Across a Hundred Mountains: A Novel

The book was a little drawn out - quite predictable from the very beginning when we began to hear the story of the two main characters. I did not care for the part in which Juana decides not to recognize her father just so she can stay.

While this book appears to be carefully planned, the characters are fairly flat. The story line is incredibly predictable, and the language is simplistic enough that high school freshmen could easily read this book in a couple of weeks. The themes are relatively simple and easy to pinpoint. As a college Lit major, I'd say that this book belongs at the high school level.

As the public discourse over undocumented immigration becomes more heated and, at times, outright ugly -- particularly in the blogosphere -- attacks on such immigrants are often made in broad strokes and with gross generalizations.

This should not be a surprise, because it is easier to denigrate and reject a group of people if you dehumanize them and make them faceless.

But that's where talented writers come in: With skillful prose, they can focus on a small group of undocumented immigrants and make their struggles and humanity real to the reader so that it becomes difficult to dismiss their plight with a bumper-sticker slogan or the waving of a flag.

Two years ago, Luis Alberto Urrea did exactly that with "The Devil's Highway" (Little, Brown), in which he brilliantly chronicled the plight of 26 Mexican men who, in 2001, crossed the border into an area of the Arizona desert known as the Devil's Highway. Only 12 made it safely across. The book received wide acclaim and was a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction.

Now comes a fictionalized story of undocumented immigration in Reyna Grande's debut novel, "Across a Hundred Mountains" (Atria Books, $23). Grande tells her story in evocative language that never falls into pathos.

In the nonlinear narrative, chapters alternate between her two female protagonists, Juana Garcia and Adelina Vasquez. First, we have Juana, a young girl who lives in a small Mexican village in extreme poverty. When a flood leads to yet another death in her family -- a death that Juana feels responsible for -- Juana's father believes that he must earn more money to house his family in safer quarters. He believes that there are abundant opportunities "en el otro lado," based on a letter from a friend: "Apá's friend wrote about riches unheard of, streets that never end, and buildings that nearly reach the sky. He wrote that there's so much money to be made, and so much food to eat, that people there don't know what hunger is."

With such dreams, Juana's father decides to leave his family and enter the United States by relying on a fast-talking coyote. He makes numerous promises to send money once he's found employment. But Juana and her mother hear nothing for years, leading to further poverty. Worse yet, Juana's father had to borrow money from Don Elias to pay the coyote's exorbitant fee. Once Juana's father embarks on his journey, Don Elias swoops down on Juana's beautiful mother with ideas as to how repayment can be made.

A few years later -- after no word from her father, and after her abused mother has fallen into alcoholism -- Juana decides to leave home to find her father.

Juana eventually crosses paths with a young prostitute, Adelina, in Tijuana. They make plans to join forces and sneak into the United States together. For Juana, there's a chance to find her long-lost father. For Adelina, there's hope to cast off the shackles of her abusive boyfriend-pimp. This friendship is perhaps one of the most affecting elements of Grande's narrative. And, after a twist reminiscent of Dickens, these brave young women end up insinuating themselves into each other's life more than one could imagine.

The publisher tells us that Grande was born in Guerrero, Mexico, in 1975, and that she entered the United States as an undocumented immigrant at age 9. Despite such obstacles, Grande earned her bachelors of art degree in creative writing from the University of California at Santa Cruz and was a 2003 PEN USA Emerging Voices Fellow. In other words, Grande is living the American dream and has offered a striking and moving story about people who have traveled the same dangerous journey that she did.

"Across a Hundred Mountains" is a beautifully rendered novel that maintains its power throughout because Reyna Grande keeps control over her language and does not feel a need to trumpet emotionally volatile scenes of alcohol and drug abuse, rape, poverty and infant mortality. This is a breathtaking debut.

[This review first appeared in the El Paso Times.]

Somehow the plot seemed too familiar which I suppose is why author was compelled to write it. There was much detail at the beginning of the narrative, however as it got near to completion the plot seemed to skip detail and jump to the end. I felt there was too much a space of time that was unexplained. It was a good read, but not a compelling read.

A powerful, but at times difficult to stomach, read about two young women from either side of the U.S.-Mexico border. Their lives become so enmeshed that, at times, it becomes difficult to distinguish who is whom. It is a moving story about identity, perseverance and family loyalties. At times, I wished it had had a little more nuanced portrayal of "good" characters vs. "bad" characters, which verged on caricatures. The main characters are done really well, though. I found the descent of one of the characters from piousness to alcoholism particularly keen.

I read this book, Across a Hundred Mountains, in one sitting. I was into this book from the start, when Juana was introduced. Not just the physical and economical challenges that she and her family were going through but the psychological issues she was going through after her sister died and her father left for the United States was captivating. How her whole world falls apart and decides to go to "el otro lado" in search of her absent father. I saw it as Juana's ultimate and last glimmer of hope to restore her mother's love and affection. She goes through extreme measures to attain or restore her family which she has been held responsible for breaking. Her relationship with her dad at the beginning is very captivating, there isn't a lot said about their relationship but what was said was enough to tell you about how strong it was and how much they loved each other. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to gain a deeper understanding of what drives people to cross the border and what leads people to do things they wouldn't normally do. It shows the extremes people are willing to go to to restore their former lives and put together a broken family.

Across a Hundred Mountains has been the best book I have ever read; I have never found a book that inspired me to keep on reading. Reyna Grande did a great job with this book because she is very detailed and clearly describes the life of Juana and how she came across with Adelina; the book speaks about how Juana felt guilt because her younger sister drowned and her mother suffered greatly. Due to this incident her father decides to go to the U.S. to get money.Finally Juana decides to look for her father and she struggled to get to the U.S. to find him. Then, Juana was devastated because she never found her father and her mother died without seing her husband again. I feel this book is great because many people can relate to this story, and it gives others a great explanation of what many women went through and how much they suffered; the book gives insights of the Mexican culture and how harsh it can get to be upon both males and females. I was really satisfied with this product and I would recommend for everyone to read it and I am sure that anyone will get a lot out of reading this book.

The book opening is confusing; two lives in parallel worlds. The topic, however, resonates with a personal experience. Living the comfort zone (even though it may be as harsh as Juana's) to face a new, and sometimes-dangerous environment could be frightening. And even so, border crossing is as constant as life. Juana crossed a physical border (from Mexico to USA), but more than that, the crossing forced her to loose her Identity. A physical description of turmoil, a vivid account of suffering, and a sentimental journey that exemplifies the reasons for migration, a story of many stories, Reyna Grande's Across a Hundred Mountains, is a novel that deserves a special place as a fine example of border crossing.

Across a Hundred Mountains: A Novel

This is a wonderful story about a young girl and the troubles that fall upon her family when her father decides to leave in search of providing a better life for his family. The story is cultivating, emotional and dramatic. It can easily be read in a short time for those of us who love to embrace new stories and follow the characters lives closely. Overall, it is a great book. If you haven't read it already, pick it up and do it! I am sure you will not be able to put it down. I highly recommend it. So, I'm off to read her next book Dancing with the Butterflies and on to another adventure.

Across A Hundred Mountains is an amazing book. It is able to capture the reality that immigrants live when they make the decision of crossing the border. In my 5 years of college, I had never been assigned a book which I actually enjoyed reading. In fact, to be honest, I hate reading. However, when I began reading this book, I did not want to put it down. I finished the entire book in 10 hours. I read during my breaks in school, I read at work when my boss was not looking, I read while I was in the restroom, I stayed up past midnight just to read a couple more pages; I literally took it everywhere. I strongly recommend this book to everybody. It is a must read.

This was an excellent book, full of unsparing detail and sharp images. The two stories coincide and cross in a surprisingly possible way, with haunting twists and turns. After just reading Enrique's Journey, the crossing to El Otro Lado in this book reiterated the inhumanity of the border situation for me. A riveting book. Highly recommended.

This book is an engaging relatable realistic fiction that is easy to dive into. The read is very easy. We read this book as part of a book club and could not stop reading. This book makes the story of an immigrant more relatable to any reader. This is a story that can be told cross culturally. It is the story of a search for family, love, and a better life.