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The Tortilla Curtain

The Tortilla Curtain

List Price: $14.00
Your Price: $10.50
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: clever and socially conscious
Review: TC Boyle has a gift for turning socially consciousness into clever fiction. The story was incredibly entertaining, while metaphorically pointing out despicable injustices that are carried out in the name of the "American Dream". Tragedy is the main element, but what a tragedy is, is part of the beautiful irony. While the Massenbacher's tragedy is their dog dying, or their cushy lives being threatened, Candido and America's tragedy is the lack of the basic necessities. Using coyotes and real estate as metaphors of the way we deal with the have-nots, Boyle provides thought provoking questions

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Well Written And Very Impressionable
Review: This is the first for me, reading a book by T. Coraghessan Boyle, and I was very impressed by his work.

This book is set in Los Angeles and focuses strongly on two couples from totally different social and economical backgrounds. Kyra and Delaney Mossbacher are the upper class Americans; while Candido and America Rincon are illegal immigrants from South of the border.....Mexico.

The Tortilla Curtain is the border between Mexico and Los Angeles which the immigrants cross illegally to find work as labourers and a better way of life in that state.

The Mexicans endure severe hardships for little money as they enter this country of the 'well to do'. Meanwhile the 'upper crust' are flourishing for all to see, their main problem being to keep the immigrants out. As much as they are rich and better off one begins to feel that the immigrant Mexican has a more contented heart. They seem fulfilled at times with a deep satisfaction, passion and feeling that the 'upper crust' are unable to project. They are poor.....but their spirits are strong and hard to break.

See what life becomes for these two couples from opposite sides of the track....and you will find these characters living in your memories for a long time. This is the type of book that one hates to finish. Get it for Christmas....I got mine. Well written and highly recommended!!

Nutface
December 3rd, 2001

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Very Thoughtful Book About A Complicated Issue
Review: I happen to live in Southern California and am constantly reminded about the issue of undocumented or illegal immigration. I love where I live and wouldn't move anywhere else.

In any case, the issue of illegal immigration in Southern California is a polarizing one. On one side you have one group that doesn't seem to care one whit about borders and laws. On the other side, you have people who might have a bit of a racist bent that want to ship out every Spanish speaking person regardless of their legal status.

The fact of the matter is that neither side has a monopoly on the truth. I believe that every major issue including this one and abortion and the death penalty have multiple shades of gray. In this book, T.C. Boyle makes sure to avoid taking a specific position on undocumented immigration. His characters can prove to be geinuses or bufoons and they can be on either side of the issue. This is not a book that preaches at you with a hard-bitten opinion. Instead, it's a book that makes you think and that's the beauty of it.

I've read all the other reviews on this site and sometimes have to laugh. Perhaps if you live in Germany, this book loses some relevance. And then there are those critics that want to critique Boyle's use of satire etc. Then there are those who think he exaggerated some of the tragic circumstanes that befall the main characters (It's called humor!and in Southern California it's not all that far from reality)

Here is the bottom line. Immigration is a big issue no matter where you live in the United States. Boyle has written a thoughtful book that is sometimes funny, always thought-provoking and hard to put down due to vivid characters that come to life with sparkling dialogue.

Please read this book and allow yourself to think seriously about an increasingly important topic.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: I Listened to this book
Review: for what seemed like weeks! I can hardly believe it could be "abridged"; Boyle said everything he had to say at least three times anyway. And then, it just stopped. Very poor ending.

Started out interesting, but just went on and on and on with nothing happening with the exception of the occasional natural disaster. We got the point real early. Illegal immigrants are good, just want work and are treated like dirt. Yuppies are self-serving, materialistic, greedy, etc. And furthermore, their efforts to "protect" themselves are pointless anyway. Look what happened to the wall and the gate...It got really boring...

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: disappointingly derivative
Review: It's not that this book is awful, at worst it's mediocre. What's really disappointing is how derivative and hackneyed it all is. Boyle takes equal parts Grapes of Wrath, Bonfire of the Vanities, Down and Out in Beverly Hills and Grand Canyon, mixes them together and pours out a batch of completely predictable, politically correct pabulum.

Delaney Mossbacher is contemptible yuppie scum. He lives in a gated development, Arroyo Blanco Estates, in Southern California's Topanga Canyon with his equally vile wife and her rotten son. Delaney is a nature writer in the mode of Annie Dilliard (see Orrin's review). He considers himself to hold all the "proper" (i.e., "liberal humanist") views on social issues, but these views are put to the test when he strikes an illegal alien with his Acura.

The immigrant, Candido Rincon, is hiding out in the canyon, teetering on the verge of starvation, with his pregnant young wife, America. He is pretty badly injured in the accident, but terrified of Immigration authorities, he accepts twenty dollars in cash and stumbles off into the canyon. At first Delaney is horrified by what has happened, but eventually he convinces himself that the victim was running some kind of scam and that he, Delaney, is the true victim because of the damage to his car. This begins a slide--featuring stolen cars, house pets eaten by coyotes, vandalism, wildfires, and so on--which eventually turns Delaney into a leaden parody of a gun toting right wing extremist. Meanwhile, the Rincons have visited upon them a series of near Biblical plagues--rape, fire, blindness, near slavery, flood, slaughter of the first born, and so on; at one point Boyle even compares them to Job, just in case we've missed the point.

Boiled down to its essentials, the novel portrays the fabulous comfort of the Mossbachers and their neighbors, while poking fun at their anxieties. They are contrasted with the achingly noble Rincons and the myriad degradations they suffer while searching for a better life in America. The ultimate irony, of course, is that the lifestyle enjoyed by the Mossbachers and their ilk is made possible by the labor of folks like the Rincons. Here again, Boyle, apparently believing that his point may be too subtle for us, uses the final scene of the novel to hammer it home.

There are two problems with Boyle's approach, one structural, the other ideological. Structurally, satire with it's dependence on exaggeration and caricature requires one of two things; either that the author be sympathetic to all of his characters or to none. If the author feels at least some affection for all of his targets then his essentially unfair portrayal of them comes with a wink and a nod, letting us know that the satire is merely a means to and end. If he genuinely loathes them all and attacks them with equal ferocity, there is at least some kind of cosmic justice at work. The one thing that the author can not do, but which Boyle does do here, is to establish a dichotomy where some characters are satirized viciously, while others are nearly canonized. This imbalance leads to what must surely be an unintended consequence, since the "bad" people can't really be that bad and the "good" people can't really be that good, the reader ends up feeling empathy for the wrong characters. In this case, Boyle is so harsh towards the Mossbachers and so enamored of the Rincons that the Mossbachers seem like the victims of the piece, victims of the author that is.

The ideological problem with the book lies in Boyle's one sided depiction of the immigration argument. Personally, I don't have much problem with the basic point that immigrants, legal and otherwise, serve a vital role in our society. I believe that anyone who wants to come to America should be welcomed and offered the full protection of our labor laws. The only requirement should be that they work and that they be ineligible for any government benefits until they become citizens.

However, I do understand the view point of those who oppose immigration. It is undeniably difficult to assimilate these new populations into the broader society and it can cause disruption to existing communities. Moreover, the presence in the economy of people who are willing to do practically any job must inevitably have the eventual effect of holding down wages generally. Finally, though Boyle is especially dismissive of this argument, it is troubling that America has lost control of its own borders. The inability to stem the flow of illegals across the Mexican border is nearly as alarming as our abject failure to stop the traffic of illegal drugs into the country. Although I believe that the benefits of immigration outweigh them, I'd concede that each of these points is valid. Boyle simply dismisses them out of hand.

Just as bad as his ham-handed presentation of this complex issue is his complete misunderstanding of the immigrant experience. It is of course true that immigrants have a hard time in their new countries. This has always been the case. Four hundred years ago, white settlers were frequently slaughtered by Indians. No matter how hard they have it, today's immigrants don't run much risk of being scalped, do they? But the fundamental truth of the immigrant experience is not how hard their new lives are; it is that they fled lives that were worse and that their children have lives that are better. In addition, immigrants should face a difficult challenge; this guarantees that we will be able to skim off the best of each society, those who are undaunted by such challenges. Were it easy, we would be inundated with the dross too.

(spoiler)

In the end there is only one message of this book that I can wholeheartedly endorse: regardless of whether you are rich or poor, Southern California is simply a godawful place to live.

GRADE: C-

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Present conflict, but too lengthy
Review: The book "Tortilla Curtain" deals with an interesting conflict between immigrants and upper middle class-Americans, but it is written in a boring way, because there are too many details and the story is too long. It has no real climax or structure and because of that, the story seems to be endless. Another aspect is that the plot is exaggerated and surrealistic, although the depiction of two completely different worlds is very good.
All in all it is difficult for the reader to see the whole context, because of too many unimportant details.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Over and over: Problems/Catastrophies
Review: Boyle's intention of writing Tortilla Curtain is very intesting.
He shows the contrast between the American upper class and illegal immigrants. His main topic is racism and the inner personal conflicts concerning this. One of the main characters for example, Delaney, wants to be a fair liberal humainst but fails.
Becasue of the structure Boyle chose, it is impossible for the reader to identify with either of the characters. Due to this you develop an objective point of view. This is positive.
Although he did a good job reaching his goal it wasn't a fun book to read. Because of it's many exaggeratins, problems and hopeless situations the book seemed dramatic, sad, unreal and therefore untrustworthy. The reader's hope vanishes and there is not even a happy ending :(

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: I prefer the phonebook
Review: When I read this book I thought about the different meanings it might contain. First of all , this is a powerful story about racism, in which the reader gets to know about both sides of the story, both points of view and yes, it might help us to learn more about everyday-aspects of prejudices. But considering the fact that Boyle's characters are as superficial as a TV-Spot for roastbeef with almost no connection to reality and that this story apparently takes place in a different universe, where nearly everything (like sudden bushfires or flood catastrophes) is possible, I decided to leave the curtain closed and rather have a few tortillas.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Solution Proposed
Review: I have read some of the previous reviews and I do realize some of the down sides to his book. However, I was thoroughly impressed and am still pondering the solution he offers for the conflict between immigrants and anglos. This solution is offered in the last sentence, and it is a noble one at that. (I don't want to ruin it.) Thats all I have to offer, as the previous 74 reviews seem to cover the other angles.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Boyle unfairly stacks the deck
Review: TC Boyle is a sharp-eyed , capable writer (though I was driven crazy by this American's constant use of the Briticism "round" -- as in, "he looked round and saw..."). He keeps the plot moving, but the book would have been much more interesting if Delaney had been a real human being. Instead he's a puny whiner whose fussy complacency is underscored by a constant listing of his name-brand accoutrements -- his Lexus and his Goretex and his Vibram soles with half-inch tread. I wearied of him fast, and of Kyra and the rest of the Arroyo Blanco crowd instantly.

How much more deep and searching an exploration of the burning issue of illegal immigration Boyle could have offered us, if Candido's opposite had been allowed to be a full-hearted, open-minded man of intelligence and conscience, instead of a silly, shallow , selfish straw man? There's not a sympathetic gringo in the entire book.


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