The Book of Unknown Americans

Posted on 17 September 2017 by Cristina Henriquez

A dazzling, heartbreaking page turner destined for breakout status a novel that gives voice to millions of Americans as it tells the story of the love between a Panamanian boy and a Mexican girl teenagers living in an apartment block of immigrant families like their own.After their daughter Maribel suffers a near fatal accident, the Riveras leave M xico and come to America But upon settling at Redwood Apartments, a two story cinderblock complex just off a highway in Delaware, they discover that Maribel s recovery the piece of the American Dream on which they ve pinned all their hopes will not be easy Every task seems to confront them with language, racial, and cultural obstacles.At Redwood also lives Mayor Toro, a high school sopho whose family arrived from Panam fifteen years ago Mayor sees in Maribel something others do not that beyond her lovely face, and beneath the damage she s sustained, is a gentle, funny, and wise spirit But as the two grow closer, violence casts a shadow over all their futures in America.Peopled with deeply sympathetic characters, this poignant yet unsentimental tale of young love tells a riveting story of unflinching honesty and humanity that offers a resonant new definition of what it means to be an American An instant classic is born. Free Download Kindle ePUB The Book of Unknown Americans Author Cristina Henriquez – kino-fada.fr Maribel Rivera is a normal teenaged girl in Patzcuaro, Mexico when one day she goes with her mother to her father s work site and suffers a traumatic brain injury No longer the prize of Patzcuaro, Maribel retreats into a shell, suffers headaches, and can not complete even the most basic school work Her parents Alma and Arturo Rivera would do anything for their daughter, look up schools for special needs children in the United States, and leave the only life they knew behind and move to Wilming Maribel Rivera is a normal teenaged girl in Patzcuaro, Mexico when one day she goes with her mother to her father s work site and suffers a traumatic brain injury No longer the prize of Patzcuaro, Maribel retreats into a shell, suffers headaches, and can not complete even the most basic school work Her parents Alma and Arturo Rivera would do anything for their daughter, look up schools for special needs children in the United States, and leave the only life they knew behind and move to Wilmington, Delaware so Maribel can attend Evers School Alma and Arturo have a tough time adjusting to life as immigrants, the primary barrier that they have difficulties learning English One of the reasons why they do not speak English ...What struck me most about this novel is the structure whose purpose becomes clear with the last chapter It is quite interesting and poignant This novel is a reminder of how everyone who comes to the United States brings a complicated storyw ith them In The Book of Unknown Americans, immigrants from M xico, Venezuela, Guatemala, Puerto Rico, etc live in an apartment complex in Delaware Though they come from all over the Spanish speaking world, they havein ...Call me cold hearted but I found this novel both overly simplistic and overly sentimental, with too few genuine characters and too many archetypes who say things to each other like, Finding is for things that are lost You don t need to find me, Mayor Does anybody really talk like that If the book s simplicity and sentimentality help its overall message hey, immigrants are people too gain traction with large groups of readers in the States, great But just because I sympathize with th Call me cold hearted but I found this novel both overly simplistic and overly sentimental, with too few genuine characters and too many archetypes who say things to each other like, Finding is for thi...According to our government, every American who earns 50,000 a year contributes 43.78 to welfare and food stamps Many Americans resent this deeply Many are very very committed to being sure that no one gets away with this 43.78, especially anyone who is here from South of the Border Those people All Americans should read this book about those people It presents a series of interconnected stories about a family who came to the U.S to get services for their injured child, a family According to our government, every American who earns 50,000 a year contributes 43.78 to welfare and food stamps Many Americans resent this deeply Many are very very committed to being sure that no one gets away with this 43.78, especially anyone who is here from South of the Border Those people All Americans should read this book about those people It presents a series of interconnected stories about a family who came to the U.S to get services for their injured child, a family who came because of violence in their home town, a woman w...I ve waited to post a review of this novel as I try to wrap my mind and words around why I liked it so much This book wants to be a lot of things love story, issue oriented novel, independent essays which should make it a mess, but somehow all work together to make a book that really touched my heart.The story is told in alternating voices as we meet the residents of an apartment building in Delaware All the residents are immigrants and all are Spanish speaking despite their origins in m I ve waited to post a review of this novel as I try to wrap my mind and words around why I liked it so much This book wants to be a lot of things love story, issue oriented novel, independent essays which should make it a mess, but somehow all work together to make a book that really touched my heart.The story is told in alternating voices as we meet the residents of an apartment building in Delaware All the residents are immigrants and all are Spanish speaking despite their origins in multiple different countries The bulk of the story, its heart really, is a love story between Panamanian Mayor, whose family has been in the U.S since he was a few years old, and Maribel, a beautiful but brain injured girl whose family has made the journey from Mexico so she can have a better education Their journey together, wit...The Book of Unknown Americans by Christina Henriquez is a 2014 Knopf publication I ve been looking to expand my reading repertoire lately, so while browsing through the literary offerings, I came across this book Checking this book out is like doing a 180 for me as I usually stick pretty close to my preferred genres But, something about it spoke to me and so I decided to give it a try So often we hear about laws, and issues, and the numbers surrounding immigration without stopping to consid The Book of Unknown Americans by Christina Henr...More than anything, I appreciate the fresh perspective and the eye opening nature of this story Immigration is a sensitive topic and a political platform in our country right now, there s no denying that Don t worry, I m not going to try and tackle that issue in this review What I will say I walked away from this story looking at things a little differently It made me feel like the human aspect of the situation is too easily overlooked.I think we forget that some of these immigrants are ju More than anything, I appreciate the fresh perspective and the eye opening nature of this story Immigration is a sensitive topic and a political platform in our country right now, there s no denying that Don t worry, I m not going to try and tackle that issue in this review What I will say I walked away from this story looking at things a little differently It made me feel like the human aspect of the situation is too easily overlooked.I think we forget that som...This book has been on my To Read list forever, so I am glad I finally read it This book is told through many points of view, but in the book they all end up overlapping somehow One family moves to the USA from Mexico after their daughter suffers a near fatal accident Their daughter ends up having a Traumatic Brain Injury The family moves so she can go to one of the best special education schools They settled down in the Redwood Apartments, a two story cinderblock complex just off a highway This book has been on my To Read list forever, so I am glad I finally read it This book is told through many points of view, but in the book they all end up overlapping somehow One family moves to the USA from Mexico after their daughter suffers a near fatal accident Their daughter ends up having a Traumatic...This book could have been so much better than it was.As it is, it s a trainwreck The only reason I gave it two stars instead of one is simply because it s bizarrely readable even in spite of the very little substance there is at hand.Where do I even begin with this books issues The rhythm the book sets into Alma narrated chapter, Mayor narrated chapter, and brief bio of a tertiary character had potential Yet the tertiary characters chapters all read painfully alike, with seemingly the This book could have been so much better than it was.As it is, it s a trainwreck The only reason I gave it two stars instead of one is simply because it s bizarrely readable even in spite of the very little substance there is at hand.Where do I even begin with this books issues The rhythm th...This was such a lovely, unexpected read Poignant powerful, Henriquez s prose is hauntingly beautiful A tale about guilt love forgiveness, I loved all of the characters, specifically Maribel Mayor the relationship that blooms between them I really enjoyed all of the POVs believed deeply in the Alma Arturo standpoint how much they sacrificed so their daughter could have a chance to start over again This is a great example of what it means to trul This was such a lovely, unexpected read Poignant powerful, Henriquez s prose is hauntingly beautiful A tale about guilt love forgiveness, I loved all of the characters, specifically Maribel Mayor the relationship that blooms between them I really enjoyed all of t...

English
17 September 2017

Cristina Henriquez