The First Rule of Punk

Malú’s mom is knitting later that day, an act she does, Malú contends, only when she’s nervous. She deems Malú and Joe troublemakers and compares them to two characters from a Spanish-language television program that Malú used to watch with her grandmother.

Malú’s mom asks Malú to walk to Oralia to the Fall Fiesta. Malú’s mom says she still doesn’t know if she herself will go. Malú goes to her room and gets her worry dolls, placing them inside her bag. She sends a selfie to her dad and then meets her mom and Oralia in the apartment hallway. Oralia asks why kids dye their hair; Malú responds that they do so because “they don’t want to look like everyone else” and “like being unique” (282). Oralia adds that Malú looks like a quetzal.

Malú walks Oralia to the school auditorium and then heads back outdoors to meet up with the other members of the Co-Co’s. The school’s parking lot “looked like an autumn wonderland. It was decorated with bales of hay and pumpkins and red and orange balloons. Long banners of colorful papel picado hung overhead. There was an impressive food and drink table” (284). The art teacher, Mr.