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The Line Becomes a River
- Dispatches from the Border
- Narrated by: Francisco Cantú
- Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins
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The Line Becomes a River
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Publisher's Summary
Named a Top 10 Book of 2018 by NPR and The Washington Post
Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Current Interest
Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Nonfiction Award
The instant New York Times best seller
"A must-read for anyone who thinks 'build a wall' is the answer to anything." (Esquire)
For Francisco Cantú, the border is in the blood: his mother, a park ranger and daughter of a Mexican immigrant, raised him in the scrublands of the Southwest. Driven to understand the hard realities of the landscape he loves, Cantú joins the Border Patrol. He and his partners learn to track other humans under blistering sun and through frigid nights. They haul in the dead and deliver to detention those they find alive.
Plagued by a growing awareness of his complicity in a dehumanizing enterprise, he abandons the Patrol for civilian life. But when an immigrant friend travels to Mexico to visit his dying mother and does not return, Cantú discovers that the border has migrated with him, and now he must know the full extent of the violence it wreaks, on both sides of the line.
What the critics say
"Cantú's story, and intelligent and humane perspective, should mortify anyone who ever thought building a wall might improve our lot. He advocates for clarity and compassion in place of xenophobia and uninformed rhetoric. His words are emotionally true and his literary sensibility uplifting." (Barry Lopez, author of Arctic Dreams and Of Wolves and Men )
"This book tells the hard poetry of the desert heart. If you think you know about immigration and the border, you will see there is much to learn. And you will be moved by its unexpected music." (Luis Alberto Urrea, author of The Devil's Highway)
What listeners say about The Line Becomes a River
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Andrew
- 2019-01-08
Great listen and interesting story.
First hand inside look into a challenging profession and current pressing issue. Easy and interesting listen.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- "one2three4"
- 2019-03-25
Excellent listen
An emotional whirlwind of the modern day border situation from someone who was there. Just beyond fantastic. Loved every minute of it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Barb Chrysler
- 2018-09-15
informative, well written, good performance, tragic
the audio performance was well done making this an enjoyable listen. It was nice to hear the perspective of border patrol; this was the first book on the border I read from this perspective. It was very well written an engaging book which illustrated an important tragic issue.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Buffalo Al
- 2023-03-05
Very Well Written and Researched.
This is a very good book about the US border and the troubles experienced by immigrants, residents, and those tasked with upholding the law. A compelling read.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Ryan
- 2020-10-02
Disappointed
This book was recommended for those who loved “Educated”
Personally love reading memoirs but this was dull. The beginning was decent but half way through there was no more fazaz! I was expecting him to actually help people but it was a book about someone who did their job exactly how they were supposed to. No empathy
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