The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez focusses on the immigrant viewpoint through the lives of several Latinos. The novel centers on a story of two families whose hopes collide with destiny. Rivera family has relocated to the United States to get a better school for their daughter, Maribel. The family has moved from Mexico. Maribel accidentally falls from a ladder and suffers from memory loss and a changed personality. Maribel’s parents, Arturo and Alma, believe that special education in the U.S is better than in Mexico. After entering America, Maribel falls in love with Mayor Toro. Toro’s family helps Maribel’s family to get used to American culture.
The author has formed a love story between a Mexican girl, Maribel, and a Panamanian boy, Mayor. Both are adolescents and live within the same apartment complex. The two teenagers start a gradual but remarkable love story that unites everyone in the apartment complex despite differences in immigration status and family structures. The novel enables readers to see, hear, sympathize, and learn from immigrants. The main characters of the novel give readers the sentiment of Hispanic immigrants. The author wanted the book to undermine stereotypes about Latino culture and present the multifaceted differences between Latino nations.
