i first learned about cristina henriquez the book of unknown americans via flavorpill. i thought the title was clever and the cover eye-catching but in all honesty wasn't sure if i wanted to read an immigrant story. this sounds harsh but living in delano which is a migrant town due to the agriculture i have very conflicting views of immigration. on the one hand, i am sympathetic toward the need to immigrant however i also disapprove of the financial strain it causes. as i have mentioned before, living in delano, which is filled with immigrants, i do see the drain it takes on the economy. but politics aside, since i have addressed this in previous posts, i will simply be discussing the novel.
the book of unknown americans was an enjoyable read with a ending that took me by surprise. (if you plan on reading this, stop here due to spoilers!) the novel is told from the perspective of multiple characters but centers around maribel rivera and her family. maribel rivera and her parents, alma and arturo immigrated, legally, to delaware from mexico so that maribel may attend a specialized school. not shared initially, but it is discovered that maribel suffered a head injury from an accident at her dad's work site back in mexico. they immigrated at the recommendation of doctors. both parents, shared with the reader, the guilt of the accident being their fault. their experience as immigrants is familiar. arturo work in the states was inferior to his work in mexico, he worked picking mushrooms which was mindless work and took a toll on his body. alma stayed at home, and discovered ways for the family to survive on arturo's low wages, primarily dollar tree and oatmeal. alma also befriended their neighbor, mrs. toro, whose son mayor played a pivotal role.
mayor was an outcast, not a soccer star like his older brother, who was away at college. he was initially attracted to maribel. maribel, as explained by both alma and mayor, was a beauty, so much that she attracted the negative attention of local hoodlum. this worried both alma and mayor (the boy also bullied mayor at school.) mayor realized that maribel was special needs due to the school she attended, however, due to trips to church on sundays and afternoons the families spend together, a romance begins to bloom between maribel and mayor. mayor, it should be mentioned, being sensitive to maribel's condition due to the accident. however, they end up having a positive effect on each other, ultimately mayor helping maribel progress.
but they are still teens and not at all innocent. hormones did get the best of them and they end up making out which results in some drama because a noisy neighbor ratted them out and made it seem more devious than it was. it was very innocent though mayor did come, but i mean he was a geeky kid making out with the girl he likes, poor guy. this resulted in their parents forbidding them from seeing each other.
this triggers are series of chain events with a surprise and devastating ending. mayor and maribel sneak off together. he helped her sneak out of school and took her to the beach, even though it is winter, he wanted to share with her the happiness his mother felt when she first went there (it was in the winter.) he even gave maribel, her first taste of mcdonald's french fries. and the whole time i read about mayor and maribel's adventure, i was waiting for the other shoe to drop. i expected them to get into an accident or something horrible to occur to the two of them. gratefully they were okay, but sadly something did but it was not what i expected.
when maribel went missing, alma assumed it was the hoodlum and told arturo what happened. arturo sent out to find her . . . and ended up being killed by the hoodlum's father. i was so surprised and sadden by this ending. it was completely from left field but not completely unrealistic. the sad truth is that so many immigrants come to america expecting a better life, but most probably end up in tragedy like this. they end up not living the american dream but scraping by. they sacrifice to be here and end up worse off than they began. i know i said i was going to avoid anything political, but you have to be somewhat sympathetic. from this ending, henriquez wants us to see how immigrants usually end up with the short end of the stick and never achieving any sort of better life, so we should not feel threaten by immigration into the states. and though we view them as anti-american, they are actually pro. the last narrative of the novel belongs to arturo and he shared his love for america, because he of the opportunity it provided maribel with it. its a heartbreaking catch-22, come to save your daughter but end up losing your life. though, the cynic in me, can also see it as advocacy for not immigrating, why risk what you already have to end up with absolutely nothing.
the book is titled the book of unknown americans and "the unknown americans" in the novel also include the other immigrants that lived in the complex building where maribel and her family resided. there are breaks between the narratives of alma and mayor, in which the other immigrants share their experience. these narratives are to demonstrate that there is not just one kind of immigrant, or one kind of story. though it should be noted that all of the immigrant narratives did share the common goal of providing a better life for their children. and though i would probably end up debating with him if he existed in real life "micho alvearez" narrative had some very interesting points.
the whole thing is very, very complicated. i mean, does anyone ever talk about why people are crossing? i can promise you it's not with some grand ambition to come here and ruin everything from the gingo chingaos. people are so desperate, man. we're talking about people who cant' even get a toilet that works, that the government is so corrupt that when they have money, instead of sharing it, instead of using it in ways that help their own citizens, they hold on to it and encourage people to go north instead. what choice do people have in face of that?
i understand his points. but i counter with, america has its own problems, we are no longer the great powerful nation we once were. i feel that our government is so corrupt that it takes the money it has and instead of sharing it with its upright citizens, end up using it to aid illegal immigrants, house criminals in prison, and reward those who do not want to work (see: welfare and unemployment.) if the financial situation in california was not so bad, i would be okay with helping our fellow man but at the end of the day, i would rather have my tax dollars returned to me than funneled somewhere else.
okay, i am done with my rant, sorry if i offended you.
but an interesting read none the less and you should check it out regardless of your stance on immigration.
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