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The Accidental Native
When Rennie's parents die in a freak accident, he does what they would have wanted and buries them in Puerto Rico, their homeland. There, he's shocked to discover that the woman who raised him was not his biological mother. A high-powered attorney, his birth mother Julia is determined to reclaim the son she gave up many years before.
Adrift, with no family in New York and haunted by memories, Rennie is swayed by Julia's constant pleading that he move to the island. A teaching job at a college in Puerto Rico decides it, and he finds himself flying "home" to a place and culture he knows only through his parents' recollections. Once there, he must deal with Julia's strong-willed nature, a department chair not thrilled to have a Nuyorican on staff, squatters living in the house he inherited, students frequently on strike and a lover anxious to settle down. Most disturbing is the rumor that numerous faculty and staff are dying from cancer because the campus, a former U.S. military base, is full of buried munitions.
Rennie soon finds himself working to expose the government's lies, though he risks losing his job, his home and even the woman he loves. In his debut novel, J.L. Torres captures the conflict and challenges experienced by Puerto Ricans returning to their "homeland."
Adrift, with no family in New York and haunted by memories, Rennie is swayed by Julia's constant pleading that he move to the island. A teaching job at a college in Puerto Rico decides it, and he finds himself flying "home" to a place and culture he knows only through his parents' recollections. Once there, he must deal with Julia's strong-willed nature, a department chair not thrilled to have a Nuyorican on staff, squatters living in the house he inherited, students frequently on strike and a lover anxious to settle down. Most disturbing is the rumor that numerous faculty and staff are dying from cancer because the campus, a former U.S. military base, is full of buried munitions.
Rennie soon finds himself working to expose the government's lies, though he risks losing his job, his home and even the woman he loves. In his debut novel, J.L. Torres captures the conflict and challenges experienced by Puerto Ricans returning to their "homeland."
- GenresLatinx
248 pages, Hardcover
First published September 30, 2013
2 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
About the author
J.L. Torres
5 books9 followersJ.L.Torres was born in Cayey, Puerto Rico, a town in the center of the main island. He grew up in the South Bronx and received all of his formal education in the States. Then, he returned to the island to find roots and material for his writing. After years teaching at the college level there, he returned to New York. Besides New York City, he has lived in Madrid, Chicago, Los Angeles, and in Barcelona on a Fulbright.
His work focuses on the diasporican experience—living in the inbetweeness that forms and informs the Puerto Rican experience. In the collection, The Family Terrorist and Other Stories,the novel, The Accidental Native , as well as his poetry collection, Boricua Passport, he aims to go beyond issues of identity, although these are central to that experience.
“Through my writing,” says Torres, “I am exploring what it means to live a life yearning for ‘belongingness’ at a time when you’re told nation and home are empty concepts, and you have no historical memory of what they ever meant.” He wants to explore what this means in a world becoming smaller and where geography cannot ground anything.
J.L.Torres graduated from Vassar College, double majoring in Hispanic Studies and Psychology. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California, and an MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University. The Family Terrorist and Other Stories include some of the stories from his MFA thesis, Salchichon Soup.
He has freelanced for magazines and newspapers, was the Editor for the popular, but now defunct Salsa magazine, Latin NY. He also published a string of stories in small magazines. One of his stories was included in Growing Up Latino, a ground-breaking anthology published by Houghton-Mifflin.
While working on his doctorate, and learning to write critical essays, he channeled his creative writing efforts to poetry. To date, he has published poems in the North American Review, Denver Quarterly, the Americas Review, Crab Orchard Review, Bilingual Review, Connecticut Review, Tulane Review, Puerto del Sol, among others.
Currently, he focuses more on fiction and has published stories in various magazines, including the Dr. T.J. Eckleburg Review, Hayden’s Ferry Review, the Americas Review, and Reunion: the Dallas Review. In 2020, Luis Alberto Urrea selected his second short story collection, Migrations, the winner of the Tomas Rivera Book Prize. LARB Libros will release the collection on June 1, 2021. Presently, he’s working on a novella on the Puerto Rican icon, Roberto Clemente.
J.L.Torres is Professor of English at SUNY Plattsburgh, where he teaches American literature, Latinx literatures, and Creative Writing. He was a co-founder and the Executive Editor of the Saranac Review besides the Co-Editor, along with Carmen H. Rivera, of Writing Off the Hyphen: New Perspectives on the Literature of the Puerto Rican Diaspora.
He lives in Plattsburgh, New York—known to friends and relatives as “carajo county”—with his wife and two sons, a spirited Coton de Toulear called Moe-jo, and a lot of snow. He has no known hobbies, has never been in prison or any gangs, has never had quirky and funky jobs, and is notoriously inept with tools.
His work focuses on the diasporican experience—living in the inbetweeness that forms and informs the Puerto Rican experience. In the collection, The Family Terrorist and Other Stories,the novel, The Accidental Native , as well as his poetry collection, Boricua Passport, he aims to go beyond issues of identity, although these are central to that experience.
“Through my writing,” says Torres, “I am exploring what it means to live a life yearning for ‘belongingness’ at a time when you’re told nation and home are empty concepts, and you have no historical memory of what they ever meant.” He wants to explore what this means in a world becoming smaller and where geography cannot ground anything.
J.L.Torres graduated from Vassar College, double majoring in Hispanic Studies and Psychology. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California, and an MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University. The Family Terrorist and Other Stories include some of the stories from his MFA thesis, Salchichon Soup.
He has freelanced for magazines and newspapers, was the Editor for the popular, but now defunct Salsa magazine, Latin NY. He also published a string of stories in small magazines. One of his stories was included in Growing Up Latino, a ground-breaking anthology published by Houghton-Mifflin.
While working on his doctorate, and learning to write critical essays, he channeled his creative writing efforts to poetry. To date, he has published poems in the North American Review, Denver Quarterly, the Americas Review, Crab Orchard Review, Bilingual Review, Connecticut Review, Tulane Review, Puerto del Sol, among others.
Currently, he focuses more on fiction and has published stories in various magazines, including the Dr. T.J. Eckleburg Review, Hayden’s Ferry Review, the Americas Review, and Reunion: the Dallas Review. In 2020, Luis Alberto Urrea selected his second short story collection, Migrations, the winner of the Tomas Rivera Book Prize. LARB Libros will release the collection on June 1, 2021. Presently, he’s working on a novella on the Puerto Rican icon, Roberto Clemente.
J.L.Torres is Professor of English at SUNY Plattsburgh, where he teaches American literature, Latinx literatures, and Creative Writing. He was a co-founder and the Executive Editor of the Saranac Review besides the Co-Editor, along with Carmen H. Rivera, of Writing Off the Hyphen: New Perspectives on the Literature of the Puerto Rican Diaspora.
He lives in Plattsburgh, New York—known to friends and relatives as “carajo county”—with his wife and two sons, a spirited Coton de Toulear called Moe-jo, and a lot of snow. He has no known hobbies, has never been in prison or any gangs, has never had quirky and funky jobs, and is notoriously inept with tools.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 3, 2016
It has been a long time since a book made me pick it up and not put it down. I finished it in record time, at least in my case, so it's safe to say that I enjoyed it. Starting with the lovely cover -- showcasing the typical Puerto Rican symbol of the colorful vejigante mask juxtaposed with the stern, rigid suit -- it presents its main conflict, the search of a new identity within the confines of the island.
That said, the beginning comes off as a little rush, and the plot/conflict itself, while hints of it have been presented from the beginning, doesn't really take off until the middle of the novel, the scenes are at times introduced choppily (hardly often, rest assured) but the book is nonetheless enjoyable. Thriller, History, Romance, and a sort of Bildungsroman -- you'll find it all here.
As a native Puerto Rican, it was very interesting to view the islands through the eyes of somebody who belongs here, but at the same time never has. Sights common to me such as the sprawling jade green mountains that connect the remaining big cities to the more rural south came to life in the author's pleasant prose. One thing that stood out to me, as a young woman myself, was the essence of the lost feeling youth brings. Another was the whole concept of identity, ethnicity, and pride; there's such an obvious love the author holds towards the island, however, it does not present it in the typical "Tropical Paradise" light. It presents both the negatives and the positives of the island, and does not shy away from critiquing it.
Ultimately, I would heartily recommend this novel, particularly to young adults and Puerto Ricans in general -- both those living in their patria and absent from it. You won't regret it.
That said, the beginning comes off as a little rush, and the plot/conflict itself, while hints of it have been presented from the beginning, doesn't really take off until the middle of the novel, the scenes are at times introduced choppily (hardly often, rest assured) but the book is nonetheless enjoyable. Thriller, History, Romance, and a sort of Bildungsroman -- you'll find it all here.
As a native Puerto Rican, it was very interesting to view the islands through the eyes of somebody who belongs here, but at the same time never has. Sights common to me such as the sprawling jade green mountains that connect the remaining big cities to the more rural south came to life in the author's pleasant prose. One thing that stood out to me, as a young woman myself, was the essence of the lost feeling youth brings. Another was the whole concept of identity, ethnicity, and pride; there's such an obvious love the author holds towards the island, however, it does not present it in the typical "Tropical Paradise" light. It presents both the negatives and the positives of the island, and does not shy away from critiquing it.
Ultimately, I would heartily recommend this novel, particularly to young adults and Puerto Ricans in general -- both those living in their patria and absent from it. You won't regret it.
July 4, 2019
Interesting novel about cultural connections and clashes within a life stuck between the United States and Puerto Rico.
December 27, 2013
I picked up this book at a new NYC book fair devoted to Latino authors. What drew me really was the cover, as I have always been fond of Vejigante masks. Thankfully I bought this book! It turned out to be a real page turner! The book explores the concepts of family, statehood, nationhood, and environmental problems while at the same time telling a tender love story. In its pages I was able to rediscover the island of Puerto Rico; a beautiful and troubled island whose inhabitants are dealing with a very real identity crisis. Many books about the island I have previously read, I feel tend to look at its people and problems with rose colored glasses. This book does not, and I found that a refreshing change. This book is a great re-introduction to the cultural and political situation of the island of Puerto Rico in the present day. I would especially recommend this book to the many second and third generation mainland Puerto Ricans, who for many a quick island visit can be a superficial experience. Great debut novel from this author.
March 3, 2014
I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing The Accidental Native for the online magazine La Respuesta. Torres’ first full-length novel veers between a fish-out-of water story, a thriller, and a history lesson, weaving together Puerto Rico’s past, present, and future. The female characters of the novel are a driving force, and really help to solidify the main character's link to his Puerto Rican identity and the island itself. I was excited to see something that represented a voice close to my own, an American-born Puerto Rican exploring what our hybrid identity means as we build off the foundations of the first and second generation migrants to this country. I'd love to see more work in this vein, and to explore Torres other books. A great read!
June 14, 2015
If you enjoy reading books that address internal struggles as much as I do, then this is the book for you. After losing his parents unexpectedly, Rennie honors his parents' wishes to be buried in their homeland, Puerto Rico. While doing so, Rennie uncovers a long held family secret - he is adopted. Likewise, Rennie learns that his biological mother is now a high powered attorney who is eager to reunite with her long lost son. Struggling with recent events, Rennie is not ready to pursue this new relationship and/or accept the truth. Will he ever be ready to do so? Read the book to find out!
August 25, 2014
I'm reviewing this book for the last issue of Gently Read Literature. For now I'll say it was an interesting ride following Torres's main character as he comes to understand what it means to be Puerto Rican. The author shows an obvious love for the beautiful and reckless island. I liked getting to see it through his eyes.
July 7, 2015
Was disappointed by this book. Story didn't flow well for me. He jumped all over the place and I didn't see any growth in the character at end. I also didn't agree with his views of the island and its people. Wasn't at all a point of view I could relate to.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews