“Extraordinary.” –Stephen King “This book is not simply the great American novel; it’s the great novel of las Americas. It’s the great world novel! This is the international story of our times. Masterful.” –Sandra Cisneros También de este lado hay sueños. On this side, too, there are dreams. Lydia Quixano Pérez lives in the Mexican city of Acapulco. She runs a bookstore. She has a son, Luca, … Quixano Pérez lives in the Mexican city of Acapulco. She runs a bookstore. She has a son, Luca, the love of her life, and a wonderful husband who is a journalist. And while there are cracks beginning to show in Acapulco because of the drug cartels, her life is, by and large, fairly comfortable.
Even though she knows they’ll never sell, Lydia stocks some of her all-time favorite books in her store. And then one day a man enters the shop to browse and comes up to the register with a few books he would like to buy–two of them her favorites. Javier is erudite. He is charming. And, unbeknownst to Lydia, he is the jefe of the newest drug cartel that has gruesomely taken over the city. When Lydia’s husband’s tell-all profile of Javier is published, none of their lives will ever be the same.
Forced to flee, Lydia and eight-year-old Luca soon find themselves miles and worlds away from their comfortable middle-class existence. Instantly transformed into migrants, Lydia and Luca ride la bestia–trains that make their way north toward the United States, which is the only place Javier’s reach doesn’t extend. As they join the countless people trying to reach el norte, Lydia soon sees that everyone is running from something. But what exactly are they running to?
American Dirt will leave readers utterly changed. It is a literary achievement filled with poignancy, drama, and humanity on every page. It is one of the most important books for our times.
Already being hailed as “a Grapes of Wrath for our times” and “a new American classic,” Jeanine Cummins’s American Dirt is a rare exploration into the inner hearts of people willing to sacrifice everything for a glimmer of hope.
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From its heart-stopping first sentence to its heart-shattering last, Cummins’s story of immigrants is just what we need now. Gritty yet sensitive, realistic yet hopeful, grand and granular, American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins is a Grapes of Wrath for our times.
American Dirt humanizes the story of migrants and gives those a voice making a hard choice trekking crossing the border into the states. This novel will change how we think about the world, that changes us in a profound way. American Dirt is one of those rare novels. This is the first book by author, Jeannie Cummins that I have read and looking forward to reading her other books.
The story of a Mexican mother and son who are trying to escape a drug lord who killer her husband and family. A mother and son who are desperate to leave Mexico and head to the States while escaping the cartel. They eventually travel on top of a train with other migrants who are also looking for a better life. I finished reading the book in a day, heartbreaking from page one till the last page. American Dirt brings a voice to those who are faced with making a hard choice to trek across the desert with very little.
Beautifully written. This will be the January 21st. 2020. A must read for everyone. The story will be with me for a long time. Heart-wrenching.
I received a copy of “American Dirt” from Flatiron Books in exchange for my honest opinion.
Compelling and gripping story of a woman and her son fleeing violence in Mexico and making the dangerous trek north via La Bestia (traveling on the tops of train cars heading toward the U.S.). Will be one of the most talked about books of 2020. Great for book clubs.
An important book that humanizes the crisis at our borders.
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
Listened to this book from BARD and the narrator has a Spanish accent so it really makes it feel like I’m there. Descriptions are very precise in detail, some scenes I forget as they are a bit gory.
Story starts out when the mother and child are hiding in the bathroom. The shooters have invaded the house after shooting everybody outside for a family gathering.
Terrifying moments as one uses the bathroom in the same room they are in. After notifying the police she knows they must leave and seek shelter to keep safe.
The family get together of 15 and only her and her young son have survived.
Story then goes back to when she ran the bookstore with her husband. Times when they had to pay the cartel to keep their store from being broken into and things stolen.
Cartel visit other stores more often for more money. On the run I like how she is more alert to her surroundings and who is nearby. Love what she does with her ring and jewelry.
Child is scared and he is somewhat a genius with facts about things he’s read. He knew the CO rivers and she hopes they make it there as she has an uncle there.
The package arrives with their food at the hotel and she is so terrified when she reads it. Haunting glimpse of her past.
She feels a bit safe but knows it’s only for a few seconds as cars pass the bus and there are roadblocks.
Her son, Luca naps while she is still planning what to do next, especially if they have to escape a roadblock when the bus is stopped. She knows the cartel will be watching for them.
They are heading north and she hopes it is the right choice. Scenery along the way: colorful houses that resemble lego’s, cute remark from Luca.
She knows of a person she could contact in the area. She’s smart about her SIM card.
Lydia is able to track her spouse’s friend on Facebook and finds a church the friend is a member of. She knows what and where the tattoo is and to watch out for it.
She knows they are still after her. Lying on the top of the train as it goes very fast might not be the perfect option to stay undetected.
Story keeps going back and then to present days. You are able to collect pieces of the things you want to know about, like a puzzle piece.
They can’t buy certain tickets without a birth certificate for Luca…
They will be joining migrate workers in the journey north… Lydia’s spouse was a journalist and he liked the strong bylines and stories he had to write about the murders.
The nuns after walking for 7 miles will keep them safe a night and with food. She gave up a lot of personal information even though she did not have to, never their destination. I’m really scared for her now.
She feels at ease with the other mothers as the young children sit at a table nearby.
Some women talk of the teen girl that was almost taken the night before. The man was in the cartel she’s trying to avoid.
Love where and why she hides her money, so smart. Long struggles to get from one location to another. Unimaginable terror when boarding the train.
They are so close but then they are caught…horrid and horrific scenes as others are tortured and killed in front of their eyes. The other girls they were traveling with had made a call to their father but they get bad news there.
The attackers are not so easy on the girls…
‘another day, another horror’ is what they all go through, some worse than others.
I have read about the coyotes who will aid them from Mexico through the desert to the US. Never thought who was really responsible for the family deaths til she discovers who was behind it all.
Love the epilogue and about the author and why she wrote this book, mind blowing, emotional, numb should not be this difficult.
Love how the hoops and ring are her lifesavers and she needs to touch them when in danger and when in doubt as to their choices.
Strong, smart, brave, will do anything for their passage to US.
Thing I don’t like are Spanish words and sayings as the story goes along that are not always translated into English.
Gets a 5 because i learned new words, travel, adventure, action, love, women were strong, brave and smart and mysteries.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
When Lydia’s journalist husband and family are murdered by a cartel, she and her eight-year-old son are forced to flee Acapulco. The pair embark on an epic journey north to the US, where the traumatised mother hopes to start a new life. But in order to get there, they must endure the infamous freight train route La Bestia, face
nefarious immigration police, and deal with a conniving cartel member. Along the way they form close bonds with their fellow travellers.
This fast-paced and suspenseful book adeptly weaves the oft-told Central American migrant tale with human interest, in the form of a mother and son. The author unashamedly kicks off her novel with tabloidesque writing, designed to shock her audience. While this feels parasitical, it is certainly propulsive.
Criticisms include some details seeming unrealistic and the overabundance of backstories. However, for the most part this reader found ‘American Dirt’ to be well-paced, structurally sound and utterly engrossing.
Recently, my book club chose Jeanine Cummins’s novel, American Dirt. I didn’t know anything about the novel, except it was an Oprah’s Book Club book. I listened to the sample on Audible and wasn’t sure what I would think about the novel. As I listened, the opening scene was full of action, and I knew it was probably worth the 1 credit. I wanted to attend the next book club meeting, so I downloaded it. Listening has its perks because a narrator can really give a story life, but it has its disadvantages because you can’t see the grammatical structure. I was a little confused sometimes about who was speaking since one moment we are in Luca’s head and the next in Lydia’s. I’m used to one or two points of view, but this book had many POVs and that was different than the norm. However, this didn’t distract from the amazing story being told. When I went to search about the author and why the POV was different, I saw all the political statements being tossed around and chose to ignore them. Fiction is fiction, and good fiction is sometimes hard to find. I enjoyed this realistic story that brought light to the plights of immigrants, the danger they are fleeing from, and the incredible risks they take making the journey across closed boarders. All politics aside, no matter what side you stand on, this is an amazing novel about a woman who loves her child and will do anything to protect and bring him to safety. I really enjoyed the book and hope others will enjoy it too. I couldn’t put it down!
This is a remarkable novel of love, grit, determination, and necessity. When Lydia’s entire family, except herself and her 8 year old son, Luca, are killed by a Mexican cartel due to an article her journalist husband, Sebastian, wrote, Lydia knows they must flee Acapulco. She quickly gathers a few belongings for them and makes plans to flee the city and head north to the US.
As they journey, they meet various people, some kind and willing to help, and others who are cruel and untrustworthy. Lydia is cautiously aware that the cartel has eyes everywhere. Two of the migrants are Soledad and Rebeca, teenagers from Honduras. The girls have seen too much in their young lives and together with Lydia and Luca, they form a family.
I was emotionally touched several times reading of the dangers people experience and try to escape. This is a beautiful novel. Highly recommend!
American Dirt is a work of fiction. Anybody who denies the creative spirit of an author because, in their estimation, they don’t have a “lived experience” is missing the point of this very excellent book. Cummins writes with great literary overtones, infusing her words with the pain of personal losses meanwhile bringing great characters to life. It’s a suspenseful read but it’s also a book that will go down in history as one that awakened America to the immigrant crisis.
We are listening, Jeanine! Looking forward to your next novel.
I loved this book. Very realistic.
I finally got a chance to read this novel that I knew was subjected to so much controversy when published. I came into it with an open mind and it was a “wow” read for me. The research is meticulous; the plot, riveting, and it’s just an all out win, in my opinion. It is unfortunate that the bad press might keep some from reading this novel that illuminated and educated me on the immigrant’s plight. Politics and history notwithstanding, it was also a life lesson reminder that there will always hopefully be good people around to offset the bad. Recommending to all the readers I know.
Reading American Dirt was a fantastic reading experience. This book may be controversial for some, and I do not want to appear to slight anyone in any way. I sat with this audiobook playing and could picture every scene. The author had me interested from page one, and yes, it is an emotional book. The level of love, hurt, pain, betrayal, cultural issues, and grief were thoughtfully handled. I appreciated the quality of the characters and the way the writer cared for each character’s story. This is a fantastic book to read, and I highly recommend it.
Update 7/9/2921 ~I read this book three times last year (2020), and I still could read it three more times. There is something about the characters, their unique and flavorful lives, fight for survival, and the determination of a mother thrown into the battle of her life that brings me back to this beautiful creative work of art. A book that should not be missed.
Astonishing to fall on a book and be fascinated by it
This is excellent.
There has been disparaging of this fictional story for several reasons. I did not read a single word of the controversy before finishing the book or writing my review.
The story is about Lydia and Luca, who are from a middle-class family, living in Acapulco. Lydia, the wife, and Luca, the son, are the immediate family of journalist Sebastian Perez. Lydia owns a book store, and Luca attends private school. Cummins’s tremendous writing draws readers into the journey. You are alongside them jumping trains, limping from twisted ankles, traipsing through the cold black nights or scorching afternoons. She writes so eloquently I couldn’t put it down. See my full review at https://cyndiezahner.com/2021/05/24/american-dirt-by-jeanine-cummins/
This is a heart-thumping, gripping story about a woman and her son running for their lives from a murderous drug lord.
Lydia Perez, a book shop owner in Acapulco lives with her journalist husband and eight-year-old son, Luca. After her husband writes a story about the leader of a drug cartel who had unknowingly formed a friendship with Lydia, revenge is sought and he murders all of her family. Lydia and Luca, the only survivors flee for their lives and commence the hazardous and tortuous journey to the USA.
This is ultimately a story of survival as refugees. The UN Refugee Agency estimates as at 30 June 2020 that the number of people forcibly displaced is now at 80 million with over 26 million refugees.
Cummins shines a light on one part of the world where the flow of refugees is not just from Mexico but from countries to the south, where drug lords’ rule and government corruption is rife. It’s an incredibly moving yet gripping account of Lydia’s and Luca’s survival and the migrants they meet along the way. It also gives highlights the problems of ‘that wall’ so controversial in the USA.
‘None of it is funny to Lydia. She hadn’t been naive enough to think they were in the clear yet, but she did think the nature of the most pressing threat would’ve changed by now. She thought that … she’d have to worry more about Border Patrol, about the possibility of Luca being taken from her, and less about random men with guns enforcing their own decrees … She knows that anyone they encounter here, in this wild, desolate place, would mean the end.’
The story although fictional, forces the reader to relate to refugees as human beings. What compels a person to leave everything behind to take such a hazardous and arduous journey? It’s quite simple: desperation. The mean-spiritedness of some governments around the world is deplorable yet the plight of refugees continues without solution.
This is an unputdownable, nerve-wracking, tension-packed novel yet it provides hope and inspiration. The character of Luca in particular is very well drawn and the courage and bravery of the child is truly breath taking. The others, Lydia, Rebeca and Soledad are more than characters. They are people we care about, wanting them to be saved and to have a better life.
Do Lydia and Luca actually make it across the border? You’ll have to read it for yourself.
I listened to this audiobook. The narrators were exceptional.
American Dirt kept me fully engaged with realistic characters. I felt their sorrow, pain, and anxiety. I experienced their difficult journey through excellent visual storytelling. I grieved with, cheered on, and shook in my shoes beside characters who have remained in my mind long after the story ended.
The ending felt abrupt, but it could be because the story was so full of action.
I borrowed the audio version from my local library app. There was a lot to this story and it was one of those stories that was supposed to make us feel for migrants and get a glimpse of what some of them come from and the journey they experience, but it’s also the same kind of thing that can be happening in the US. People are the same everywhere. Still, it was a very interesting read and a captivating storyline.
This book wasn’t something I’d normally gravitate toward, but my wife and daughter recommended it so I gave it a shot. I’m glad I did! The story and writing are superb, in my opinion; the story moves at a clip that kept me turning pages, wondering what would happen next. The characters are engaging, and I don’t think you’ll regret giving this one a read!
Another book I couldn’t put down. And I never could have imagined what someone might have gone through to escape their country…for whatever reason…and how heartbreaking that journey often is.
This is a fictitious account of a woman and her son fleeing a powerful Mexican cartel. I understand there are some errors but nothing that seemed to interfere with the story’s main arc. It certainly stimulates the reader to think about what she or he would do if forced to flee home within a few minutes. Certainly there are many who are fleeing either abusive relationships or violence and this book tells about the hardships they endure to enter the U.S. It’s obvious it was written during the Trump era as immigration policies may change. But it does only focus on those who are fleeing truly terrible conditions and should not be viewed as the “typical” immigration story.