Finalmente en el otro lado (Finally on the Other Side)

Grande, R. (2012). The Distance between Us: A Memoir. (pp. 55-159). New York, NY: Washington Square Press.

My expectation for this section of the book was to continue to learn more about Reyna’s life in Mexico and the ideas that she had about El Otro Lado. Furthermore, it was my expectation that she would finally make her way to the US and quite possibly reunite with her family in this section.

Reyna’s mother finally returns to the story but because of some circumstances she only visits her children once a week. The structure of this section outlines more in depth the life of Reyna in Mexico and what it was like to have her mother back in Mexico with her. At the end of the section right before part two of the book, we finally see her father come back. He takes them across the border and into the US.

One of the most telling section of this book is on pages 158 and 159. In these pages there is a great amount of detail about the differences between the US and Mexican culture. When Reyna’s father mentioned hamburgers as they were being smuggled home, Reyna thinks to herself that she had never eaten a hamburger but she knew that that is what people in America liked to eat (pp. 158). In addition, at the sight of seeing the smuggler eating sunflower seeds, her first reaction was that she couldn’t believe that in the richest country in the world people eat bird seed (pp. 159).

Overall, this section of the book lives up to expectations. This part further develops the main character’s personally growth and teaches her about some of the culture in the US. Just from the two pages mentioned previously, she has already seen some of the differences between life in Mexico and life in the US and I expect that as Reyna continues her story, she will continue to make personal growth in the US and will learn more about this new place that she will call home.