In Mañanaland, Ryan crafts a coming-of-age story about growing up and navigating the future. Ryan uses metaphors of journeys, paths, and the ability to “hold tomorrow” to explore what the future represents, and how Max transforms through time. The book is divided in three parts: “Yesterday,” “Today,” and “Tomorrow.” This frames the novel as a metaphor for Max’s coming of age. “Yesterday” introduces Max’s life leading up to his journey as a guardian and “Today” follows Max’s journey with Isadora. In “Tomorrow”, Max travels with Yadra on the river, where he holds tomorrow and learns to accept the future is uncertain, before returning home. In the words of Buelo: “Solo mañana sabe. Only the place we know as tomorrow holds the answers” (28).

The book takes place the summer before Max turns 12 when Max is on the brink of puberty and transitioning into adulthood. These changes are at the forefront of Max’s mind. He contemplates questions about “big and bewildering things”, like “[h]ow long it would take to grow up and become a man” (4-5) and comes into conflict with his friends, particularly Ortiz, whose “voice had recently changed and sounded like a man’s” (14-15).