Synopses & Reviews
Taking us from the turn of the twentieth century to our present day, from the impoverished streets of rural Mexico to the manicured lawns of suburban Connecticut, from the hot and dusty air of an isolated ranch to New York City in the wake of 9/11, Philip Caputo gives us an impeccably crafted story about three generations of an Arizona family forced to confront the violence and loss that have become its inheritance.
When Gil Castle loses his wife in the Twin Tower attacks, he retreats to his family's sprawling homestead in a remote corner of the Southwest. Consumed by grief, he has to find a way to live with his loss in this strange, forsaken part of the country, where drug lords have more power than police and violence is a constant presence. But it is also a world of vast open spaces, where Castle begins to rebuild his belief in the potential for happiness—until he starts to uncover the dark truths about his fearsome grandfather, a legacy that has been tightly shrouded in mystery in the years since the old man's death.
When Miguel Espinoza shows up at the ranch, terrified after two friends were murdered in a border-crossing drug deal gone bad, Castle agrees to take him in. Yet his act of generosity sets off a flood of violence and vengeance, a fierce reminder of the fact that while he may be able to reinvent himself, he may never escape his history.
Searingly dramatic, bold, and timely, Crossers is Caputo's most ambitious and brilliantly realized novel yet.
Review
"[Boehmer] keeps the story on track and hits each beat with the right emphasis and tone." ---Publishers Weekly Audio Review
Review
"Crossers has the effect of a smoke alarm going off near your head while you're sleeping.... Crossers is harrowing, punishing, but also so enlivening and ultimately deeply satisfying." ---Jim Harrison, author of Legends of the Fall
Synopsis
From the acclaimed author of Acts of Faith comes a blistering new novel about the brutality and beauty of life on the Arizona-Mexico border and about the unyielding power of the past to shape our lives.
About the Author
Philip Caputo spent nine years as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, including five years as a foreign correspondent, and shared a Pulitzer Prize in 1972 for his reporting on election fraud in Chicago. In 1975, he was wounded in Beirut and during his convalescence completed the manuscript for A Rumor of War, his much acclaimed memoir about his service in Vietnam. He is the author of eight works of fiction-including Exiles, The Voyage, and Acts of Faith-two memoirs, and four works of nonfiction. In addition, he has been a contributing editor for the New York Times Magazine, Esquire, National Geographic, and several other publications. He divides his time between Connecticut and Arizona. Paul Boehmer appeared for two seasons at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, California, where he played Oberon/Theseus in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Lucius in Titus Andronicus. He also appeared in The Constant Wife, played Banquo in Macbeth, and was Antipholus of Syracuse in The Comedy of Errors in the 2005 Summer Rep Season at the Globe. He has appeared in Sir Peter Halls's acclaimed Broadway production of Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband, Off-Broadway in the New York premiere of Miss Evers' Boys, and Off-Off-Broadway in New Yorrick, New Yorrick and End of the Day. He has appeared regionally at the Pioneer Theatre Company, Arena Stage, Seattle Rep, Huntington Theatre Company, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Cleveland Playhouse, Missouri Repertory Theatre, Walnut Street Theatre, Syracuse Stage, Berkshire Theatre Festival, and Theatre Works Palo Alto. His film and television appearances include The Good German, The Thomas Crown Affair, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Frasier, Judging Amy, Guiding Light, and All My Children. Paul is most proud of his award-winning unabridged recording of Moby Dick. He holds a BFA in acting from Southern Methodist University and an MFA in acting from the Professional Theatre Training Program at the University of Delaware.