Borderlands and the Mexican American Story

by David Dorado Romo

Overview

Until now, you've only heard one side of the story, about migrants crossing borders, drawn to the promise of a better life. In reality, Mexicans were on this land long before any borders existed. Here's the true story of America, from the Mexican American perspective.

A SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL AND KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • A National Council of Teachers of English Honor Book

The Mexican American story is usually carefully presented as a story of immigrants: migrants crossing borders, drawn to the promise of a better life. In reality, Mexicans were on this land long before any borders existed. Their culture and practices shaped the Southwestern part of this country, in spite of relentless attempts by white colonizers and settlers to erase them.

From missions and the Alamo to muralists, revolutionaries, and teen activists, this is the true story of the Mexican American experience.


The Race to the Truth series tells the true history of America from the perspective of different communities. These books correct common falsehoods and celebrate underrepresented heroes and achievements. They encourage readers to ask questions and to approach new information thoughtfully. Check out the other books in the series: Colonization and the Wampanoag Story, Slavery and the African American Story, and Exclusion and the Chinese American Story.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593567760
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	08/20/2024
Series:	Race to the Truth
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	5.69(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.25(d)
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

About the Author

David Dorado Romo is a writer, translator, musician, and historian from the American southwest. He is a "fronterizo," a person who grew up and lived on the border between the United States and Mexico. Steeped in the fronterizo spirit that strongly defines the attitudes of the U.S.-Mexico border region, Romo conducted a four-year search to document the important history of the area. The book that resulted from his work, Ringside Seat to a Revolution: An Underground Cultural History of El Paso and Juarez, 1893-1923, "is a vital historical work for the Southwest," commented Sergio Troncoso in the El Paso Times.

Editorial Reviews

★ "A powerful must-read for students of North American history." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★ "A comprehensive and revelatory volume. This fills in gaps and turns history on its head. An absolute must for nonfiction collections." —School Library Journal, starred review

"[An] insightful overview of Mexican American history." —Booklist

From the Publisher

★ 2024-05-17
A thorough yet concise recounting of the ways the U.S./Mexico border has shaped how history has been told.

The work opens 23,000 years ago, when North America was settled by its first people. This framing lays the foundation for the often overlooked fact that a steady stream of migration and trade has flowed back and forth between what is now the U.S. and Mexico long before the modern border existed, making the case that our histories are interwoven. For example, many Indigenous people in Mexico and the western U.S. speak Uto-Aztecan languages, including Nahuatl, Shoshone, Hopi, and Comanche. The book also informs readers about darker episodes, such as enslavement and policies based on eugenics. Romo celebrates lesser-known heroes, like the 19th-century Mexican American leader Juan Cortina, who helped defend the borderlands community from violent invaders, and he holds up for scrutiny harmful misinformation, such as the Texas Creation Myth, an incomplete narrative from an Anglo perspective that was long taught in schools. Text boxes titled “Let’s Think About This” appear throughout this comprehensive history, posing questions for readers to ponder that encourage deeper thinking about historical biases. By the end, they’ll understand how past events have led to the present-day situation at the border. The concise chapters are enhanced with photos and broken down into accessible chunks, making this a strong work for any student, teacher, or parent seeking an accurate, well-researched distillation of complex events.

A powerful must-read for students of North American history. (Nonfiction. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews