Contemporary Fiction: American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

The decision to read American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins was not an easy one for me. I like the premise enough, but I was not sure if I wanted to read something like this that would only upset me, when there are so many great books out there that do not have controversy surrounding them. Well, as you can see, I did read it, but I intentionally arrived late to the party.

The Situation: In a matter of minutes, Lydia's life as she knew it is completely changed. After her entire family is gunned down during a party at her mother's house, Lydia and her eight year-old son, Luca, must flee their home of Acapulco as she knows the man responsible will not stop until they are also dead. Before the bodies of her family members are even taken away, Lydia gathers what little she can and heads towards the U.S., knowing that Javier, the head of the latest cartel to take over the area, has eyes and ears everywhere. Any sense of security she allows herself to feel could be false, and if she wants to save her own life, as well as the life of her son, she must stay hyper vigilant at all times. At only eight years old, Luca knows what has happened, and will certainly never forget it. He knows he will never see his father again, or his cousins, or his grandmother, but of course he does not quite understand why it happened. All he knows is to stick with his mother, do what she says, and to keep moving. 

The Problem: The journey from Acapulco to the U.S. is full of dangers, especially for a woman and her small child. Lydia has plenty of money, but that can easily be taken from her. And even if they manage to evade the many people that serve Javier and would administer the cartel's brand of justice, there are still corrupt officials, rapists, murderers, kidnappers, and other dangers such as dehydration, illness, or injury. Making the entire journey on foot is near impossible, but the fastest mode of travel may also be the most dangerous. La Bestia, the network of freight trains that migrants are known to take on their way to the border, is known to be a punishing, though quick form of travel, and half of the danger comes from being able to get on top of the train in the first place. Lydia is well-aware of the problems, and having Luca with her makes her even more wary. But with the threats they are attempting to leave behind, she is resolved to move forward and face whatever is ahead of them.

Genre, Themes, History: This is a fiction novel set in Mexico as Lydia and her son begin their journey in Acapulco and continue moving north after the rest of their family is murdered by a cartel. Lydia ultimately decides that their best chance of survival, which would include making sure they are not recognized by any of Javier's men, is to disguise themselves as migrants heading to el norte. As they travel, they come across various dangers, but also many safe places and people willing to help in whatever way they can. A big part of the journey is La Bestia, the train that travels through Mexico that many migrants ride on the top of as they head to the U.S. Simply getting onto La Bestia can result in death or severe injury, but the hazards do not end once you are on the train. Many people fall off, while others are knocked off should they fail to see an oncoming tunnel or other obstruction. Even so, it is only one in a list of many dangers migrants encounter on their journey. And for Lydia, it is not nearly as worrisome as the idea of Javier finding her and her son.        

My Verdict: There have already been many articles, blog posts, tweets, etc. regarding how problematic this book is, and the main points have been articulated by those that are certainly better at this kind of thing than I am, so I will try to be brief. Any author who attempts to write a novel about a culture that is not their own should expect to be criticized, even if the book is well-written and the culture is approached with respect and empathy. Unfortunately for this book, it is not particularly well-written. It is not bad, but it is not great either. When Lydia makes the decision to disguise herself and her son as migrants (which is not a bad plan actually), the inner monologue at the moment feels forced and heavy-handed, and this is a trend that would continue throughout the book. Also, the humanity that I believe Cummins was genuinely trying to portray does not come across. These characters do not feel like real people with families and histories, people that the reader is going on a journey with as they try to reach the U.S./Mexico border. They feel like props, or people on display. Some have accused this book of being little more than "trauma porn," and I kinda get it.

Perhaps the biggest issue is the fact that this book was published at all, and that there was so much initial excitement behind it. Cummins reportedly received a seven-figure advance for this book, and is quoted as saying "I wish someone slightly browner than me would write it." Here's the thing: there have been many books about migrants written by brown people. But in a publishing world that is dominated by white people, the book written by a white author that appealed to mostly white readers is the one that got the attention. It's a problem.   

Favorite Moment: When Lydia begins to realize how foolish she was to believe there would be no consequences following an article that was published in the newspaper exposing Javier as the cartel's leader.  

Favorite Character: There are many characters that Lydia comes across throughout the book that help her simply because they can, or believe they should.

Recommended Reading: Though it has been years since I read it, I recommend The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, as well as The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez. Also One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez, if only because it is a fantastic book.