My side of the river : a memoir / Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gutierrez, Elizabeth Camarillo, author.

Contributor:

Alumni and Friends Memorial Book Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Gutierrez, Elizabeth Camarillo.

Mexican Americans--Biography.

Mexican Americans.

Mexican Americans--Intellectual life.

Mexican Americans--Social conditions.

Mexican Americans--Ethnic identity.

Genre:

autobiographies (literary works)

Autobiographies.

Physical Description:

viii, 262 pages ; 22 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : St. Martin's Press, an imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2024.

Summary:

"Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez reveals her experience as the U.S. born daughter of immigrants and what happened when, at fifteen, her parents were forced back to Mexico in this galvanizing yet tender memoir. Born to Mexican immigrants south of the Rillito River in Tucson, Arizona, Elizabeth had the world at her fingertips as she entered her freshman year of high school as the number one student. But suddenly, Elizabeth's own country took away the most important right a child has: a right to have a family. As her parents' visas expired, they were forced to return to Mexico, leaving Elizabeth responsible for her younger brother, as well as her education. Determined to break the cycle of being "a statistic," she knew that even though her parents couldn't stay, there was no way she could let go of the opportunities the U.S. could provide. Armed with only her passport and sheer teenage determination, Elizabeth became what her school would eventually describe as an unaccompanied, homeless youth, one of thousands of underage victims affected by family separation due to broken immigration laws. For fans of Educated by Tara Westover and The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande, My Side of the River explores separation, generational trauma, and the toll of the American dream. It's also, at its core, a love story between a brother and a sister who, no matter the cost, is determined to make the pursuit of his own dreams easier than it was for her"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Prologue: The river

Be the best

The movie theater

Little bones

Heartbeat

A different name

The little house by the funeral home

El cuartito

La escondida

Holy wars

Fool's gold

Paths the clouds take

Beinvenidos a México

The gate

Unwelcome creatures

Hunger

Earth camp

Mexican Cinderella

Speaking for change

Hello, yes, I'm allergic to failure

Where are you from?

Chosen family

Canada grey goose

Betty Crocker's recipe for success

Which world will I change?

Working sister

Empty nest

Unbridled currents.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Alumni and Friends Memorial Book Fund.

ISBN:

9781250277954

1250277957

OCLC:

1397061584