overall, it’s an impactful and moving story about two colombian migrants, mauro and elena, and their three children and how they are separated between the united states and colombia. there were certain chapters that really left me reeling and the prose is just how i like it: simple yet lyrical, clear and precise. i also loved the inclusion of colombian mythology and the father’s indigenous heritage being incorporated into the story.

however, i think that there were a couple things that brought down my rating. first, i think that the author does third person narration best and i found the shifts to first person in some chapters to be jarring. it’s probably to highlight the differences in how the two children in the US define and tell their own narrative vs the story unfolding in colombia, but i found the writing in those chapters to be less compelling. i also thought that the story was imbalanced between mauro, elena, and their children, with talia, the youngest, being highlighted far more than her siblings. i would almost have preferred it if the story centered on mauro and elena OR if there was a little more of an equal distribution between the children. having one or two chapters from the two children in the US felt more like an afterthought than a real addition to the book. altogether, still a book that i’d recommend reading but not a book that i found myself fully enjoying.