Jose Angel N. - Böcker

A day after JosÉ Ángel N. first crossed the United States border from Mexico, he was caught and then released onto the streets of Tijuana. Undeterred, N. crawled back through a tunnel to San Diego, where he entered the United States to stay. Illegal: Reflections of an Undocumented Immigrant is his timely and compelling memoir of building a new life in America. Arriving in the 1990s with a ninth grade education, N. traveled to Chicago where he found access to ESL and GED classes. He eventually attended college and graduate school and became a professional translator.Despite having a well-paying job, N. was isolated by a lack of legal documentation. Travel concerns made promotions impossible. The simple act of purchasing his girlfriend a beer at a Cubs baseball game caused embarrassment and shame when N. couldn't produce a valid ID. A frustrating contradiction, N. lived in a luxury high-rise condo but couldn't fully live the American dream. He did, however, find solace in the one gift America gave him–-his education. Ultimately, N.'s is the story of the triumph of education over adversity. In Illegal, he debunks the stereotype that undocumented immigrants are freeloaders without access to education or opportunity for advancement. With bravery and honesty, N. details the constraints, deceptions, and humiliations that characterize alien life "amid the shadows."

Por fin disponible en espaÑol, Ilegal es el aclamado libro de memorias de JosÉ Ángel N., un inmigrante indocumentado que se construyÓ una vida nueva en Estados Unidos, a donde llegÓ habiendo cursado la secundaria. N. acogiÓ la educaciÓn y de ahÍ ascendiÓ, de ser aprendiz del inglÉs como segunda lengua a realizar estudios de posgrado, antes de convertirse en traductor profesional. A pesar de tener un buen trabajo, hubo barreras que lo confinaron a las sombras. La falta de documentaciÓn legal le impedÍa viajar con libertad e incluso comprar una cerveza en un juego de bÉisbol. A pesar de vivir en un lujoso rascacielos, no puede abrazar completamente el sueÑo americano. Sin embargo, N. persistiÓ. Esta motivante historia de Éxito contradice los estereotipos de los inmigrantes indocumentados a la vez que evidencia cÓmo la educaciÓn puede convertirse en un triunfo ante la adversidad.  JosÉ Ángel N. es escritor y traductor. Sus ensayos se han publicado en revistas culturales en MÉxico y Estados Unidos. VerÓnica MurguÍa es escritora y traductora y radica en MÉxico.

A day after JosÉ Ángel N. first crossed the United States border from Mexico, he was caught and then released onto the streets of Tijuana. Undeterred, N. crawled back through a tunnel to San Diego, where he entered the United States to stay. Illegal: Reflections of an Undocumented Immigrant is his timely and compelling memoir of building a new life in America. Arriving in the 1990s with a ninth grade education, N. traveled to Chicago where he found access to ESL and GED classes. He eventually attended college and graduate school and became a professional translator.Despite having a well-paying job, N. was isolated by a lack of legal documentation. Travel concerns made promotions impossible. The simple act of purchasing his girlfriend a beer at a Cubs baseball game caused embarrassment and shame when N. couldn't produce a valid ID. A frustrating contradiction, N. lived in a luxury high-rise condo but couldn't fully live the American dream. He did, however, find solace in the one gift America gave him–-his education. Ultimately, N.'s is the story of the triumph of education over adversity. In Illegal, he debunks the stereotype that undocumented immigrants are freeloaders without access to education or opportunity for advancement. With bravery and honesty, N. details the constraints, deceptions, and humiliations that characterize alien life "amid the shadows."