The Book of Unknown Americans

The primary narrator is wife to Arturo and mother of Maribel. Maribel’s brain damage that is the impetus for the family’s immigration from Panama to America results from an accident taking place before the events of the novel which is manifested in the form of the burden of guilt which Alma carries inside. This guilt is further compounded by her inability to reconcile how Maribel looks no different than she did before the accident, yet behaves like a completely different person. The immigrant experience in Newark provides some relief form her isolation while simultaneously creating yet more burdens.