The Tortilla Curtain
Info
- Author: T. Coraghessan Boyle
- Genre: Modern Lit.
- Publisher: Penguin Books; Reprint Edition
- Type: Limited Edition Novel Book
- Release: Sep 06, 1996
- ASIN/ISBN: 014023828X
- Rating:
- Status: Read (355 Pages)
Review
On Oct 25, 2007 Corinne said:
I read this book on illegal immigration it was the most depressing thing. I couldn't not read it even though I wanted to cry.
If you have ever had a bad thought about immigration specifically Mexican immigration. I recommend that you read this book. It grabs you into the story. While it appalls you it also educates and humbles you. It will probably change your perspective on immigration it certainly altered mine. It is probably an over-exaggerated case but it still provides you with a great bit of realism.
Details
"The story of two couples who have nothing in common except the fact that they live in the same area. C'andido and Am'erica are two young Mexicans who have entered the United States illegally and who are dreaming of the good life in their own little house somewhere in California. Meanwhile, they are homeless and camping in the Topanga Canyon area of Los Angeles, in the hills above Malibu. Another couple, Delaney and Kyra Mossbacher, have also recently moved to Topanga, in order to be closer to nature yet be close enough to the city to enjoy those amenities. Kyra is a successful real estate agent while Delaney keeps house, looks after Kyra's son by her first marriage and writes a regular column for an environmentalist magazine. The two couples' paths cross unexpectedly when C'andido is hit and injured by Delaney, who is driving his car along the suburban roads near his home. For different reasons, each man prefers not to call the police or an ambulance, and Delaney soothes his conscience by giving C'andido "$20 blood money," explaining to Kyra that "He's a Mexican." From that moment on, the lives of the two couples are constantly influenced by the other's."