This is a memoir everyone should be reading during times like this in America (2025). This story beautifully shows the suffering, and joy, of immigrating “illegally” to America through the lens of a child in the 1990s. Watching the childlike ease harden into constant fear and anxiety way too young is very eye opening to those who’ve never experienced this. It unfortunate that many people still experience the same feats of racism and poverty while immigrating to America but I hope that this story opens up people to become empathetic.