Where We Come From by Oscar Cásares

WHERE WE COME FROM by Oscar Cásares is a powerful novel.  It is a well-written story for our times, but it does much more than mirror headlines.  As Cásares noted in a recent interview, he began this work in order to explore the idea of cultural immigration and what happens to people as they become more assimilated. Strong emotions – love, fear, hope, shame, disappointment - are associated with WHERE WE COME FROM which tells the story of many characters, including:

• Orly, who is a twelve-year-old boy whose mother has recently died and who is sent to spend the summer near the border in Brownsville, Texas with his godmother, la madrina. She is named
• Nina, who is a retired school teacher and now cares for her ailing mother and for Chivito, another young boy, just becoming a teen. He is named
• Daniel, who is on a quest to avoid capture and to meet his father (who emigrated from Veracruz, Mexico) in Chicago

Cásares deftly explores misunderstandings, manipulations, and internal tensions as each faces questions of bravery and trust. As Cásares develops the relationships between characters, he also intersperses italicized vignettes containing the stories of otherwise almost invisible, minor characters like a local policeman who is the son of an unauthorized immigrant or an inspirational teacher facing deportation due to an expired work permit.

For a sense of the writing style and story line, see Texas Monthly’s recently published short excerpt here. Booklist says “Teens will be moved by this heartfelt story about an intensely timely subject that demands attention.” We will definitely be booktalking this title and encouraging classes like Global Voices and other Senior electives to consider adding it to the curriculum. WHERE WE COME FROM received a starred review from Kirkus.

Memoirs and more ...

Teachers have been asking us for ideas about memoirs recently.  Here are some comments about several life adventures that are newly published.

A DREAM CALLED HOME by Reyna Grande is a fascinating look at the life experience of a young girl who was left with her grandmothers in Mexico when her parents came to the United States in an effort to find a better life. Eventually, she was able to join them, but circumstances had dramatically changed for her and her siblings. The parents were no longer together and once again she struggled with abandonment issues while also trying to build a life for herself.  Hard work led Grande to college and she writes movingly about that experience and her subsequent jobs and life as a single mother. Though simply written, the book is sprinkled with photos and Grande is so honest that reading it feels like talking with a close friend. While it is sometimes difficult to reflect on the narrow choices she faced, it is certainly inspirational to share in the resilience which Grande exhibits. Highly relevant to events today, A DREAM CALLED HOME received a starred review from Publishers Weekly and praise from established writers like Sandra Cisneros and Luis Alberto Urrea. Grande is a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist for her earlier work, The Distance Between Us; both titles will prompt much discussion.

THE WHITE DARKNESS is by David Grann who also wrote Killers of the Flower Moon, a finalist for the 2017 National Book Award. In this new book, Grann provides background on the Antarctic adventures of Ernest Shackleton and his early twentieth-century team while focusing on a descendant of one of those original explorers, Frank A. Worsley who was the captain of the H.M.S. Endurance. Henry Worsley was so invested in his ancestor and the events related to the search for the South Pole that he led subsequent treks in 2008 and 2015, successfully following Shackleton's routes across Antarctica. Grann’s non-fiction narrative is a relatively short (160 pages), but powerful account filled with dozens of images from both Shackleton’s and Worsley’s trips. For more on this topic, see also Alfred Lansing’s Endurance or Caroline Alexander’s The Endurance. And for more real life adventure happening right now, see this New York Times' article about how two men are each trying to cross Antarctica alone.

ALL YOU CAN EVER KNOW by Nicole Chung is another memoir worth exploring.  It is on my “to be read pile” and tells the story of a transracial adoptee who was born in the Pacific Northwest, placed for adoption by her newly arrived Korean parents, and raised by a white family in Oregon. Like Reyna Grande, Nicole Chung struggles with discrimination and questions about her identity and belonging. ALL YOU CAN EVER KNOW received starred reviews from School Library Journal (“Purchase this must-have title”), Library Journal (“highly recommended”) and Publishers Weekly (“stunning”).  

All three titles will be on our shelves soon. Have another memoir or adventure story to recommend? Please let us know.

Immigration stories ...

Immigration has been a hot topic lately, both in the news and with new literature. Here are several related titles:

THE HOUSE OF BROKEN ANGELS by Luis Alberto Urrea (Pulitzer Prize nominated author) is a work of fiction based loosely on events experienced by Urrea’s own family. The novel is set in San Diego and starts slowly, but has some fabulous reviews and could probably work for Junior Theme with a determined student. The main character, Big Angel, is dying and his family throws a huge birthday party on the same weekend that they bury his mother. There is quite a bit of introspection on what it means to be an immigrant – “we are Mexi-cans, not Mexi-can’ts” – and on intergenerational relationships. Wife Perla as well as children Minnie, Lalo, and Yndio feature in this family story filled with complex expectations and connections. One day, speaking as a Mexican father, Big Angel says, "All we do, mija, is love. Love is the answer. Nothing stops it. Not borders. Not death." 

THE HOUSE OF BROKEN ANGELS received a starred review from Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. Our copy will soon be available.

STRANGER by Jorge Ramos, non-fiction and subtitled “The Challenge of a Latino Immigrant in the Trump Era,” makes it readily obvious where the author stands despite having lived in the United States for more than 35 years. An Emmy-award winning journalist, Ramos points out, “Almost all of us here are either immigrants or the descendants of foreigners, and that has always helped us to cross borders and exceed the limits of what we thought was possible.” This work draws on statistics and points out inconsistencies in policy (asking how the deportation of 11 million people would actually work and noting that building an expensive wall does not begin to address the 40 percent of undocumented people who either come by plane or overstay their visas). Ramos also provides firsthand accounts of his encounters with Trump during press conferences and describes his own profession, saying “a journalist’s primary social function is to question those in power.” Ramos explains that he views himself as a public servant and that he agrees with the principle of objectivity in journalism, but argues that does not mean that a journalist should always remain neutral since neutrality sometimes runs counter to the truth itself, quoting Elie Wiesel, “Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim.” STRANGER is also available en Espanol: Stranger: el desafio de un inmigrante latino an la era de Trump and was recommended for teens by Booklist due to “Ramos’ direct and personal style, clear approach to urgent issues, and reflections on his youth.”

 

Turning again to new fiction, AMERICA IS NOT THE HEART by Elaine Castillo is a debut novel that received starred reviews from Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. However, I found a sadness mired here, too, and I am honestly not sure that it will hold our students’ interest due in part to the several languages and unusual tenses employed. Castillo begins the story in the Philippines and describes life for a young girl and eventual nurse trainee named Pacita/Paz, writing in second tense (e.g., “You think about ignoring him, … You should ignore him, … You don’t know yet ….”). . Next, the American Dream is explored as Castillo shifts the story to California when former political prisoner Hero arrives to stay with her uncle Pol, his now wife Paz and their young daughter, Roni.   

Perhaps try this challenging, new title with adult book groups; it offers potential for discussion and interpretation, plus perceptive observations: “Baggage means no matter how far you go, no matter how many times you immigrate, there are countries in you you’ll never leave.”