Bang - Softcover

Pena, Daniel

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1558858563 ISBN 13: 9781558858565

Publisher: Arte Publico Press, 2018

Synopsis

Uli's first flight, a late-night joy ride with his brother, changes their lives forever when the engine stops and the boys crash land, with "Texas to the right and Mexico to the left." Before the accident, Uli juggled his status as both an undocumented immigrant and a high school track star in Harlingen, Texas, desperately hoping to avoid being deported like his father. His mother Araceli spent her time waiting for her husband. His older brother Cuauhtemoc, a former high-school track star turned drop-out, learned to fly a crop duster, spraying pesticide over their home in the citrus grove.

After the crash, Cuauhtemoc wakes up bound and gagged, wondering where he is. Uli comes to in a hospital, praying that it's on the American side of the border. And their mother finds herself waiting for her sons as well as her missing husband. Araceli knows that she has to go back to the country she left behind in order to find her family.

In Mexico, each is forced to navigate the complexities of their past and an unknown world of deprivation and violence. Ruthless drug cartels force Cuauhtemoc to fly drugs. "If a brick goes missing, Cuauhtemoc dies. If a plane goes missing, Cuauhtemoc dies. If Cuauhtemoc goes missing, they find Cuauhtemoc (wherever he's at) and Cuauhtemoc dies." If they can't find him, they will kill his mother. They have photos of her in Matamoros to prove they can enforce the threat. Meanwhile, Uli returns to his family's home in San Miguel and finds a city virtually abandoned, devastated by battles between soldiers, cartels and militias that vie for control.

Vividly portraying the impact of international drug smuggling on the innocent, Pena's debut novel also probes the loss of talented individuals and the black market machines fed with the people removed and shut out of America. Ultimately, Bang is a riveting tale about ordinary people forced to do dangerous, unimaginable things.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

Uli's first flight, a late-night joy ride with his brother, changes their lives forever when the engine stops and the boys crash land, with "Texas to the right and Mexico to the left." Before the accident, Uli juggled his status as both an undocumented immigrant and a high school track star in Harlingen, Texas, desperately hoping to avoid being deported like his father. His older brother Cuauhtmoc, a former high-school track star turned drop-out, learned to fly a crop duster, spraying pesticide over their home in the citrus grove.

After the crash, Cuauhtemoc wakes up bound and gagged, wondering where he is. Uli comes to in a hospital, praying that it's on the American side of the border. And their mother finds herself waiting for her sons as well as her missing husband. Araceli knows that she has to go back to the country she left behind in order to find her family.

In Mexico, each is forced to navigate the complexities of their past and an unknown world of deprivation and violence. Ruthless drug cartels force Cuauhtmoc to fly drugs. "If a brick goes missing, Cuauhtmoc dies. If a plane goes missing, Cuauhtmoc dies. If Cuauhtmoc goes missing, they find Cuauhtmoc (wherever he's at) and Cuauhtmoc dies." If they can't find him, they will kill his mother. They have photos of her in Matamoros to prove they can enforce the threat. Meanwhile, Uli returns to his family's home in San Miguel and finds a city virtually abandoned, devastated by battles between soldiers, cartels and militias that vie for control.

Vividly portraying the impact of international drug smuggling, Pena's debut novel also probes the loss of talented individuals and the black market machines fed with the people removed and shut out of America. Ultimately, Bang is a riveting tale about ordinary people forced to do dangerous, unimaginable things.

Review

The adroit characterizations and alternating points of view advance a memorable narrative about overlooked populations in America that are victimized by drug smuggling. Peña examines the symbiosis of the United States and Mexico and makes painfully clear the negative effects of international trade legal and illegal. This is a notable and compassionate novel. --Publishers Weekly

Bang is such a timely novel that offers devastating insights into how communities adapt to severe shifts in culture and society. --NBC Latino

Peña provides a window into the struggles of immigrants on the border as well as the violent drug war fueling the migration. A piercing tale of lives broken by border violence. --Kirkus Reviews

About this edition

• Publisher: Arte Publico Press
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1558858563
• ISBN 13: 9781558858565
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 200