I flew through this little memoir, which I picked from my Scribd (Everand) queue at random. Told in three parts and interspersed with gorgeous pieces of bilingual poetry, Knitting the Fog tells Hernández’s story of growing up between Guatemala and the US, crossing the border with coyotes, then returning to Guatemala in order to return to America legally. Her storytelling is so vivid, particularly the sections set in Guatemala. She spent time living with an auntie and a grandmother in two very different villages - one sweltering and one bitingly cold, one swampy and stagnant, the other beautiful and full of life in spite of the chill. She transports the reader to both of the villages. 

Hernández’s home life wasn’t easy, with a reticent mother, alcoholic father, and an older sister struggling with depression. When her mother leaves her three girls for America to try and make a better life, things do get more stable under the influence of their auntie and grandmother, though of course they miss their mother intensely. When they eventually join their mother in the US, they have to contend with xenophobia, being the only Guatemalans among mostly Mexican immigrants. Hernández’s telling of the perilous journey across to America with the coyotes was brilliant, told on a fine line between childish innocence and a growing awareness of the more sinister aspects of the world. 

I’m not the biggest lover of poetry but I really did like the poems woven in here, especially the ones written first in Spanish then in English. I have a working knowledge of French & Italian, and with Spanish being so similar, I could work out enough to see the differences in translation between the Spanish and English, which was fun! 

Would highly recommend to people who enjoy personal memoirs with a focus on immigration and family dynamics.