TAKING HOLD In this fourth book in his award-winning memoir series, Francisco Jimenez leaves everything behind in California”a loving family, a devoted girlfriend, and the culture that shaped him”to attend Columbia University in New York City.With few true accounts of the Latino experience in America, Francisco Jimenez™s work comes alive with telling details about the warmth and resiliency of family and the quest for identity against seemingly impossible odds.  "Many [students] have commented that your books give them hope and courage and, thanks to you, many are seriously thinking about college for the first time in their lives" --John Padula, teacher, Boston Public Schools