Border child : a novel
/ Michel Stone
- First edition.
- New York : Anchor Books , 2018, c2017
- 254 p. ; 22 cm
Young lovers Héctor and Lilia dreamed of a better future for their family in the United States. Héctor left Mexico first, but when Lilia, desperate to be with him, crossed the border with their infant daughter, Alejandra, she and her child were separated, and Alejandra was never returned to her parents. Four years later, the family has a chance for reunion, but the damage done by their separation may be irreparable. After the border crossing, Héctor and Lilia lived and worked in South Carolina for several years before a misunderstanding with immigration officials forced their return to Oaxaca, their home town, in Southern Mexico. Their perspectives altered, but settled, with a toddler son and a baby on the way, they receive an unexpected tip that might lead them to Alejandra. Working increasingly illegal jobs to earn money for Hector's trip north, Héctor searches for answers about Alejandra. Meanwhile, bedridden Lilia awaits the birth, but keeps reliving past mistakes. Michel Stone provides a landscape of shifted expectations, a tested marriage, and the consequences of wanting more for the next generation.