Odyssey to the North

by Susan Giersbach Rascon (Translator), Mario Bencastro

Fiction. Latino/a Studies. Translated from the Spanish by Susan Giersbach Rascon. Showing both the heartbreak and the humor of life in a strange culture, award-winning author Mario Benecastro creates a caring portrait of Calixto as he seeks not only work, but safety from unjust persecution in his homeland. The even-tempered prose of this quietly resolute political novel gives voice to a generation of Central American immigrants...The novel's dramatic tension emerges through a series of interpolated flashbacks. Through an artful collage of the conversations between [the hero] Calixto and his friends, news reports, courtroom transcripts, love letters, and anecdotes, Bencastro documents the hardships Calixto suffers...Unpretentious and reportorial, Benecastro's tone is welcomingly understated -- and his message is more powerful for it -- Publishers Weekly.

Genres: Fiction, Spanish Literature

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Alaíde Ventura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Juega con la forma, eso está bien. Plano, pero con destellos chingones.

[Cid · Rating 3 out of 5]

Latinx Literature course

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fact that it is set in DC and that it was a translation got me through to the end, but the writing is extremely simple and spare.

[Harry E · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story. Powerful indictment on US Immigration policy. Read for school and Professor did not honor this as they should have.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️ Such a beautiful story about the journey of many immigrants trying to make it into the United States and the difficulties and barriers they experience.

[Shushan · Rating 3 out of 5]

EDIT———
After speaking to the author, I found so many nuances that were lost to poor translation. Such a shame.

This book serves as a great account of Salvadorian immigrants and their struggles coming in. However the book is incredibly simplistic and does nothing special.

[Heather Sobek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Latino literature.

[Jacqueline · Rating 4 out of 5]

This reads more like nonfiction than true fiction but it is a heartbreaking story of what so many Latin American immigrants go through.