Tijuana Book of the Dead

"A gorgeous, engaging collection . . . [Urrea] captures the song and spirit of people who might otherwise be invisible . . . As difficult as the subject matter may be, the writing is radiant, showing how the worth of human beings can’t be dimmed by a border fence or hot-button politics." —The Washington Post

An exquisitely composed collection of poetry that examines life at the border from the New York Times bestselling author of Good Night Irene and The House of Broken Angels, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award in fiction

Celebrated author Luis Alberto Urrea was inspired to create this work largely in response to the book bannings and abolition of Mexican-American studies in Arizona and as a cry against the current political climate for immigrants. Weaving English and Spanish languages as fluidly as he blends cultures of the southwest, Urrea offers a tour of Tijuana, spanning from Skid Row, to the suburbs of East Los Angeles, to the stunning yet deadly Mojave Desert, to Mexico and the border fence itself. Mixing lyricism and colloquial voices, mysticism and the daily grind, Urrea offers a deep and moving meditation on the blurring borders in a melting pot society.

Luis Alberto Urrea, 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist for nonfiction and member of the Latino Literature Hall of Fame, is a prolific and acclaimed writer who uses his dual-culture life experiences to explore greater themes of love, loss, and triumph. Born in Tijuana, Mexico to a Mexican father and an American mother, Urrea has published extensively in all the major genres. The critically acclaimed and best-selling author of 13 books, he has won numerous awards for his poetry, fiction and essays, and his work has been featured in The Best American Poetry series. Urrea lives with his family in Naperville, IL, where he teaches creative writing at the University of Illinois-Chicago.