A Heartfelt Portrayal of the Migrant Experience: American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

20 Jan


The harrowing and perilous migrant experience is vividly portrayed in Jeanine Cummins’ bestselling novel American Dirt, an Oprah’s Book Club pick. Understandably, it’s being hailed as a new American classic and critics are comparing it to Steinbeck’s powerful Grapes of Wrath. It has a gritty and earthy feel, as the threatening elements of nature play a pivotal role, and the reader is immediately caught up in the poignancy, drama, and humanity of the compelling story and characters.

The protagonist, Lydia Perez, is living a happy middle-class life with her husband, a journalist, and their rambunctious 8-year-old son Luca in Acapulco, Mexico. After her husband publishes a scathing profile of Javier, the jefe of Acapulco’s newest drug cartel, her extended family (including her husband) are viciously murdered during a birthday celebration. Lydia and her precious son, Luca, are the sole survivors and although they are horrified and disoriented, they scramble to take refuge in order to survive. Lydia soon realizes that they must flee Mexico for the safety of the United States otherwise their lives will be forever fraught with danger. So begins their tortuous journey filled with constant threats, colorful, shady characters, and nerve-wracking episodes.

With their savings and scant possessions, their lives are instantly transformed into desperate migrants and they are forced to ride on the exposed rooftops of la bestia-trains that make their way north to the United States, the only place Javier’s dangerous grip doesn’t extend. As they join the countless forlorn Mexican and Central American migrants trying to reach el norte, Lydia soon learns that everyone is running from something. However, what are they running to and what extremes are they willing to risk in order to achieve their dreams and safe refuge?

Each page-turning chapter reveals more and more challenges and pitfalls as Lydia and Luca endure corrupt border patrol officers, ruthless migrants, dangerous drug cartel members, as well as rattlesnakes, coyotes, and nature’s blistering desert sun and unforgiving temperatures. How they persevere and overcome each threat and obstacle gives American Dirt its heart and compels the reader to root for these relentless and shrewd survivors. What will they discover in America and will they ever be able to put the past behind them? To uncover these answers, read Jeanine Cummins’ gripping exploration into the frantic lives of migrants who are willing to sacrifice everything for a glimmer of hope in American Dirt. A timely novel that is heartfelt and seems refreshingly real.

Available as an ebook and digital audiobook from eBCCLS. Also available in both Spanish and English as an ebook and as an English digital audiobook from elibraryNJ

Written by:
Ethan Galvin
Information and Digital Services Librarian

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Get Hooked on The Dash and Lily Series!

13 Jan

The moment that I started reading the first book in The Dash and Lily series by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, I knew I was hooked. Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares starts off by talking about a red Moleskin notebook, and I was immediately intrigued. As a lover of all things red, I was wondering if someone had been listening in on my innermost desires to find romance involving a red Moleskin notebook and The Strand Bookstore (aka my favorite bookstore). For anyone who considers themselves a bibliophile, a lover of NYC, and the lover of the spirit of Christmas, then this series is for you.

The series revolves around two main characters, Dash and Lily. Dash is a teenage boy who is a typical New Yorker: jaded, pessimistic, and absolutely hates Christmas. However, his innate love of books leads him to explore The Strand in the weeks before Christmas, and find a red Moleskin notebook hidden in the stacks. The discovery of this notebook eventually leads him to Lily. Lily is a teenage girl who loves dogs, baking, but most of all, she loves Christmas. Through a series of dares that have been laid out in the red Moleskin notebook, Dash and Lily find themselves trying to learn more about each other without actually meeting in real life, but finding out more about themselves in the process as well. The journey is sweet, sad, adventurous, and everything you want in a book. It’s also a quick read at 290 pages.

I love this book series so much because I can see myself so well in both of these characters. Dash appeals to my pessimistic book-loving side, and Lily relates to my Christmas loving, baking deserts side. It’s also great to have an Asian American main character because as an Asian American woman, it’s hard to find realistic female Asian characters. I adore Lily as a character, and I’m so glad that there are three books in this series. I couldn’t get enough.

Don’t let the post holiday blues get you down, this series will put you in the Christmas spirit all year long! These books are available through BCCLS and through eBCCLS via Overdrive.

Written by:
Nicole Marconi
Library Assistant, Children’s Department

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