to a court hearing to testify about his determination. His response, “…hearing those good things just added more fuel to my fire inside to do well in school, to want to not please everybody but please myself.”