I was drawn into the story that was Lydia and Luca’s. I’m aware this is not everyone’s story that travels from Mexico to the United States. But I felt for Lydia and Luca. Not only for the experiences they had but also for the changes they went through as people. I loved the lasting friendships they made along the way. We are all on a journey and it is always made more beautiful by the friendships we make along the way and the kindness we show to others.

Actual rating: 2.5/5, rounded down because of the bad representation.

First, a disclaimer: I have not finished reading the whole book yet. I've gotten about 40% of the way through, and it isn't bad, but circumstances have made it difficult for me to finish, as you'll see in the following paragraphs. I think I've read enough for the grounds on which I am actually critiquing it, but bear in mind that I haven't read the second half, which might sway my opinion one way or the other.

The writing, at least, is well done, capturing the shifts between Lydia's anxious-mother voice and Luca's curious-but-afraid-child voice and reading, for the most part, like a thriller. (That does, unfortunately, also come with the somewhat flat character development that we often see in thrillers, where character complexity is sacrificed to keep the plot going...yes, it's great that Lydia owns a bookshop, which I like, but her attitudes still come across as naive.) As a story about a mother who loves her child and has to make dangerous choices for both of their safety, it does well.

But with all the controversy surrounding this book, especially as I've started looking into essays by OwnVoices reviewers about where the narrative falls short and how full of inaccuracies it is, reading it has become increasingly difficult for me. Even if the story isn't bad, it is very "Hollywood" in its depiction of things, laden with stereotypes, poor Spanish translations (which I didn't even realize until they were pointed out but now can't ignore), and somehow miraculously allowing the main characters to--at least thus far--avoid all of the dangers that accompany the trek to the border. It's too easy, too sugar-coated, and while it would be fine if it was JUST a thriller, this isn't just a thriller: it's a story about immigration and claims to be authentic. It isn't.

I do want to like this one, but the glaring discrepancy between the setting and the type of story being told makes it profoundly uncomfortable to read, and not in the horizon-broadening way that some other books do. Perhaps someday I will return to finish it, but for now, this is simply not the right book and this is not the right time for it. Cummins is clearly a talented writer; she just chose a very poor story to put those talents toward.

(I will not be posting this review to my blog/Goodreads, as I do not typically post reviews of books I have not totally finished, for fear of providing an inaccurate holistic analysis.)

While I don't think that American Dirt deserves all the criticism leveled against it, this book doesn't deserve the hype it received pre-publication. It's a mediocre effort at best. It's badly paced. It belatedly drops the title and then drops it over and over again as if to justify why it's called American Dirt. None of the characters spoke to me in their true voice. Therein is the heart of the vitriol heaped on this book. It is not representative - no that I personally feel that every author has a responsibility to be or that they should never write about an experience outside their own - but it's a giveaway here. Cummins is taking it on herself to write a story she may truly care about, but she fails in making me care about the protagonists. They're not believable, they're too scripted, they lack humanity and that is exactly what the author was supposedly attempting to do. She wanted readers to view migrants and their experience more humanely. I believe Cummins has a great deal of sympathy for the migrant experience. But sympathy is not the same as empathy. True empathy may have allowed her to craft more human characters rather than caricatures.

In American Dirt, Lydia and her son are the sole survivors of the Mexican cartel’s hit on their family. Lydia’s husband wrote an expose on the head of the cartel for his newspaper, which resulted in the kill order. Lydia quickly realizes she needs to flee Acapulco and get asylum in America. However, that is easier said than done.

Getting to American Dirt is Lydia’s goal in the latest Oprah’s book selection. The book has been the subject of numerous news stories about cultural misappropriation as the author isn’t Mexican and hasn’t been through Lydia’s experiences herself. However, this is fiction. I don’t expect it to be based on a true story any more than Harry Potter is. If it makes one suburban white person appreciate the “between a rock and a hard place” plight of migrants seeking asylum in the US, it has done its job—regardless of the race of the person telling the story. Maybe it will change Trump supporters mindset that all asylum seekers are liars and criminals. Or maybe not. Regardless, this book is an entertaining, and harrowing, read. 4 stars!

Thanks to Flatiron Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Cummins has given us a beautiful, brutal story, one that shines a light on the experience of migrants but also captures the terror of life under oppression, the almost crippling love of a mother for her son and the bonds that humans form in difficult circumstances. The pages fly by almost too quickly to savor, yet the images are indelible and will stick with you long after the last word. As for the self appointed ayatollahs of authenticity, they should examine their own motivations. It's unfortunate that the dirt being heaped on this book carries a strong whiff of cultural hegemony —“you can’t write about this experience because you're white.” The same school of thought that says only Asians can portray Asians in the theater or on film. What's next, no gospel singing unless you're black? In the case of this novel (fiction, folks, by the way), perhaps it is envy that stirs some critics. Or is it a backlash against the advance praise and hype this book received? Calling it "a Grapes of Wrath for our time" may have been too much for the Writer's Block (or blocked writers). Whether Lydia and Luca’s struggle evokes the heart-wrenching saga of the Joads is not the point here; what’s relevant is an attempt give the reader access to a modern-day nightmare. Don't like the book on its merits, fine, But when identity politics is injected into criticism it makes for a toxic mixture.

I read American Dirt last week. It was a book I couldn’t put down; it had me captured from the very first beginning. When I finished the last page – even after having read the Author’s Note at the end – I thought this was an important, timely, and necessary book. As I wrote my quick (favorable) review, I was becoming more aware of the controversy surrounding this book but really only on a surface level. I finished the review and posted it.

I had no idea the ways I was perpetuating harmful stereotypes. The comment section quickly exploded…and I genuinely welcomed the conversation. I consider myself to be open-minded and appreciate people pointing out my blind spots. The comments were insightful and I immediately got the sense that I had got this one wrong. I am always on the side of bettering myself, and I don’t ever want to be on the side of harm – be that through oppression, racism, stereotyping, or ignorance.

I began searching #ownvoices reviews.

Here are some to start with:

“Pendeja, You Ain’t Steinbeck: My Bronca with Fake-Ass Social Justice Literature” by: Myriam Gurba
Cummins’ Non-Mexican Crap by: David Bowles
“Big Lit Meets the Mexican Americans: A Study in White Supremecy” by: Micahel Nava
“The Danger of a Single Story by: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Check out the story highlights of the following #bookstagrammers: @lupita.reads, @booksteanhenny, @academicmami. (This is not an exhaustive list, but just to get you started.)
I read them and then would sit with them. I reread my review through that new lens. I started examining how my promotion of this book was offensive to people who have actually lived this life – not some fictionalized and sensationalized version of the truth.

I used the example of Sin Nombre, a movie produced years ago, that never fell under criticism, as a defense of my feelings. It was rightfully pointed out that this is a Straw Man argument – “an intentionally misrepresented proposition that is set up because it is easier to defeat than an opponent’s real argument” (via dictionary.com). Again, my mind was in overtime…finally starting to get a sense of where the #ownvoices people were coming from.

My intention was never to hurt anyone, but I now realize that my intention isn’t what is important here. What’s important is that by giving this a 5-star review, I perpetuated oppression and stereotypes.

I hurt people.

And for that I’m truly sorry.

If you’d like to purchase books from #ownvoices authors, go to @lupita.reads instagram profile and check out the story highlight labeled “Mex Lit”. Also, Daci (@daciandthebooks) has created a graphic with some books listed as well. (Again, I know there are more…this is just to give you a starting point!)

I will be purchasing some of the books listed tomorrow when I head out of town!

Also, I will be deleting the original post so as not to add to the hype and promotion of this book.

Thank you to this community for helping me learn, grow, and be better. Though it’s not your job to educate anyone, I appreciate those of you who are.

Again, I am truly sorry and I hope to do better next time.

Special shoutout to Oscar (@booksteanhenny): thank you for taking the time to DM me. You were genuine and kind and respectful and I probably learned the most from you. I appreciate you helping me be better.

I was not able to get into this book. I tried to read it a few times, but the story line didn't grab me after I made it 14% of the way through. This book has been loved by many others and picked up by oprah, so i am sure I am one of the few who is putting it down because it isn't for me.

On top of the controversies that accompany this book, it was just bad writing, overflowed with too many details. I really tried to go with an open mind into this book but found myself just completely engulfed with rage that this book that is dripping with racism is considered the book fo 2020 and one that is supposed to represent a marginalized community. The narrative with this book is destructive because unfortunately for many this will be their first foray into Latinx literature. If you're going to do research and purport to want to represent a "brown, faceless mass" (which is a whole other story that we won't divulge into how racist that statement is) then show it in the over 300 pages you have in the book. Don't add it to your author's note. It's as if a student handed in a badly Google aided Spanish translation and then added a note at the bottom that said they swear they studied super hard for this. There was also the misleading statements made in both the editor's note and the author's note that were only recently rectified where they both add wife of a "former undocumented immigrant" without disclosing that her husband is Irish. Just a bad form since the beginning. It truly shows the perils of publishing when a book like this is allowed into the world.

Y'all. THIS BOOK. I was so pleased with American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins. It has that classic story feel, but brought into the modern age. All of the hype (#Oprah) is absolutely worth it.

I am disappointed in the promotion of this book. After listening to and reading commenters and #ownvoices authors about the subject, it is a slap in the face to Mexican culture and Latinx authors that this book is being pushed so hard. While I don't agree with censorship, I do believe that it's more important to read own voices accounts instead of a perspective from a privileged person writing about a marginalized group of people.

~I received a complimentary copy of this book. I voluntarily reviewed, and all opinions expressed are my own.~

*REVIEW*🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
I was fortunate to receive an advanced copy of American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins from the fabulous folks at Flatiron in September. I read it before all the controversy really began, and I'm glad for that because I was able to experience the story as simply a story without any preconceived ideas, and I loved it-still do. My review does not address any issues or outside influences, rather, I address the fictional work by the author.

I have, since the first reading, read the book several times in it's entirety and in pieces. Why? Every time I read this story, it shows me something different and meaningful. I learn something new or see a situation or person in a new light. I'm not an immigrant. I'm a white woman, and I've learned so much from the story. Yes, I know it's fiction, but the truth of many things are still in there.


"If it's possible for you to turn back, do so now....If there is any other place for you to go....go there now....This path is only for people who have no choice, no other option, only violence and misery behind you...Everything is working against you...Many will die. Many, many of you will be kidnapped, tortured, trafficked or ransomed...Every single one of you will be robbed...Only one out of three will make it to your destination alive."


Lydia and Luca have an experience that is overall exaggerated, but there is a purpose for this. The story shows the worst of the worst tragedy for Lydia. Their journey is the can't believe they made it lucky at every turn variety, and that's okay. I see it like a what if scenario. What if this lucky break actually happened? What if a person did survive this scenario? Then what? Like any good story should, it presents questions. It's overdone to capture the reader's attention, and I was totally captivated and amazed at the power of words on nearly every page. There is something indefinable about Jeanine Cummins writing that takes the unexplainable and the profound and gives accurate lyrical perfect voice to these feelings. The story is absolutely tragic but beautiful to read with smooth flowing words like music to the ears.


"She put it away from her because Soledad had been through enough to know that she's at her limit, that she can go no further into that anguish without vanishing forever."


Let's talk about the characters-flawed, selfless, authentic, smart, and stronger than you can imagine. Lydia survives for her son and because she is terrified. Terror is a propelling force. Luca sort of retreats into his own little bubble, and that's probably best for now. I'm not sure an eight year old is capable of processing this kind of loss.Soledad is concerned only for the safety of her younger sister, Rebecca. She doesn't want Rebecca to ever experience the horrors that she, unfortunately, has. Rebecca is slightly more care free, but naivety is not a virtue that remains intact on a journey like this. These sisters are determined to stay together. Lydia, Luca, Soledad and Rebecca are strangers who form a connection.


"It's the bond of trauma, the bond of sharing an indescribable experience together. Whatever happens, no one else in their lives will ever fully comprehend the ordeal of this pilgrimage, the characters they've met, the fear that travels with them, the grief and fatigue that eat at them. Their collective determination to keep pressing north. It solders them together so they feel like an almost-family now."


I'll admit, before American Dirt, I never gave much thought to why any person would choose to chance crossing the border into the United States. This story changed my perspective on that, as well as the immediate dangers immigrants face during the whole of any journey. It's eye opening and thought provoking to say the least, and that's a positive no matter if it's true or not. I am appalled by the treatment of beautiful young girls, but I'm also compelled to learn more. This is the case for numerous issues.


"All her life she's pitied those poor people. She's donated money. She's wondered with the sort of detached fascination of the comfortable elite, how dire the conditions of their lives must be wherever they come from, that this is the better option. That these people would leave their homes, their cultures, their families, even their languages, and venture into tremendous peril, risking their very lives, all for the chance to get to the dream of some faraway country that doesn't even want them. "


From the first sentence, this story is sharp and biting. It begins in shocking fashion, and, basically, continues that way. There are so many little things that hit like a punch to the chest. I was moved, inspired, heartbroken, hopeful, angry and on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. American Dirt is unforgettable and simply astonishing. I hope you will read and appreciate this story for its merits as a book. You will not regret it!

Absolutely stunning. This book grabbed me from page one, pulled me in, and may never let me go. The story of Lydia and her son Luca's desperate plunge into migrant life and their battle to escape to the US explodes onto the pages like a freight train and the pace doesn't let up for a minute. Timely, heart-wrenching and raw. It's only January but I can say beyond the shadow of a doubt that this will definitely be one of the best, and likely THE best, book that I will read in all of 2020. The world would be a kinder place if everyone read this book.

Thank you to Flatiron Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this gorgeous novel in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins is the story of a woman and child who end up on the wrong side of a Mexican cartel.

Lydia has a great life. She owns a bookstore and has a doting husband and an amazing child. Even though the drug cartels run her city, she’s comfortable. She spends all day in the bookstore, and at night she relaxes with her family.

A lot of people visit Lydia’s bookstore, but none are as charming as Javier. When Javier starts visiting Lydia’s bookstore, she knows there’s something special about him. Lydia and him strike up a close friendship. They see something in the other, and they enjoy the other’s company. Lydia loves her conversations with Javier and finds herself thinking of him often.

Little does Lydia know that Javier has some secrets he hasn’t revealed. Big secrets. Because while Javier is smart and polished, he’s also head of the drug cartel in her city. He’s a dangerous man, and Lydia is in deep with him.

When Lydia’s husband publishes a tell-all on Javier, their lives are irrevocably changed.

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins was breath-taking, raw, and heart-wrenching. I felt as though I was reading a memoir, not a fiction book. The story felt so real–startling real. I immediately fell in love with Lydia and her son, Luca, and was engaged in their story the whole way through.

The things Lydia and Luca went through were cringeworthy and jaw-dropping. What would a person be willing to do in their search for hope and safety? I rooted for Lydia and Luca every page, and I wanted them to have the very best outcome.

The narrator did a fantastic job. The smatterings of Spanish gave me chills and added to the realness of the story. While this book was a work of fiction, the happenings in the book aren’t a stretch from the reality many people face trying to obtain the American dream.

If you’re looking for a new audiobook in your life, I highly recommend you check out American Dirt. While it’s a lengthy audiobook, it’s absolutely worth the listen.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for providing the audiobook version of this book and NetGalley for providing the Kindle version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"On this side, too, there are dreams."

Keeping in mind this was a work of fiction, this is a fantastic book and the hype is well deserved. It's insightful and begins to shed some light on the treacherous journey that many Mexicans and Central Americans have faced, and still face today. While it was a somewhat quick and easy read, it's emotionally tough and draining.  At one point, I just hit my limit on the exhaustion and the hopelessness the characters are feeling, and I started crying. I do hope this story opens the eyes of some readers...how far would you go to save your child's life?

It's important to note that this book takes place in 2016 or 2017, as well as, was researched and written during the years 2013-2017 so does not touch on the more recent changes along the border, including the detention centers. In addition, the main character Lydia mentions numerous times how lucky she is because not only does she have access to a large amount of money along the way, but she is a Mexican resident so doesn't have to fear Mexican immigration (as much) as others from Central & South America do. The experience of the supplemental characters, Soledad and Rebeca, is probably more accurate to what many migrants are facing today, coming from Honduras, Guatemala, Venezuela, etc.

Wow. Amazingly powerful writing. Reads like a memoir because it could so easily be all true.

I received a free e-galley from netgalley.com.

This is going to be the must read book of 2020. I’m sure book clubs will be eyeing this book for their monthly meetings. I cannot fathom the ordeal that South and Central American migrants have to endure just to survive.. This book helped me bridge that gap in my knowledge, that yes stories like this one is happening.

Even though this is a heavy and sad read, and it does take its toll on your emotions. The book is fast paced because you need to know that everything will be okay. I know it kept me up and wanting to keep turning that page!

Reading American Dirt took me on a journey of unimaginable cruelty, difficulties, and resilience, The book follows a woman and her young son whose entire family is killed by the cartel in Mexico. They need to flee and this is the journey we go on with them. It is one of f the most engaging, timely and compelling books I have read. I will definitely recommend it to my book clubs. Excellent!

This book was truly amazing and worth all of the hype I've heard. I could not put it down; I was educated and disturbed. A thriller with a heart and brain. Amazing all around. I really hope someone picks it up and promotes it as part of a book club so that it can get into many hands.

Jeanine Cummins’s "American Dirt," a fast-paced, issue-oriented new novel, has been hyperbolically promoted, almost to the point of hysteria. It is a heart-rending book, but in terms of style unmemorable. I call it the "Uncle Tom’s Cabin" of migrant-journey fiction.  

Though I have reservations about the style, it is an emotional read. Cummins breathtakingly chronicles the flight of sympathetic heroine Lydia, a bookstore owner, after her journalist husband and fifteen family members are massacred by a cartel in Acapulco. Lydia hopes she and her eight-year-old son Luca can make it to the border, where they will hire a coyote (guide) to help them cross illegally into the U.S. They are on the cartel hit list because Lydia’s husband wrote an article revealing the identity of the cartel leader. Though well-researched and moving, the book has a hint of Y.A. didacticism. 

For most of us, the issue of illegal immigration is distant, but for Cummins, the wife of a former undocumented immigrant, it is terrifyingly real. She details the grueling conditions of migrants from Mexico, and the high probability of injury, capture by Immigration agents, or death along the way. Lydia has the money to fly from Mexico City, but her son doesn’t have a passport. They must go by foot and by train, running alongside the train, hopping onto the rungs of the ladder, and then climbing on top for the trip.

On their journey, they make friends, but there are also criminals and undercover cartel members. It is a terrifying journey: they must even be alert in the churches that give shelter, because they never know who’s in the next room.

Some of you will like this book,  others will love it.  Some, like me, will be lukewarm. It is a good read, if you like issue novels.

Lydia Quixano Perez was a bookstore owner in Acapulco Mexico. She her husband, Sebastian, a journalist, and eight-year old son Luca had a nice life until one day, it all ended horribly. Lydia feels responsible for the fact that her husband and 15 family members were gunned down at a family cookout, after she unknowingly befriended a drug cartel operative. Although she and her young son were lucky enough to escape death, the cartel also knows their job isn't finished yet.

Lydia and Luca are forced to flee their home with some cash and just what they could carry in backpacks. What follows is the dangerous journey they face as they set out on foot, by bus and, even by learning to hop onto moving trains in an attempt to get to the US. During their harrowing journey they face hunger, cruelty and although there are a few kind people along the way, there is far more bad than good to be had along the way. They meet other migrants who share their heartbreaking experiences and become travel companions to two sisters fleeing Honduras who share incredibly sad secrets as well.

Although Lydia's background and economic status was not the norm of the migrants they met along the way, I thought their story was just as heartbreaking. I had to read this story in short bursts as I found it to be realistic and quite sad; I was almost afraid to see how it would end. A work of fiction, it felt like it could be representative of why many migrants are traveling thousands of miles to reach the U.S. for a safer, better way of life for their family. I especially enjoyed the author's notes at the end which gave insight as to why she wrote this story. This book is sure to be a popular bookclub discussion choice and, it's worth all the hype it's been getting IMO.