If you are looking for a short but powerful book about family and immigration set in Columbia, pick up Infinite Country by Patricia Engel. Find a summary, book information, and book reviews here.
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Infinite Country by Patricia Engel
Book Information
Author: Patricia Engel
Genre: Book About Racism, Family, Immigration | Book Set In Columbia
Pages: 208
Publisher: Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: March 2, 2021
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Infinite Country Summary
Talia is being held at a correctional facility for adolescent girls in the forested mountains of Colombia after committing an impulsive act of violence that may or may not have been warranted. She urgently needs to get out and get back home to Bogotá, where her father and a plane ticket to the United States are waiting for her. If she misses her flight, she might also miss her chance to finally be reunited with her family in the north.
How this family came to occupy two different countries, two different worlds, comes into focus like twists of a kaleidoscope. We see Talia’s parents, Mauro and Elena, fall in love in a market stall as teenagers against a backdrop of civil war and social unrest. We see them leave Bogotá with their firstborn, Karina, in pursuit of safety and opportunity in the United States on a temporary visa, and we see the births of two more children, Nando and Talia, on American soil. We witness the decisions and indecisions that lead to Mauro’s deportation and the family’s splintering—the costs they’ve all been living with ever since.
Award-winning, internationally acclaimed author Patricia Engel, herself a dual citizen and the daughter of Colombian immigrants, gives voice to all five family members as they navigate the particulars of their respective circumstances. And all the while, the metronome ticks: Will Talia make it to Bogotá in time? And if she does, can she bring herself to trade the solid facts of her father and life in Colombia for the distant vision of her mother and siblings in America?
Rich with Bogotá urban life, steeped in Andean myth, and tense with the daily reality of the undocumented in America, Infinite Country is the story of two countries and one mixed-status family—for whom every triumph is stitched with regret, and every dream pursued bears the weight of a dream deferred.
Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster
Our Advanced Copy Review (Our Book Of The Month Selection):
Infinite Country is such a powerful and thought-provoking novel about family, identity, and immigration told through the eyes of parents, grandparents, and children.
There is no safe scenario or truly content outcome in this novel, showcasing the larger issues within American immigration laws and their devastating effects.
More About Author Patricia Engel
Patricia Engel is an award-winning author and prestigious fellow recipient. Born to Colombian parents, she is a New York University grad and received her MFA at Florida International University. Read more about Patricia Engel.
More From Patricia Engel
Where You Can Find Infinite Country by Patricia Engel Reviews On TUL
March 2021 Book Releases
Along with Infinite Country, what other books are publishing in March? Don’t miss The Rose Code by Kate Quinn, The Dating Plan by Sara Desai, and The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner. Never be late to the party with The Uncorked Librarian’s book releases reading lists.