Customer Reviews

There's No Jose Here: Following the Hidden Lives of Mexican Immigrants

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The best work of non-fiction narrative I have read in years. It reminds me of Jimmy Breslin's down-to-earth journalistic style. Sorry Lou Dobbs, there is no political spin here; you can get this book for your racist uncle or for your socialist aunt because this book speaks to the heart and helps you realize that Enrique could have been either an Irish, Norwegian, or German immigrant in a different time and a different place. Still, Enrique's journey is fascinating and knowing that people of his stature still come to our shores makes me feel optimistic about the future of this country.

I loved this book, I literally could not put it down. Thompson writes with a clarity and empathy that makes the characters leap from the page and into your heart.

It's eye-opening, entertaining, sad and joyous all at once.

Thompson writes a fact filled account of the life of his friend Enrique, a Mexican immigrant living in Brooklyn, and the people around him. The author meets Enrique as a tenant struggling with housing issues. Later in the book Thompson travels to Mexico with Enrique and members of his family. The many experiences are described with conversations and impressions but little editorializing by the author. And that is not needed because the stories speak for themselves. This book fills an incredible gap.

The truth about Mexican immigration

Gabriel Thompson hits the heart of immigration problem. People tend to oppose to migration blindly without analyzing the factors that propel all these poor people to work outside of their homeland, being humiliated, underpaid, and overworked for a few dollars. Also all these "Minuteman" and other racists would not do the work that a Mexican does; yet they want to throw out the people who give this country their work so that those racists could live in the land of plenty. People that oppose this migration are also the descendants of other immigrants that came to this country for the same reasons as these new migrants. Mexican migrants and all migrants in general are the backbone of our industry and our economy, we should be thankful that there are people like these poor Mexicans and migrants from other countries that do so much work in exchange of very little. I'm grateful that amid this sea of racism and ignorance there are a few people like Gabriel Thompson that expose the truth as it is.

Thompson's book goes where few others have gone before; inside the lives of undocumented workers from New York to Mexico. It's a human story of family, survival, and love. This book should give pause to anyone who tries to argue that undocumented workers do not bring value to our country. Thompson writes clearly and allows those he meets to speak for themselves, something that is too rare in our public debate about immigration.

Is Gabriel Thompson's point in writing this book to arouse sympathy for Mexican immigrants? If so, I'm not sure he's successful, and I'm a "bleeding heart liberal." If he's writing just to let the reader know how difficult life can be for immigrants (and this could apply to immigrants of any origin), then he succeeded; however, I must add that he could have substituted inner city blacks, Native Americans, or lower economic-class whites just as easily.

Thompson definitely raises awareness of the miserable lives many of the immigrants have, regardless of whether they're "legal" or "illegal". And he also indicates that their miserable lives in the United States are actually better than their even more miserable lives in Mexico. The issue seems to be that they are taken advantage of by nefarious, unscrupulous, immoral CAPTALISTS. And that (being a capitalist) is something that Thompson most likely is not.

This is not to say that this is not a good book. It is a VERY good book and well written. The issue is that the author raises so many troubling, conflicting issues. Two in particular stand out: one issue is the incredibly ruthless, unprincipled slumlords who the immigrants must deal with, and the archaic, inept bureaucracy that seems to thwart their every effort to get the most basic amenities provided, such as heat, hot water, etc.

The other issue, however, that is put forth by many "anti-immigration" folks, is how the immigrants are, in fact, willing to work for substandard wages, thus bringing wages down for all. This hurts all workers, regardless of race or ethnicity. Jobs that used to be able to support a family, no longer do so because of immigrants who are willing to work for substantially less than a livable wage.

Thompson's main character, Enrique, is an engaging fellow, full of dreams for a better life for himself and especially his children. He is intelligent, energetic, and extraordinarily hard-working. His disappointment at how difficult life is in the United States and how little progress he's made is understandable. But, it seemed like many of the problems the immigrants experienced resulted from having too many kids...by too many different people. Why is it that some people feel they must have a child with every person with whom they copulate? Kids are, hello! Expensive!

Thompson makes a point, however, that white Americans need to get into their heads: Mexican immigrants are here in far greater numbers than most people realize, and they are not going to go away. This brings us to the title: There's No Jose' Here. The immigrants are ubiquitous and have gone largely unnoticed (except for the Southwest) until recent marches brought them into the public light. It is already too late. They will, in fact, take over the country without a shot being fired, through their rate of reproduction.

This is a very engrossing read. While I preferred "Working in the Shadows," this title is well worth reading as it does shed light on an unavoidable transition that is already occurring in this country. A case made for the Native American, however, would have moved me more.

This is a well-written narrative that doesn't go far enough. In particular, there's a very untold story about Hispanics in the suburbs that one documentary (Farmingville) brought to light at its worst -- and that was only touched upon in this book...the clash of race and class is being played out in the suburbs and Jose's brief stint in Porchester felt like an aside. That said, this book is moving, well-written, and compassionate, particularly the road trip to Mexico...a terrific story in itself. CBock