The Deportation of Wopper Barraza: A Novel

by Maceo Montoya

“A brilliant and innovative take on an issue close to the hearts and minds of families who have one foot planted firmly on both sides of the border. It is a deportation story in a bold re-envisioning with unexpected consequences, mystery, and insight.”—Tim Z. Hernandez, author of Mañana Means HeavenAfter Wopper Barraza’s fourth drunk driving violation, the judge orders his immediate deportation. “But I haven’t been there since I was a little kid,” says Wopper, whose parents brought him to California when he was three years old. Now he has to move back to Michoacán. When he learns that his longtime girlfriend is pregnant, the future looks even more uncertain. Wopper's story unfolds as life in a rural village takes him in new and unexpected directions. This immigrant saga in reverse is a story of young people who must live with the reality of their parents’ dream. We know this story from the headlines, but up to now it has been unexplored literary territory.ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORSMaceo Montoya is an assistant professor in the Chicana/o studies department at UC Davis and an affiliated faculty member of Taller Arte del Nuevo Amanecer (TANA), a community-based art center in Woodland, California.

Genres: School, Novels, Fiction

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 6, 2014

Reviews

[David Hollingsworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Deportation of Wopper Barraza is a refreshingly original tale about an undocumented 20-something, Roberto "Wopper" Barraza, who gets deported back to Mexico after his fourth DUI conviction. This gets at an aspect of the story that I think is very important: the protagonist doesn't fit the "perfect hard-working DREAMer" mold that is so popular in literature about undocumented youth. Rather, he is an aimless 25 year old who doesn't know what he wants from life, or how to go about getting it. He has trouble holding down a job, spends too much time watching TV, and is completely unable to adequately communicate his emotions. It's important that literature about undocumented people recognizes the humanity of all undocumented people, not just the ones who fit the perfect, smart, overachieving narrative.

This book uses a default 3rd person limited narrative, but it also has certain chapters and sub-chapters take place from the 1st person point of view of side characters. This is quite a risk that can backfire for some writers, but Montoya pulls it off well here. Each character's voice is unique and consistent, and getting things from their point of view really helps drive home the effect Wopper has on each person involved in the story. It also does a good job of humanizing them as individuals, too.

This novel not only defies normal fictional conventions about undocumented people by having such an imperfect protagonist, but also by mixing in other genres into the story beyond the normal "struggling to achieve" narrative. At the end of the day this novel is still about Barraza's struggles and growth, but elements of political thrillers and mystery novels are present, too. While I don't think everything always gels together well, it's a cool attempt to blend genres. I respect the ambition.

My main problem with this book is that its resolution, well, doesn't really resolve much. To avoid spoilers, let's just say many (if not most) questions are left unanswered. I don't have problems with unanswered questions in fiction per se, especially in a book where a lot of the questions seem like they were meant to be unanswered. But too many plot lines and mysteries involved are left hanging abruptly, as if toward the end Montoya thought "ehh I'm tired of writing, let's end this already." I finished largely unsatisfied, save for some great passages at the end.

Overall, this is a good book that is worth reading. It challenges a lot of common narratives and genre conventions in Chican@ literature. The ending is unsatisfying, but everything else works for the most part.

[Alice Hymer · Rating 3 out of 5]

The way Montoya switched narrators made this book super interesting to read. It gave more insight into the otherwise empty protagonist, allowing him to embody more than he actually was. Pretty cool execution.

[Juan Alvarado Valdivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Off the top of my head—and I’ve read my share of novels through the years—this is the one book I’ve read that truly pulled off a narrative with multiple narrators. The choice in having various narrators to tell a story about one man worked for me because each narrative voice was distinct in tone, and because the multiple narrators provided a richer, more complex vantage of the novel’s main protagonist. If Montoya played it straight from a more traditional storytelling sense, I think this novel would have been limited if it was, say, told by an omniscient narrator. Having a story unfold through multiple narrators allowed us to feel the larger breadth of this story, allowed us to get to know characters such as Wopper’s pop, the conniving Don Elpidio, and the deliciously oft-kilter Lucio Barraza more intimately. For me, it made the novel more fun to read; by switching characters and narrative vantages throughout it gave the book a refreshing clip. In a way, it also provided a more visceral sense of how one person, one character, has a larger effect on the people s/he is connected to.

My one complaint is that by the end I don’t feel like we really got to understand the motives of Mija, who is a pivotal, driving character. Throughout much of the novel, I felt compelled to read not to find out how Wopper’s change manifested, but more so to figure out what would happen between Roberto and Mija. Her motivation was a mystery I wanted to solve, and I still felt like it was unresolved by the end.

But other than that, this was an unexpectedly fantastic novel about a seemingly uninteresting, passive character (which I think is one of the many points made by the book). I highly recommend it.

[Momilani Awana · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are all sorts of cool things going on in this book, but I don’t think they were all explored to their greatest potential. Montoya made the interesting decision to give everyone their own voice EXCEPT the titular character. Oddly, Wopper kind of reminded me of Shadow from American Gods. He essentially becomes “powerful” in a world he doesn’t really understand — not through hard work, but through his obedience to others.

Light spoilers follow.

Wopper is deported after his 4th DUI. He has an angry mother and a chill father, which I’m sure is relatable for a lot of people. He is an underachiever who shrugs rather than expressing himself. His confusion and sadness are understandable to a certain extent, and another character does a breakdown of how the children of immigrants (Wopper is technically an immigrant, though he moved to the U.S. when he was 3) don’t have the sort of clear cut goal their parents have. “Make a better life” is vague enough that most could achieve that goal. In contrast, Wooper has no goals, no interests. He has a girlfriend who is often frustrated by this, and begging for more — a textbook anxious/avoidant pairing.

It isn’t that surprising that someone with this background ends up in a new place and essentially turns into a baby duck at the behest of a woman named called Mija (daughter). She is quite the mystery, but so long as he obeys her, their surroundings improve, he gains power, and otherwise has a much higher rank in society than he did in the U.S.

Yet Wopper never feels entirely comfortable in his new role. As a man without goals, he is initially happy in a way to help Mija realize hers. But sexism and small town gossip make the men there believe Mija is a golddigger and a murderer. They infect Wopper with their prejudice.

Wopper crosses back over the border to his ex-girlfriend and their child. It’s not a dramatic homecoming wherein he has a huge epiphany and starts advocating for Dreamers or goes back to school. He finds a job he can hold without documentation … and that’s it. Wopper left his comfort zone then returned to it with a shrug.

The ending gave some clarity to whatever is going on with Mija and Wopper. I would have loved to take a deeper dive into Wopper’s thought process — why he is so predisposed to believing men over the woman who so elevated his status. Is it because he doesn’t believe he deserves that level of advancement? Because he had a bad experience growing up with his mother and doesn’t trust women? Is it because he can’t think for himself? Some combination of the three?

I can’t really be sure. Again, Wopper is the only character who doesn’t get to tell us how he feels. He probably couldn’t if he tried.

[Bookworm_13 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book for English class sophomore year. It wasn't anything I ever would have chosen to read on my own, but I thought it was an enticing and enjoyable read, especially as an assignment. My go-to is cute romance and feel-good, fun books. This definitely is more complex and action-packed than I'm used to, but the plot kept me interested. I also really enjoyed the constant POV switches, they added a lot to the story. A good read if you're looking for something a little deeper and filled with plot twists.

[Naomi · Rating 1 out of 5]

While I appreciated the multiple narrators and the raw look at the wide spread effects of deportation, I was bored throughout the majority of the book. Much of the plot revolves around cement pouring businesses, and that just doesn’t interest me.

[Megan Clancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique look at the effects of a single deportation. Montoya provides an in depth examination of everyone involved and gives voice to this important issue.

[Irene Gonzales · Rating 5 out of 5]

My cousin told me about this book, good story,

[Sarah Housepian · Rating 4 out of 5]

The characters come alive and the problems they face seem real. Clever perspective switching throughout the book. The ending was just a little on the anti-climatic side, but still made sense.

[Maggie Gately]

school

[Susy · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a brilliantly conceived cautionary tale about what can happen to a young adult so adrift in his lack of motivation he loses his legal status in the only community, Woodland, Ca., and country he calls home. Thus is the misfortune of Roberto Barraza who goes by the hardly flattering nickname Wopper (for his consumption of too many Whoppers from Burger King). He's moved up to an over consumption of alcohol and combined it with driving under the influence. And finally, the judge decided enough is enough.

What follows is the story of a reverse immigration back to the community of his birth. Montoya lets several characters tell Wopper's story. We watch his plaintive and frightened return with trepidation and then marvel at his ability to move forward in Michoacan, Mexico. Or does he? Is Roberto behaving as an adult who no longer fits his youthful nickname or is he merely the puppet of the charming woman who becomes his girlfriend? Does he really understand the nuance of an entrenched "good old boy" set of rules as he tries to develop a residential community? We learn some of the answers through the eyes and ears of longtime residents of La Puedad - sister city of Woodland.

Montoya has written a timely novel addressing some of the many issues facing the dreamer generation - the children who arrived because their parents had a dream for a better life. What of their dreams or do they have any?

This book should be required reading for every secondary and collegiate California history course. We need to find a positive solution for our friends and neighbors.

[Marni · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book as part of a Chicano / Latino immigrant reading list I'm starting to put together for my students. One of the things that struck me the most about this book is how much of my students I saw in the book's protagonist, Roberto "Wopper" Barraza. The author talks about Wopper and his peers as being the children of a generation of immigrants who fought and sacrificed for an "imagined future," while Wopper and his peers struggle to imagine a future of their own. In the book, Wopper's college counselor is frustrated with his own futile attempts to help young people like Wopper realize their potential. By the end, the counselor wonders if his attempts were, indeed, futile after all. We, the readers, are left wondering the same.
This book is refreshing in the sense that it tells an immigration story in reverse. In many Mexican-American immigrant narratives, the story focuses on crossing the border, and finally arriving to the U.S. Rarely does such a story begin with a Mexican national being deported from the only home they know, and having to build a life from zero in their parents' ancestral pueblo.
While I really enjoyed that aspect of the book, I never felt as invested in the characters as I wanted to be. I didn't feel like I really got to know them or had as full a picture of them as I wanted. Three stars it is.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maceo Montoya spoke at a meeting of Friends of the Library in June 2014. He lives in Woodland and teaches in the Chicana/o studies department at UC Davis. He also works with disadvantaged youth creating murals around Woodland. So cool.
Wopper Barraza is in his early 20's and grew up in Woodland although he was born in Mexico. His life is going nowhere fast as he can't seem to keep a job and he dropped out of the Community College. Following his 4th DUI, he is deported - sent back to a country he knows nothing about. His father gives him directions to the town he left years ago and where he owns some property: La Morada. Wopper learns that his girlfriend is pregnant just before he has to leave America. The things that Wopper, i.e. Roberto, experiences in La Morada make up the thread of the novel.
This is a well written story about identity and how an individual will change depending on the environment. There are great characters and thought provoking ideas throughout.

[Vanessa Young]

the book is really good but there are a coupele of things that I would like to ask yo

like The was a [part in the book taht whooper was gazing aback in time and the book mentioned who do you think at that time was the most important person in his life and I got confused becuse I thoght that Maij and at the same time I thought that he moght be reffering abck to Laura I got lost which one was it?

[Amy Layton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel was fantastic! It was so interesting to see all of the different points of views surrounding Wopper's deportation--a great way to introduce the audience to the complexities discussed within this book. Mija, for me, is the most interesting character in the novel, and makes it worth reading. It's also a wonderful Chicanx novel, which is always a plus.

[Lghamilton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great start, weak finish. Many things left unanswered.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

SO DIFFERENT from the usual Latin@ & Chicano Studies narratives. Battles against the many of the stereotypes of race, ethnicity, identity, & gender.

[Mills College Library]

Fiction M798d 2014