About Delfino's Dream first half

I think this is an interesting book because of the variety of stories it presents, letting us explore the immigration issue and its effect on people and communities, and also because of the parallels the author makes throughout the novel, starting with the similarities he highlights between the causes for Delfino’s trip and the reasons Antonio had for going north. Due to the way the writer structured the book, the stories are somewhat short and that maybe limits how thoroughly each story is developed. The prose, however, flows easily because he’s not using as many numbers as the other authors we’ve read in this class.

I also really liked the second and third chapters because they allow the reader to see how immigrants are struggling with the definition of home and how they’re starting to play an important role in Mexican and U.S. politics. That, however, is not always a good thing, like in the case of Albert Cortez, the councilman from South Gate, who used tactics from the Mexican PRI to gain power and get rid of his opponents. But I would also argue that those methods, which are described by the writer as having a Mexican origin, are also present in any election in the Latin American informal elections, where defamatory campaigns and giveaways of beans, rice or milk for the marginalized classes are common.

Another part of the book that caught my attention was when Delfino and his co-workers who weren’t from Mexico City were abused and mistreated by the natives. While the Mexican government asks for better treatment for immigrants in the U.S., Central American and people who migrate from the provinces to the big cities are abused and exploited in Mexico. That’s an interesting potential story, because I don’t think that type of discrimination is getting much coverage in the Mexican media.