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Infinite Country: A Novel
Infinite Country: A Novel
Infinite Country: A Novel
Audiobook4 hours

Infinite Country: A Novel

Written by Patricia Engel

Narrated by Inés del Castillo

4.5/5

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About this audiobook

A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK and INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

WINNER OF THE 2021 NEW AMERICAN VOICES AWARD, LONGLISTED FOR THE 2022 ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL, A 2022 DAYTON LITERARY PEACE PRIZE FINALIST, AND A NATIONAL ENDOWMENT OF THE ARTS “BIG READS” SELECTION

“A profound, beautiful novel.” —People * “Poignant.” —BuzzFeed * “A breathtaking story of the unimaginable prices paid for a better life.” —Esquire

This “heartbreaking portrait of a family dealing with the realities of migration and separation” (Time) is “a sweeping love story and tragic drama [and] an authentic vision of what the American Dream looks like in a nationalistic country” (Elle).

I often wonder if we are living the wrong life in the wrong country.

Talia is being held at a correctional facility for adolescent girls in the forested mountains of Colombia after committing an impulsive act of violence that may or may not have been warranted. She urgently needs to get out and get back home to Bogotá, where her father and a plane ticket to the United States are waiting for her. If she misses her flight, she might also miss her chance to finally be reunited with her family.

How this family came to occupy two different countries, two different worlds, comes into focus like twists of a kaleidoscope. We see Talia’s parents, Mauro and Elena, fall in love in a market stall as teenagers against a backdrop of civil war and social unrest. We see them leave Bogotá with their firstborn, Karina, in pursuit of safety and opportunity in the United States on a temporary visa, and we see the births of two more children, Nando and Talia, on American soil. We witness the decisions and indecisions that lead to Mauro’s deportation and the family’s splintering—the costs they’ve all been living with ever since.

Award-winning, internationally acclaimed author Patricia Engel, herself a dual citizen and the daughter of Colombian immigrants, gives voice to all five family members as they navigate the particulars of their respective circumstances. Rich with Bogotá urban life, steeped in Andean myth, and tense with the daily reality of the undocumented in America, Infinite Country “is as much an all-American story as it is a global one” (Booklist, starred review).

Editor's Note

Powerful story…

One of the most anticipated novels of 2021, “Infinite Country” reflects our current global moment: tense, cut off from each other, but with a glimmer of hope. This powerful story moves readers back and forth in time, across borders, and among anguished family members separated by the sacrifices they’ve made at the altar of the American Dream. The propulsive plot hooks you right from the first chapter when teenage daughter Talia escapes from a juvenile detention center in the mountains of Colombia, racing to try to make a flight to the US before she loses her chance to reunite with her family.

LanguageEnglish
PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
Release dateMar 2, 2021
ISBN9781797119595
Author

Patricia Engel

Patricia Engel is the author of Infinite Country, a New York Times bestseller and Reese’s Book Club selection; The Veins of the Ocean, winner of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize; It’s Not Love, It’s Just Paris, winner of the International Latino Book Award; and Vida, a finalist for the Pen/Hemingway and Young Lions Fiction Awards, New York Times Notable Book, and winner of Colombia’s national book award, the Premio Biblioteca de Narrativa Colombiana. She is a recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. Her stories appear in The Best American Short Stories, The Best American Mystery Stories, The O. Henry Prize Stories, and elsewhere. Born to Colombian parents, and herself a dual citizen, Patricia is an associate professor of creative writing at the University of Miami.

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Reviews for Infinite Country

4.5/5

746 ratings20 reviews

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  • 4/5
    Emmigration is not usually a topic that interests me, not for the subject itself, but mainly because of the clichés used to portrait it in art form, wether in books, movies or series.
    In this case what really caught my attention was the different approach to the theme. I felt it a lot more realistic and broader than the usual.
  • 5/5
    This book shares the ups and down of a Columbian family trying to immigrate to the US. Written through the eyes of the eldest daughter it is poignant and full of love.
  • 5/5
    Compelling family story of leaving Columbia for a “ better” life in the USA. Not so easy. Leaves the reader with a good idea of what life is like for many people outside our borders.
  • 5/5
    Lovely Portrayal of a family in America And those who are trying to get there
  • 5/5
    Wonderful story. As a first generation American with immigrant parents, this book spoke to me on many levels. Had me entertained 100% of the time.
  • 4/5
    This was a perfect audiobook for my 5 hour trip today. It ended as we pulled on to our road at home. It’s been on my TBR list a while and I really expected an epic tale. It wasn’t. But it was a beautiful story. This family’s sometimes dangerous, often sad and consistently challenging journey ended so sweetly I cried and cheered in the same breath. I found it at times difficult to follow, not sure who was speaking but was able to get oriented quickly as I listened. The descriptions of Columbia were so vivid I could almost see it. I am glad I did audio because I’m not sure I could have pronounced some of the names and places. Overall I did enjoy it.
  • 5/5
    A vision into a life suffered by many but with accompanying occasional joy. What damage our politics has done!
  • 5/5
    Makes the “undocumented” experience much more terrifying, by showing the powerlessness of those people who are at the mercy of people who could help them, but who could also destroy them. The story of people with two countries, who are never at home. They are always in fear of discovery.
  • 5/5
    Beautifully written, intriguing, covering a very common yet underrepresented topic and asking the important questions along the way. Was all the suffering and trauma worth it? What if they had chosen a different, childless life?
  • 5/5
    Until now, one of the novels I thought should be required reading was Beloved. I add this one to the list with Morrison’s. This novel is remarkable and moving, alive and profound. Beautifully crafted writing! A story all should understand.
  • 5/5
    Beautifully written prose, and an important story of immigration. Wonderful narration.
  • 5/5
    One of the most beautiful stories about immigration you’ll ever encounter.
  • 5/5
    Beautiful and heartbreaking. Makes me happy to have my family all together in this country. Proud of my background. And happy to hear some of Colombia's Folklore. Thank you for writing this.
  • 5/5
    Beautiful. Listened on a single afternoon and loved every word.

    1 person found this helpful

  • 4/5
    I really liked it but it felt rushed at the end
  • 5/5
    This is my first review. I felt I needed to express how beautiful a story this is. The writing is gorgeous. The pace is fast. The story is important. The narration is perfect.

    1 person found this helpful

  • 4/5
    Very well written. realistic, very timely. It presents all of the dilemmas we have, no hint at solutions.

    1 person found this helpful

  • 4/5
    A fantastic book that is beautifully written! Loved it very much!

    1 person found this helpful

  • 5/5
    Listened to audio and it was a bit hard to follow at first. The story became richer with every chapter and I appreciated hearing the lived experiences of so many characters.
  • 4/5
    Interesting true story about the hardships of life as Colombian immigrants to the US - and the effects of family separation following the father’s deportation.

    1 person found this helpful