Author:       Luis Alberto Urrea

Publisher:    Little Brown/Hachette

ISBN:          978-0-316-02527-0

Website:      www.luisalbertourrea.com 

Type:         Fiction

Pages:        352 Hardcover

Purchase:    $9.75 @ Amazon.com (HERE)

The Story

“Nineteen year old Nayeli works at a taco shop in her Mexican village and dreams about her father, who left the family to work int he USA.  Recently, it has dawned on her that he isn’t the only man who has left town.  In fact, there are almost no men in the village – they’ve all gone north.  While watching The Magnificent Seven.Nayele decides to go north herself and recruit seven men – her own “Siete Magnificos” – to repopulate her hometown and protect it from the bandidos who plan on taking it over.”

(Above excerpt is from the cover of Into The Beautiful North)

The Review

Luis Alberto Urrea is, without a doubt, a very talented writer.  He has won a multitude of awards and has been a Pulitzer Prize finalist (2005).  Although I was unfamiliar with his past works, there was something about this story that intrigued me.

I’ll start by sharing that I wish I was more fluent in Spanish than I currently am.  this book had quite a bit of Spanish conversation in it.  Some of it I got, others not so much.  But, the language didn’t prevent me from understanding the story and what the characters were experiencing.  The overall Spanish language of the book somewhat reminded me of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao.  However, this story is much different.  As aforementioned, this is a story of a woman from a small seaside town in Mexico who is on a mission to change her town.  All of the men had left the town for work and many of them immigrated to the United States of America.  With nearly all of the men gone, the city had no protection, limited commerce, and a dwindling population.  The women of Tres Camarones wanted their men back!

The novel maintains several colorful characters whose lives you observe during this mission to bring the Mexican men back from America.  There is a major component of this story in which the reader observes the attempts at border crossing into the U.S.  This part of the story invoked many emotions within me… some my personal opinions regarding illegal immigration and others sympathizing with the characters on their journey.  It was interesting to read about the botched attempts as well as the successful ones.  Further, viewing the American lifestyle from the viewpoint of the neighboring immigrant was very intriguing.

I “Heart” Mexico!

I am a huge lover of Mexico!  I used to travel there 3 times a year (Rosarito & Ensenada, Baja California).  Rosarito is my absolute favorite 4-day getaway (except for the border at re-entry… talk about traffic!).  I have my much loved taco stands (oh, my precious barbacoa), bars, and shops… not to mention my favorite beachside motel.  I love everything about Mexico, except maybe my reaction to the water that I’m not supposed to drink (and try not to, but there’s ice!).  The pear juice-water in Mexico is to die for… not to mention the creamy milk and cheese!  There is fantastic almond-flavored tequilla and their beer is magnifico!  But, since my ex-boyfriend and I broke up, I haven’t been.  I don’t want to go down there without a larger group AND male protection.  Things at the border and just south of it have gotten so bad.  In fact, there are kidnappings and all kinds of crazy things that weren’t usually an issue.  And, now I can imagine my readers thinking, “… and the Swine Flu!”  I miss Mexico and this book just made me long for it!

Living in Southern California, there is a high Hispanic population and many have immigrated from Mexico.  So, Cinco de Mayo is hugely celebrated in my area… and, I’m celebrating right along there with them!  We go to Mario’s and I have my fill of strawberry margaritas and seafood.  But, it’s nothing like “Lobster Village” in Mexico at sunset with a “Coco-Loco” in hand.      

On Sher’s “Out of Ten Scale:”

This book is truly unique.  It’s not like many others that I’ve read in the past year.  I think that I had an affinity with this novel because of my love for Mexico and familiarity with the landscape in which it was described.  I’ve often wished that I possessed enough money to invest in a house or trailer down there for my early retirement years.  It’s just so relaxing and close to home.  For me, this book was enjoyable and I would recommend it.  It would DEFINITELY make for good BOOK CLUB discussion!

For the genre Fiction:General, I am going to rate this book an 8 OUT OF 10. 

// –>

6 Responses to “Book Review: Into The Beautiful North”