The quintessential story of what it means to be the first generation to live two lives across one border, The House of Broken Angels is Pulitzer Prize finalist Luis Alberto Urrea’s unforgettable portrait of the De La Cruz family as they celebrate the lives of two of their most beloved members over the course of one raucous and bittersweet weekend.National Bestseller and National Book Critics … weekend.
National Bestseller and National Book Critics Circle Award finalist
A New York Times Notable Book / One of the Best Books of the Year from National Public Radio, American Library Association, San Francisco Chronicle, BookPage, Newsday, BuzzFeed, Kirkus Reviews, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Literary Hub
“All we do, mija, is love. Love is the answer. Nothing stops it. Not borders. Not death.”
In his final days, beloved and ailing patriarch Miguel Angel de La Cruz, affectionately called Big Angel, has summoned his entire clan for one last legendary birthday party. But as the party approaches, his mother, nearly one hundred, dies, transforming the weekend into a farewell doubleheader. Among the guests is Big Angel’s half brother, known as Little Angel, who must reckon with the truth that although he shares a father with his siblings, he has not, as a half gringo, shared a life.
Across two bittersweet days in their San Diego neighborhood, the revelers mingle among the palm trees and cacti, celebrating the lives of Big Angel and his mother, and recounting the many inspiring tales that have passed into family lore, the acts both ordinary and heroic that brought these citizens to a fraught and sublime country and allowed them to flourish in the land they have come to call home.
Teeming with brilliance and humor, authentic at every turn, The House of Broken Angels is Luis Alberto Urrea at his best, and cements his reputation as a storyteller of the first rank.
“Epic . . . Rambunctious . . . Highly entertaining.” —New York Times Book Review
“A raucous, moving, and necessary book . . . Intimate and touching . . . the stuff of legend.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“An immensely charming and moving tale.” —Boston Globe
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Urrea is truly a genius. In this book he takes us between Anglo and Chicano worlds. We feel the bridges, and we fall in the places where no bridge will hold. In the end, we understand, once more, that a family is the center of our deepest joy and the source of a whole lot of confusion — it’s life painted in every color.
I saw Luis Urrea speaking at the San Diego Festival of Books and was captivated by the casual but intense emotion with which he told his family’s story. I read The House of Broken Angels immediately. It carries the same easy humour and effortless heart tugging, with a story that will make you a feel a part of something bigger than yourself in cultural and familial terms. It really is just brilliant.
Oh, my–this book! I was overwhelmed by this boisterous, complicated, colorful family gathered for the funeral of their matriarch and the last birthday of her son Big Angel, who is dying of cancer.
As I read, this family took residence in my heart. They were not so unlike my own family. I remembered the large family gatherings of my childhood; we have our ‘colorful’ characters, too. My cousins and I are are too quickly becoming the oldest generation–the next to die.
Through the story of one particular Mexican-American family, The House of Broken Angels recalls what it means to be family. Through the life and death of one man, we grapple with the purpose of our own life and death.
Big Angel’s grandfather came to America after the Mexican Revolution, tried to enlist for service during WWI, then in 1932 the family was deported back to Mexico. He was First Angel.
Big Angel’s deceased father, a cop, is still a powerful presence in the lives of Big Angel and his half-brother, Little Angel. He was feared, he was idolized, and he was hated. Big Angel’s dad abandoned his family for an American woman,”all Indiana milk and honey” with “Cornflower-blue eyes.” He had ‘forgotten’ he had a son named Angel in his first family. The half-brothers have had an uneasy relationship.
At his seventieth birthday party, Big Angel is surrounded by his beloved Perla and their children, Perla’s sisters who he helped raise, his half-siblings, and grandkids. Those who have died, and a son who has been estranged, are present in aching hearts.
As Big Angel struggles with how to die, how to atone for his sins, and the legacy he wants to leave his family, we learn the family’s stories, the things that have divided and alienated them, and the things that bind them together. They will break your heart and they will inspire you with the strength and love of their family bonds. The revelation of this purpose is the climax of the novel, a scene that you will never forget.
Author Luis Alberto Urrea was inspired by his own family in writing this book. His eldest brother was dying when a day before his birthday he had to bury his mother. The family put on a ‘blowout party, the kind of ruckus he would have delighted in during better days.”
Urrea also wanted to tell the story of Mexican-American families, about immigrants and the American dream, living on the border between two countries and cultures, the hopes and dreams and cruel realities.
Reviewers use the word exuberant in describing this book. It is!
I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
A big messy family makes for a marvelous story about memories and facing our end time. The prose is beautiful and compelling.
“How could a man out of time repair all that was broken? And on this morning, as he was awakening to these worries, cursed by the light, cursed in every way by time, betrayed by his exhausted body while his mind raged, he was started to find his father’s ghost sitting beside him on the bed.”
This story is about a large Mexican family but could be any family from anywhere in the world. It is full of heart, bitterness, sorrow, and regret but essentially it is about love.
Despite the fact that the protaganist, Big Angel, is dying, this is a wonderful story about a really wacky family and their strong love for each other and Big Angel. I laughed, I cried, I loved this book.
This is a wonderfully written book that describes a Mexican/American family with all of its flaws and love. A cast of characters would have been nice especially for Kindle readers. The book was timely with its description of immigration and what it means to be an American.
A fantastic read. A panoramic view of one family of Mexican-American immigrants, legal and illegal, over three generations. The story is both hilarious , heartbreaking , and full of pathos. The characters are interesting, with depth and genuine emotional connections. As he is dying of cancer, Big Angel, is revealed as the family patriarch with all his noble deeds and heartbreaking regrets. This book reveals the struggles and unfair treatments Mexican immigrants have faced in this country.
I completely loved this book and I hope that you read it. You know that experience where you completely fall in love with a book and the world that the author has created- and you never want to leave….but you also cannot stop reading and turning pages? That was my experience with this book. If you get the Audible version the author reads the book to you- which is just wonderful. His voice inflections and tones really enhance listening to the book. In this book there are two men named Angel, and the story is about their relationship and their family. The mother of the elder Angel has died, and he is about to die too. We become guests at his last birthday party. Despite the fact that death is so much present in the book, it is not morbid at all. In fact it has multiple passages that are really funny. People who are at home with and/or want to experience some Mexican culture in Southern California will love this book.
I have been blessed to be Mexican-adjacent for almost three decades. Never have I seen that half of my family so well represented as I did in this charming novel.
A great tale of a multi generation family at that transition when the children take over from the parents. Lots of family secrets are revealed and examined in today’s context. Centered around a funeral and the imminent death of the family patriarch, it is a richly populated family story that can resonate well with so many people Full of pathos and humor I thoroughly enjoyed this book
This is a wonderful look at a Mexican family in San Diego…..warts and all! It is funny, sad, brilliant and beautifully written by an author who knows Mexican family life. A real treat!
At first, I was like, I don’t know if I like this. Then a few chapters later Mr. Urrea had me in tears.
The reason I didn’t like it at first was that the author made me feel uncomfortable. He wanted me to feel what Little Angel was feeling and I did. That feeling of wow, I am one of these people. The feeling of returning to a place you were trying to get away from. The author took a few chapters to set the tone and then started the story. And it was perfect.
Like George Lopez’s comedy, everybody will like this book, but if you are Mexican American, you will LOVE it. It will hit you right in your heart. It will make you feel warm like the smell of freshly made flour tortillas. There are things Non Mexican Americans won’t get—won’t understand. That’s the comfort in this book. The feeling that this book is written for you.
This is a writer that captures the Mexican American spirit and brings it into your heart, your mind and captures your imagination. A page turner that will have you laughing with tears running down your cheeks!
he characters in this book are all unusual, disturbingly likable in their flaws In two days each family member’s tumultuous lives climax in individual apexes which will alter the trajectory of their lives. This is an amazing snapshot of characters one instantly understands, like stepping into the center of a families life and feeling engulfed. A totally enveloping book which leaves much to ponder after reading.
I think this may end up being my favorite book for this year. Other books will have to go far to beat it. My first encounter with Luis Alberto Urrea was in his short story in the 2018 Short Story Advent Calendar, and I was happily surprised to realize I had received an entire novel written by him. This book takes place, basically, over the course of 2 days, but it encompasses lifetimes of the most wonderful family I have ever read about. Oh, that last sentence before the Coda! It made me weep! This book is perfect!!
Good for those interested in Latino culture in the U.S.