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The Making of a Dream: How a Group of Young Undocumented Immigrants Helped Change What it Means to be American
“A sweeping chronicle of the immigrant rights movement. . . . Wides-Muñoz reminds us that thanks to the ability of young people to dream, what seems impossible today may yet prove achievable tomorrow.” —New York Times Book Review
A journalist chronicles the next chapter in civil rights—the story of a movement and a nation, witnessed through the poignant and inspiring experiences of five young undocumented activists who are transforming society’s attitudes toward one of the most contentious political matters roiling America immigration.
They are called the young people who were brought, or sent, to the United States as children and who have lived for years in America without legal status. Growing up, they often worked hard in school, planned for college, only to learn they were, in the eyes of the United States government and many citizens, "illegal aliens."
Determined to take fate into their own hands, a group of these young undocumented immigrants risked their safety to "come out" about their status—sparking a transformative movement, engineering a seismic shift in public opinion on immigration, and inspiring other social movements across the country. Their quest for permanent legal protection under the so-called "Dream Act," stalled. But in 2012, the Obama administration issued a landmark, new immigration Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has since protected more than half a million young immigrants from deportation even as efforts to install more expansive protections remain elusive.
The Making of a Dream begins at the turn of the millennium, with the first of a series of "Dream Act" proposals; follows the efforts of policy makers, activists, and undocumented immigrants themselves, and concludes with the 2016 presidential election and the first months of the Trump presidency. The immigrants’ coming of age stories intersect with the watershed political and economic events of the last two 9/11, the recession, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Obama presidency, and the rebirth of the anti-immigrant right.
In telling their story, Laura Wides-Muñoz forces us to rethink our definition of what it means to be American.
A journalist chronicles the next chapter in civil rights—the story of a movement and a nation, witnessed through the poignant and inspiring experiences of five young undocumented activists who are transforming society’s attitudes toward one of the most contentious political matters roiling America immigration.
They are called the young people who were brought, or sent, to the United States as children and who have lived for years in America without legal status. Growing up, they often worked hard in school, planned for college, only to learn they were, in the eyes of the United States government and many citizens, "illegal aliens."
Determined to take fate into their own hands, a group of these young undocumented immigrants risked their safety to "come out" about their status—sparking a transformative movement, engineering a seismic shift in public opinion on immigration, and inspiring other social movements across the country. Their quest for permanent legal protection under the so-called "Dream Act," stalled. But in 2012, the Obama administration issued a landmark, new immigration Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has since protected more than half a million young immigrants from deportation even as efforts to install more expansive protections remain elusive.
The Making of a Dream begins at the turn of the millennium, with the first of a series of "Dream Act" proposals; follows the efforts of policy makers, activists, and undocumented immigrants themselves, and concludes with the 2016 presidential election and the first months of the Trump presidency. The immigrants’ coming of age stories intersect with the watershed political and economic events of the last two 9/11, the recession, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Obama presidency, and the rebirth of the anti-immigrant right.
In telling their story, Laura Wides-Muñoz forces us to rethink our definition of what it means to be American.
375 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 30, 2018
30 people are currently reading
547 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
January 8, 2020
The scope and sequence of this book is very impressive. I feel like the title of the book describes it all. The author alternates between individual undocumented immigrants, and the policy changes centered around immigration within the last twenty years.
It is no surprise, that our current administration does not value the important contributions that our immigrants bring to our country. I was surprised how much our political system has ignored the plight of our country’s most valuable newcomers. I’ve learned so much reading this book, and I feel like the topic is particularly relevant today. There were so many aspects of this book that I didn’t know about. And I’m so glad I picked it up.
It is no surprise, that our current administration does not value the important contributions that our immigrants bring to our country. I was surprised how much our political system has ignored the plight of our country’s most valuable newcomers. I’ve learned so much reading this book, and I feel like the topic is particularly relevant today. There were so many aspects of this book that I didn’t know about. And I’m so glad I picked it up.
April 21, 2025
I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to better understand DACA or to study strategic movements and change-making. The 3.5 months (+ one very kind librarian) it took me to read this speak to the circumstances of my life, not the quality of this book. :)
May 30, 2018
Author Wides-Munoz follows the lives of five young people who are part of the DREAMers: young people who came to the United States when they were very young and remain undocumented. They live and work among us, go to school and then find that their pursuit stops there: with no citizenship or visa it is enormously difficult, if not outright impossible to go onto higher education. As time goes on, these young activists decide to make themselves visible and demand some sort of resolution. Immigration reform in the US has been stagnant for years and may suffer body blows in the current administration.
We follow these people, dipping in and out of their lives as they come to the US under various circumstances and then follow where their lives go. The author then guides us through the stops and starts in legislation, and movement (or not) in Congress, plus where the paths of these undocumented individuals cross over with elected officials. We end with the election of Donald Trump in 2016.
Honestly, I was very disappointed. I had been interested and wanted to learn more about this path and how we got to where we are today. It felt like I was reading two books: one with the stories of these activists and their families and another that dipped into the political and governing. I was under the impression we'd be more into the nitty gritty of how these protests and activism led to the Dream Act and DACA.
Wides-Munoz is a journalist and as usual I'm not impressed by a book that's written by a former journalist. I wasn't all that interested in the lives of these young people. Not because I don't care about them but it just didn't work for me to try to mash all of this together. It felt like the author was trying to do too much within one book and didn't quite accomplish what she wanted.
I'm also genuinely leery. My copy (from the library and not an ARC or unedited version as far as I know) has some errors. My copy says that Trump was elected on November 2, 2016--the 2016 election happened on November 8th. There's a misspelling of "United We Dream" as "United We Dram" (missing "e"). The author also wrote that the Trump administration struggled on how to handle its support from certain elements of the right: what struggle? That is perhaps a matter of opinion and perception but given these errors and my lack of familiarity with the issue I just found my general impression was this wasn't a book to start with (or maybe I should have skipped it) and/or needs to be supplemented with other works.
Library borrow.
We follow these people, dipping in and out of their lives as they come to the US under various circumstances and then follow where their lives go. The author then guides us through the stops and starts in legislation, and movement (or not) in Congress, plus where the paths of these undocumented individuals cross over with elected officials. We end with the election of Donald Trump in 2016.
Honestly, I was very disappointed. I had been interested and wanted to learn more about this path and how we got to where we are today. It felt like I was reading two books: one with the stories of these activists and their families and another that dipped into the political and governing. I was under the impression we'd be more into the nitty gritty of how these protests and activism led to the Dream Act and DACA.
Wides-Munoz is a journalist and as usual I'm not impressed by a book that's written by a former journalist. I wasn't all that interested in the lives of these young people. Not because I don't care about them but it just didn't work for me to try to mash all of this together. It felt like the author was trying to do too much within one book and didn't quite accomplish what she wanted.
I'm also genuinely leery. My copy (from the library and not an ARC or unedited version as far as I know) has some errors. My copy says that Trump was elected on November 2, 2016--the 2016 election happened on November 8th. There's a misspelling of "United We Dream" as "United We Dram" (missing "e"). The author also wrote that the Trump administration struggled on how to handle its support from certain elements of the right: what struggle? That is perhaps a matter of opinion and perception but given these errors and my lack of familiarity with the issue I just found my general impression was this wasn't a book to start with (or maybe I should have skipped it) and/or needs to be supplemented with other works.
Library borrow.
February 14, 2023
Amazing content. Presentation of different stories could have been better. Must read for those that don’t know how DACA came to be.
October 5, 2018
I did not pay much attention to the dreamers or the undocumented immigration issue until I read this book, it followed a few young people's growth, struggling, self-realization and what the big environmental impact to the whole group .
The country applied the undocumented immigrants relative cheaper labor advantage and did not have proper policy or system to improve the situation, it's a huge struggle and will continue to be.
it's human's nature to look for better life opportunities for themselves and their children, not everybody has the equal chance when they were born, I am full of sympathy for their suffering, and impressed by the Author's writing, she was telling their stories from fact, I felt the pain and confusion, the frustration and lost with the young people when reading this book, the author was calm and objective to document it, I admire her.
The country applied the undocumented immigrants relative cheaper labor advantage and did not have proper policy or system to improve the situation, it's a huge struggle and will continue to be.
it's human's nature to look for better life opportunities for themselves and their children, not everybody has the equal chance when they were born, I am full of sympathy for their suffering, and impressed by the Author's writing, she was telling their stories from fact, I felt the pain and confusion, the frustration and lost with the young people when reading this book, the author was calm and objective to document it, I admire her.
March 8, 2018
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from Harper Collins.
Today’s post is on The Making of a Dream: How a group of young undocumented immigrants helped change what it means to be American by Laura Wides-Munoz. It is 384 pages long and is published by Harper Collins. The cover is blue like a passport or a visa. The intended reader is someone who is interested in American history, immigration, and how it is changing. There is no foul language, no sex, but violence is talked about in this book. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From of the back of the book- A journalist chronicles the next chapter in civil rights—the story of a movement and a nation, witnessed through the poignant and inspiring experiences of five young undocumented activists who are transforming society’s attitudes toward one of the most contentious political matters roiling America today: immigration.
They are called the DREAMers: young people who were brought, or sent, to the United States as children and who have lived for years in America without legal status. Growing up, they often worked hard in school, planned for college, only to learn they were, in the eyes of the United States government and many citizens, "illegal aliens."
Determined to take fate into their own hands, a group of these young undocumented immigrants risked their safety to "come out" about their status—sparking a transformative movement, engineering a seismic shift in public opinion on immigration, and inspiring other social movements across the country. Their quest for permanent legal protection under the so-called "Dream Act," stalled. But in 2012, the Obama administration issued a landmark, new immigration policy: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has since protected more than half a million young immigrants from deportation even as efforts to install more expansive protections remain elusive.
The Making of a Dream begins at the turn of the millennium, with the first of a series of "Dream Act" proposals; follows the efforts of policy makers, activists, and undocumented immigrants themselves, and concludes with the 2016 presidential election and the first months of the Trump presidency. The immigrants’ coming of age stories intersect with the watershed political and economic events of the last two decades: 9/11, the recession, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Obama presidency, and the rebirth of the anti-immigrant right.
In telling their story, Laura Wides-Muñoz forces us to rethink our definition of what it means to be American.
Review- An in-depth review of the Dreamers and the ligation around them. I knew very little about the Dreamers or the laws being made around and for them. While I still believe there is more to know and understand, now I think I have a grasp on who the Dreamers are and how they are changing immigration in American. Wides-Muñoz tells the story from the Dreamers themselves, she starts with their lives before they came to the USA, at least what they can remember, and then she follows them for years. We get to know some of the leaders of the Dreamers and see their lives as they live them. I will warn the reader that the beginning section after the first chapter is about immigration laws in the USA and how they changed or did not change; at times it can be a little over whelming. The book works best when it is focusing on the Dreamers, their lives, and families. When I was connecting with them, the story just flowed but when we had to discuss laws or ligation, it was very slow going. If you want to learn more about the kids who are caught in the middle of this hard situation, then you should give this book a look.
I give this book a Four out of Five stars
Today’s post is on The Making of a Dream: How a group of young undocumented immigrants helped change what it means to be American by Laura Wides-Munoz. It is 384 pages long and is published by Harper Collins. The cover is blue like a passport or a visa. The intended reader is someone who is interested in American history, immigration, and how it is changing. There is no foul language, no sex, but violence is talked about in this book. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From of the back of the book- A journalist chronicles the next chapter in civil rights—the story of a movement and a nation, witnessed through the poignant and inspiring experiences of five young undocumented activists who are transforming society’s attitudes toward one of the most contentious political matters roiling America today: immigration.
They are called the DREAMers: young people who were brought, or sent, to the United States as children and who have lived for years in America without legal status. Growing up, they often worked hard in school, planned for college, only to learn they were, in the eyes of the United States government and many citizens, "illegal aliens."
Determined to take fate into their own hands, a group of these young undocumented immigrants risked their safety to "come out" about their status—sparking a transformative movement, engineering a seismic shift in public opinion on immigration, and inspiring other social movements across the country. Their quest for permanent legal protection under the so-called "Dream Act," stalled. But in 2012, the Obama administration issued a landmark, new immigration policy: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has since protected more than half a million young immigrants from deportation even as efforts to install more expansive protections remain elusive.
The Making of a Dream begins at the turn of the millennium, with the first of a series of "Dream Act" proposals; follows the efforts of policy makers, activists, and undocumented immigrants themselves, and concludes with the 2016 presidential election and the first months of the Trump presidency. The immigrants’ coming of age stories intersect with the watershed political and economic events of the last two decades: 9/11, the recession, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Obama presidency, and the rebirth of the anti-immigrant right.
In telling their story, Laura Wides-Muñoz forces us to rethink our definition of what it means to be American.
Review- An in-depth review of the Dreamers and the ligation around them. I knew very little about the Dreamers or the laws being made around and for them. While I still believe there is more to know and understand, now I think I have a grasp on who the Dreamers are and how they are changing immigration in American. Wides-Muñoz tells the story from the Dreamers themselves, she starts with their lives before they came to the USA, at least what they can remember, and then she follows them for years. We get to know some of the leaders of the Dreamers and see their lives as they live them. I will warn the reader that the beginning section after the first chapter is about immigration laws in the USA and how they changed or did not change; at times it can be a little over whelming. The book works best when it is focusing on the Dreamers, their lives, and families. When I was connecting with them, the story just flowed but when we had to discuss laws or ligation, it was very slow going. If you want to learn more about the kids who are caught in the middle of this hard situation, then you should give this book a look.
I give this book a Four out of Five stars
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January 29, 2021From Follett: A journalist chronicles the next chapter in civil rights--the story of a movement and a nation, witnessed through the poignant and inspiring experiences of five young undocumented activists who are transforming society's attitudes toward one of the most contentious political matters roiling America today: immigration.
They are called the DREAMers: young people who were brought, or sent, to the United States as children and who have lived for years in America without legal status. Growing up, they often worked hard in school, planned for college, only to learn they were, in the eyes of the United States government and many citizens, "illegal aliens."
Determined to take fate into their own hands, a group of these young undocumented immigrants risked their safety to "come out" about their status--sparking a transformative movement, engineering a seismic shift in public opinion on immigration, and inspiring other social movements across the country. Their quest for permanent legal protection under the so-called "Dream Act," stalled. But in 2012, the Obama administration issued a landmark, new immigration policy: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has since protected more than half a million young immigrants from deportation even as efforts to install more expansive protections remain elusive.
The Making of a Dream begins at the turn of the millennium, with the first of a series of "Dream Act" proposals; follows the efforts of policy makers, activists, and undocumented immigrants themselves, and concludes with the 2016 presidential election and the first months of the Trump presidency. The immigrants' coming of age stories intersect with the watershed political and economic events of the last two decades: 9/11, the recession, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Obama presidency, and the rebirth of the anti-immigrant right.
They are called the DREAMers: young people who were brought, or sent, to the United States as children and who have lived for years in America without legal status. Growing up, they often worked hard in school, planned for college, only to learn they were, in the eyes of the United States government and many citizens, "illegal aliens."
Determined to take fate into their own hands, a group of these young undocumented immigrants risked their safety to "come out" about their status--sparking a transformative movement, engineering a seismic shift in public opinion on immigration, and inspiring other social movements across the country. Their quest for permanent legal protection under the so-called "Dream Act," stalled. But in 2012, the Obama administration issued a landmark, new immigration policy: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has since protected more than half a million young immigrants from deportation even as efforts to install more expansive protections remain elusive.
The Making of a Dream begins at the turn of the millennium, with the first of a series of "Dream Act" proposals; follows the efforts of policy makers, activists, and undocumented immigrants themselves, and concludes with the 2016 presidential election and the first months of the Trump presidency. The immigrants' coming of age stories intersect with the watershed political and economic events of the last two decades: 9/11, the recession, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Obama presidency, and the rebirth of the anti-immigrant right.
October 18, 2019
Too many characters to get a real feel for all of them, which is especially annoying since they're real people, not characters. Too much focus of the politics of changing the law, considering there is absolutely NO explanation of what the law currently IS. Which brings me to the complaint I ALWAYS have with anything written about immigration by a journalist - she gets the law wrong (to the extent that she mentions it at all). At one point she's talking about a couple waiting for the one husband's green card and she says that the "temporary visa" hasn't come through. No idea what the hell she could be talking about. They don't appear to have applied for advanced parole (which another couple could have done, but inexplicable didn't, and then are upset when their travel plans almost fall through). Does she mean the I-130? Who knows!
Also, not the writer's fault, but so frustrating to read and want to yell, "talk to a lawyer!!!!!" every few chapters as people do things that will mess them up (or miss easy solutions to their problems).
Also, not the writer's fault, but so frustrating to read and want to yell, "talk to a lawyer!!!!!" every few chapters as people do things that will mess them up (or miss easy solutions to their problems).
July 31, 2018
Laura Wides-Muñoz provides quite a reflective insider's perspective to the modern immigration reform movement led by young dreamers interwoven with a decade's worth of meticulously fact checked journalistic contributions that she has made while covering immigration told through the stories of some of the early youth leaders. For those of you that need to hear the stories behind the Dreamers along with some interesting political commentary in chronological order, I highly recommend this book. It has been interesting to read from the perspectives of those that were inside the movement and directly affected by the stalls, advances, and stalls again of attempts at immigration reform in the USA
June 10, 2024
The Making of a Dream is easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. Equal parts heartbreaking and inspiring, the stories of DREAMers are weaved thoughtfully throughout the timeline of immigration reform and legislation in the United States in the new millennium. While some may prefer a book that focuses solely on the legislation, and others the personal stories, I felt that they were well-balanced here and made the book an easier read. I cried multiple times while reading it, and while I had a basic understanding of DACA before reading this book I feel like I came away much more informed. I only wish I had found and read this sooner.
June 22, 2018
I am really into non-fiction books but I was getting a little worn out by political fact books that felt like sludge, at times, to read through. This book about the inspiring DREAMers has all the facts you need to learn about the DREAM Act and DACA over the last few administrations, but is told like a flowing narrative. Wildes-Munoz does a beautiful job of giving the reader the opportunity to connect with these young Americans and leaves you with the inspiration to support their fight for the many battles to come.
June 7, 2020
Journalist Laaura Wides-Munoz writes about several undocumented young people who came to the Us and who have lived here as illegal aliens. These achieving, young folks stand up to their hardships and publicize their dilemma so they can further their education, follow a profession and be contributing members of this country. It is the story of the Dreamers, of their accomplishments and disappointments.
May 25, 2018
Between history and biography. If you are someone who is engaged by the personal stories but wants a bigger picture, this is a beautiful book about young, 21st century immigration activism and how it intersects with other recent movements for gay marriage and LGBTQI rights, Black Lives Matter, etc.
August 9, 2019
It's an eye-opening, important book. I would have been drawn into it more if the DREAMers' stories had been told separately rather than woven together. I can understand the writerly choice; she's documenting a movement, not creating characters. Still, I wanted to know these interesting, even amazing young people in depth, in rich time, and the book did not or could not provide that.
June 18, 2020
Turnstile through the INS,
or don't and wait nine-months,
pursue the antiquated American dream,
it ends badly, heroically,
the struggle unremembered by time,
generations ghost post-oxygenated air.
#poem
Chris Roberts, Patron Saint to the Beaten Dust Peoples
or don't and wait nine-months,
pursue the antiquated American dream,
it ends badly, heroically,
the struggle unremembered by time,
generations ghost post-oxygenated air.
#poem
Chris Roberts, Patron Saint to the Beaten Dust Peoples
February 16, 2018
Splendid, Marvelous, Enlighting. Bravo❗️
February 16, 2018
Learned a lot about the undocumented activists risking deportation to speak out, dreamers who have known no other country and believe themselves to be American.
August 9, 2019
Well written excellent story of several Dreamers and their activism for immigration reform. Sad that they have not realized their dream yet.
October 6, 2020
Well done layout. Interesting read on immigration issues and the “dreamers”.
October 19, 2020
Really moving to see the hard work of so many young people fighting for what's right!
Special ups for highlighting the LGBT rights intersection with immigration rights - I hadn't thought about how marriage equality, DADT, and trans recognition could affect the process of becoming a US legal resident/citizen.
Special ups for highlighting the LGBT rights intersection with immigration rights - I hadn't thought about how marriage equality, DADT, and trans recognition could affect the process of becoming a US legal resident/citizen.
March 9, 2018
This book won't change anyone's mind on immigration reform, but it does help put several faces and stories to the issue.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews