Young lovers Héctor and Lilia dreamed of a brighter future for their family in the United States. Héctor left Mexico first to secure work and housing. But when Lilia crossed the border with their infant daughter, Alejandra, mother and child were separated, and Alejandra disappeared.
Now, four years later, back in their sleepy hometown of Oaxaca, the couple enjoys a semblance of normal life, with a toddler son and another baby on the way. Then they receive an unexpected tip that might lead them to Alejandra, and both agree they must seize this chance, whatever the cost.
Working increasingly illegal jobs to earn money for his journey north, Héctor seeks more information about his long-absent daughter. Meanwhile, a bedridden Lilia awaits the birth of their third child, but cannot keep herself from reliving the worst mistakes of her past.
In luminous, compassionate prose, Michel Stone drops listeners into the whirlwind of the contemporary immigrant experience, where a marriage is strained to the breaking point by the consequences of wanting more for the next generation.
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“A gripping and politically savvy look at the human impact of current immigration policy and an honest examination of the perils facing desperate immigrants as they travel north.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Michel Stone writes with confident authority…Border Child is a cross-cultural tour de force.”
— Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author“A poignant portrayal of the struggles and choices faced by those in difficult conditions.”
— Publishers Weekly“Stone is a great storyteller…There is never a dull moment in this lyrical, engrossing novel.”
— Library Journal“Stone perceptively conveys the obstacles faced by this strong couple, who have given up on their American dream and want only to keep their family together.”
— Booklist“Unafraid to ask the hard questions, Border Child explores complex family dynamics with great imagination, insight, and empathy.”
— Tayari Jones, author of Silver Sparrow“Stone manages to deftly address a serious political and humanitarian issue without seeming heavy-handed. Well-written, expertly paced, and timely.”
— Ron Rash, author of SerenaBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
Michel Stone has published several books, and more than a dozen stories and essays in various journals and magazines. Her work has appeared in the Raleigh News & Observer’s Emerging Southern Writers series. Stone is a 2011 recipient of the South Carolina Fiction Project Award. She lives in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
Kyla Garcia is an AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator. Born and raised in Hoboken, New Jersey, she discovered acting at the age of eight when she played Lady Macbeth in a children’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s tragedy. She made her off-Broadway debut at fifteen when she played Dorothy in Oz: A Twisted Musical. Eleven years after she discovered her passion for acting, she would go on to play Lady Macbeth once again in London at the Globe Theatre, where she studied Shakespeare during her third year at Mason Gross School of the Arts. She received her BFA in acting from Rutgers University.
Armando Durán has appeared in films, television, and regional theaters throughout the West Coast. For the last decade he has been a member of the resident acting company at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. In 2009 he was named by AudioFile as Best Voice in Biography and History for his narration of Che Guevara. A native Californian, he divides his time between Los Angeles and Ashland, Oregon.