The Irony of Education
In order to eventually earn his family more money, Francisco dedicates himself to his education. He believes that he can improve his family's situation by staying in school. The flip-side to that decision is preventing his family from his full income in the meantime. While he's in school, he isn't working, so there's an upfront cost to his education.
The Irony of the Migrant Lifestyle
When the Jimenez' move from Mexico, they believe they're traveling to a place which is overflowing with opportunity. Unfortunately for everybody involved, California is already full of migrants looking for work. The economy is saturated with the increased population. By the end of it, they are somewhat worse off than they were in Mexico.
The Irony of Children
Family is the most important part of life for the Jimenez'. They work all day in order to provide for one another. When Mama and Papa start having babies in California, they face a unique situation. On one hand, they adore these children. Providing for a better life for the next generation is why they do what they do. On the other hand, though, more mouths to feed means much more pressure on the family to be successful. Francisco cannot work because he has to stay home and watch the children. Eventually, however, the kids grow up and some of them start being capable of working in the fields too.
The Irony of Francisco's Penny Collection
Francisco is a particularly thoughtful child who engages in meticulous hobbies, one of which is coin collecting. His penny collection is his pride and joy. When Rorra trades the pennies to buy gum balls one day, she uses the coins for the face value. To her, the pennies are a means to an end, but to Francisco they are worth so much more than a couple cents. He is able to see the hidden value in these rare coins, so he's awfully angry when Rorra takes them.
The Irony of Deportation
At the end of the book, Francisco is deported by border control after they visit his school. The government officials target the school as an easy place to surprise immigrant children, but they don't go to the migrant camps where they are sure to find undocumented people. They understand how influential the farmers who run the camps are in the local economy, so they stay away. Instead, they target unsuspecting kids in school in order to save the district the cost of educating them.
