"This opening sequence—one among a handful of equally suspenseful scenes, including a car chase in the border town of Sonoyta —makes the quieter, bleaker moments that follow seem all the more intense, stressing the desperate troubles these teens endure… brilliant." — Kirkus Reviews
"This book is both eye-opening and terrifying. Schafer creates a compelling story about survival and wanting to create a better life far away from the violent Mexican drug cartel… Filled with chase scenes, dangerous situations, and a strange love story, the plot moves along at a rapid-fire pace and keeps the reader engaged." — School Library Connection
"This is a thought-provoking adrenaline rush sure to satisfy fans of action and adventure. Pair with Marcus Sedgwick’s Saint Death (2017) for another charged look at border tensions." — Booklist
"This story is timely and controversial because it looks at the U.S./Mexico border issue on a humane level, not a political one. Schafer’s cast of characters provides young adult readers with a variety of relatable characters to root for as he aptly demonstrates the ruthless realities facing those who cross the border between the two countries." — VOYA Magazine
"Steve Schafer has given voice to a tragically common, but far too-infrequently told narrative of reality in towns and villages in Mexico that are controlled by drug cartels and drug smugglers. Providing legal representation for three decades to immigrants in Dallas, I have heard this same account dozens of times... Lest anyone think Steve Schafer’s account is exaggeration, I can attest to the realistic depiction he provides of innocent children, adults and families caught up in the dystopia of cartel-controlled areas in Mexico." — Vanna Slaughter, Director, Catholic Charities of Dallas (Dallas, TX)
"Steve Schafer walks us through the ebbs and flows in the lives of ordinary immigrants, the dramatic moments at the border, the fear, the yearnings, and the hope for a better future. An engrossing narrative delivered in trepidant prose." — Mauro F. Guillén, Director of the Lauder Institute at the Wharton School (Philadelphia, PA)
"In his book The Border, Steve Schafer deftly brings to life the drama of unauthorized border crossing and gives a human face to those often dismissed simply as "illegals." The story of how four young people compelled by circumstances beyond their control struggled and survived a perilous crossing of the Sonoran desert into the United Sates restores humanity and dignity to the 11 million undocumented migrants who now live among us." — Douglas Massey, Henry G. Bryant Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs at Princeton University (Princeton, NJ)
"Teenagers facing one of the most arduous, life-threatening journeys any person can endure is elegantly presented in this important book. Jolted from their home country by violence and thrown into an escape to save their lives, the four young people in this powerful story find hardship and humanity, ruthlessness and compassion without ever losing their own sense of optimism, hope, love, and goodness." — Luis H. Zayas, PhD, Dean and Robert Lee Sutherland Chair in Mental Health and Social Policy, The University of Texas at Austin (Austin, TX)
"A riveting story of survival and perseverance along the unforgiving frontier of the Sonoran desert." — Summit Daily
"An amazingly touching and heart wrenching story…Schafer gives an honest portrayal of the fear, grief, and the human condition as a whole of these young teenagers as they fight and struggle for their survival. Their journey is written in a beautifully harsh way that doesn’t gloss over the reality of their desperate situation, but also allows these characters the room to grow and develop in a natural way as they adjust to their new and changing realities." — The Booklovers Magazine
09/01/2017
Gr 10 Up—This tale of border-crossing through the Arizona desert misses the mark. Filled with cultural stereotypes, the story glamorizes and misrepresents the complexity of narco-violence and lacks contextualization of the sociopolitical forces, underlying violence, corruption, and immigration along the Mexico/U.S. border. The novel opens with the mass murder of 40 people at a quinceañera. Included among the dead are the immediate and extended family of the novel's protagonists, cousins Pato and Arbo, and siblings Marcos and Gladys. As the plot unfolds, readers learn that the killers are members of La Frontera, a drug-cartel that Pato's and Arbo's fathers' have angered. Escaping the massacre, the teens see no option but to flee across the unforgiving desert to the United States. Schafer's one-dimensional characterization is particularly disturbing in his sexist treatment of Gladys. Before the massacre, Pato compares Gladys against the rest of the girls at the party, who "teeter on too-high heels" with "too much makeup." Gladys shines angelic in a "homemade" dress. Later, when they make a pit stop along a town before crossing the border, Gladys exposes her breast in exchange for a translated copy of Huckleberry Finn, which she affectionately gives to Pato. La Frontera eventually catches up to the teens, and it is Gladys who pays the ultimate price. Gratuitous descriptions of her ultimate (violent) fate emphasize her victimhood. Linguistic slights are also prevalent, with Spanish words mostly used to spew curses. VERDICT Not recommended.—Lettycia Terrones, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2017-07-17
On the run from narcos, four Mexican teens flee home and head to the U.S. in Schafer's audacious YA debut. The all-black car lingers. Pato sees it, and the concealed people within, but he sets his worries aside as he joins his family and friends at his cousin's quinceañera. It happens in an instant: gunshots like firecrackers fill the air. Suddenly, everyone's gone except for Pato, his best friend, Arbo, tough guy Marcos, and Pato's obligatory love interest, Gladys. This opening sequence—one among a handful of equally suspenseful scenes, including a car chase in the border town of Sonoyta—makes the quieter, bleaker moments that follow seem all the more intense, stressing the desperate troubles these teens endure. Behind the massacre is a cartel group known as La Frontera, who publicize a reward for the capture of Pato and friends. This bounty scares off the shellshocked teens, sending them across the U.S.-Mexico border and into the blazing Sonoran Desert, where the devastating heat poses more of a threat than the border patrols and coyotes that operate in it. Looming over them in their escape is the uncertainty of life in the U.S., an apprehension that Schafer weaves throughout and summarizes in one raw, timely exchange: "You think they want you in their country? They don't." Revelations come in inevitable wallops (why were Pato's family and friends targeted?). Attempts at humor and fleshing out the bonds between characters sometimes ease things up but not always. This difficult balance is best summed up by Pato and Gladys' relationship, which is simultaneously out of place and, yet, disarmingly human. Messy and thrilling, flawed and often brilliant. (author's note) (Fiction. 14-18)
