Staff Pick
When I picked this book up, I didn't expect it to be so bittersweet. However, the story is worth the emotional turmoil it might cause you. Despite everything that happens, the book still left me with a sense of hope and tenderness at its conclusion. Recommended By Junix S., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Named a New York Times and Washington Post Notable Book, an NPR Great Read, The Daily Beast‘s Novel of the Year, and a Mother Jones, Oprah.com, School Library Journal, and BookPage Best Book of the Year
When
fifteen-year-old Maribel Rivera sustains a terrible injury, the Riveras
leave behind a comfortable life in Mexico and risk everything to come
to the United States so that Maribel can have the care she needs. Once
they arrive, it’s not long before Maribel attracts the attention of
Mayor Toro, the son of one of their new neighbors, who sees a kindred
spirit in this beautiful, damaged outsider. Their love story sets in
motion events that will have profound repercussions for everyone
involved. Here Henríquez seamlessly interweaves the story of these
star-crossed lovers, and of the Rivera and Toro families, with the
testimonials of men and women who have come to the United States from
all over Latin America. The Book of Unknown Americans is a
stunning novel of hopes and dreams, guilt and love — a book that offers a
resonant new definition of what it means to be American.
Review
"Henríquez allows the characters to speak for themselves.... The
politics of immigration, while never explicitly argued, remain subtly in
play, as do more existential matters affecting immigrants, such as the
mixed national and cultural allegiances and affiliations between the
generations." Chicago Tribune
Review
"Unfailingly well written and entertaining.... [Henríquez’s] stories
illuminate the lives behind the current debates about Latino
immigration." The New York Times Book Review
Review
"Gripping, memorable.... A novel that can both make you think and break your heart." San Francisco Chronicle
Review
"Powerful.... Moving.... [Henríquez has] myriad gifts as a writer." The New York Times
Review
"Vivid.... Striking.... A ringing paean to love in general: to
the love between man and wife, parent and child, outsider and newcomer,
pilgrims and promised land." The Washington Post
About the Author
Cristina Henríquez is the author of the story collection
Come Together, Fall Apart, which was a
New York Times Editors’ Choice selection, and the novel
The World in Half. Her work has appeared in
The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The American Scholar, Glimmer Train, Virginia Quarterly Review, Ploughshares, TriQuarterly, AGNI, and
Oxford American, as well as in various anthologies. She lives in Illinois.