By C. Osvaldo Gomez
Publisher: Self Published
This E-book is a culmination of thirteen short stories capturing the experiences of undocumented immigrants as they navigate their lives through a winding network of employment, schools, unscrupulous lawyers, not understanding English, and much disappointment.
The author’s purpose was to provide insight into the lives of people that are sometimes forgotten in our society and that are taken for granted. In each of these stories you can sense the turmoil, sometimes external and sometimes internal, as they daily plot a course to survive and fit in. As you read the stories you sense that the author knows firsthand some of this turmoil because his writing captures some of this vulnerability and insight in the raw.
All of the short stories were well written; however, there was one story that had too much going on within its structure. I couldn’t get vested with the character. There were too many plot points for a short story. It was “Karina’s Coin Toss.” By itself, this would make a great novel. For a short story if would have worked better had the author taken just a slice of life to make it more effective. The others, however, were right on.
If the author wanted to give his readers insight into a “shadows” society, he captured it nicely. In the first story the character is a day laborer waiting to be picked up for any odd job to help support his family. I liked the way the author captured the internal character’s dialogue as he patiently waits for someone to come by as well as the disappointments he experiences with this type of employment. In another story the author shows a young boy who doesn’t speak English buying an ice cream, but things take a turn that is unexpected. The author makes you feel as if you were this little boy and you were experiencing this fear.
One story captures several children, citizens and undocumented immigrants, together experiencing the explosion of the Challenger in full view. I took away that in the end it doesn’t matter whether you have legal documentation or not, but rather that we are all human beings and the devastation is felt by all.
The last story is extremely heartfelt. It showcases two brothers who are very different in their approach to life, but a turn of events will change everything. Very thought provoking!
This book definitely affected me as I could feel the turmoil, the sadness, and the disappointment with most of these characters as they tried to make a living working in the shadows. I guess in the end that was what the author wanted to portray and he did that very well. I would say that the book met its goal and it was an easy read. It’s a good E-book to purchase.
Source: Book was provided by author for review. It was reviewed by Corina Martinez Chaudhry.
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