The Affairs of the Falcóns

by Melissa Rivero

Overview

“An unsparing look at the world of the undocumented through the life of Peruvian immigrant Ana Falcón and her family.” —Cristina García, New York Times–bestselling author

Winner of the 2019 New American Voices Award

A Recommended Book of 2019 from:

Southern Living * Buzzfeed * The Huffington Post * Bustle * Fierce * Hip Latina * Ms. Magazine * Alma * Library Journal * The Rumpus * The Millions * Refinery29 * Electric Literature

Ana Falcón, along with her husband Lucho and their two young children, has fled the economic and political strife of Peru for a chance at a new life in New York City in the 1990s. Being undocumented, however, has significantly curtailed the family’s opportunities: Ana is indebted to a loan shark who calls herself Mama, and is stretched thin by unceasing shifts at her factory job. To make matters worse, Ana must also battle both criticism from Lucho’s cousin—who has made it obvious the family is not welcome to stay in her spare room for much longer—and escalating and unwanted attention from Mama’s husband.

As the pressure builds, Ana becomes increasingly desperate. While Lucho dreams of returning to Peru, Ana is deeply haunted by the demons she left behind and determined to persevere in this new country. But how many sacrifices is she willing to make before admitting defeat and returning to Peru? And what lines is she willing to cross in order to protect her family?

The Affairs of the Falcóns is a beautiful, deeply urgent novel about the lengths one woman is willing to go to build a new life, and a vivid rendering of the American immigrant experience.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062872371
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	11/21/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	273
Sales rank:	985,734
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Melissa Rivero is the author of The Affairs of the Falcóns, which won the 2019 New American Voices Award and a 2020 International Latino Book Award. The book was also long-listed for the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel, the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize, and the Aspen Words Literary Prize. Born in Lima, Peru, and raised in Brooklyn, she is a graduate of NYU and Brooklyn Law School. She still lives in Brooklyn with her family.

Editorial Reviews

★ Winter 2018

DEBUT With no intention of jeopardizing her marriage, Ana does just that while trying to start a new life with her family in New York City. Eager to leave behind Peru, with its prejudices and lack of opportunity, she gets a job as a seamstress in a factory while husband Lucho drives a cab. Their two young children become friends with Michael, the son of Lucho's relatives Valeria and Ruben, with whom they are living. Having little money, no green cards, and in fact no legitimate documents, they have few options. The extended family's small apartment is crowded, and Valeria's insecurities cause serious problems for Ana. These issues become a major threat to Ana's dream when Valeria demands they move out. The ambitious Ana attempts singlehandedly to face Valeria's temper, her family's constantly increasing debts, an unwanted pregnancy, and the ever-present fear of deportation. VERDICT Rivero's talent for storytelling and sympathetic portrayal of many characters propels this novel above the melodrama of the telenovelas that play in the background on Valeria's television. Book groups will thoroughly enjoy this vivid, inspired debut, a valuable addition to immigration literature. [See Prepub Alert. 10/14/18.]—Lisa Rohrbaugh, Leetonia Community P.L., OH

Library Journal

A beautiful, serious and life-affirming book.”   — Washington Post

“At a time when the United States is wracked with debates about what constitutes a ‘real’ American, this rendering of the immigrant experience couldn’t be more important.”
— Refinery 29

“Rivero’s talent for storytelling and sympathetic portrayal of many characters propels this novel above the melodrama of the telenovelas that play in the background on Valeria’s television. Book groups will thoroughly enjoy this vivid, inspired debut, a valuable addition to immigration literature.” — Library Journal (starred review)

“Timely and beautifully rendered.... Rivero succeeds in drawing to light the challenges many new immigrants face.... A complex and compelling portrait of Latin American immigrants and the experience of undocumented families.” — Booklist

“A nuanced look at the human cost of immigration policy.... This is, obviously, a book that has a lot to say to our current moment, but it also has an emotional appeal that is timeless and universal. Thoughtful and eye-opening, this is an admirable debut.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Melissa Rivero writes about love with all of its beauty, fierceness, and complications: of motherhood and hard choices, the bonds of family and homeland, and the sacrifices made for survival and a better future. Ana Rios is an unforgettable character and a necessary American hero.” — Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers

“Melissa Rivero is a gifted writer with a clear view of the human heart. This novel shows us new things. It’s a winner.” — Luis Alberto Urrea, author of The House of Broken Angels and The Devil’s Highway

“An unsparing look at the world of the undocumented through the life of Peruvian immigrant Ana Falcón and her family.... Melissa Rivero’s The Affairs of the Falcóns does poetic justice to this riveting tale of identity, belonging, and transformation.”
— Cristina García, author of Dreaming in Cuban and Here in Berlin

“The Affairs of the Falcóns is a powerfully honest testament to the strength of immigrant mothers. May we all see them, honor them, and fight for them in the way Melissa Rivero sees, honors, and fights for Ana Rios, free of judgement and full of love.”
— Natalia Sylvester, author of Chasing the Sun and Everyone Knows You Go Home

“Beautiful.... The theme is immigration, but at heart, this is a story about family—the long-standing tensions, the profound bonds, the depth of spousal, parental and filial love. It’s at once a timeless work and a book we urgently need now.” — Rumaan Alam, author of That Kind of Mother

From the Publisher

An unsparing look at the world of the undocumented through the life of Peruvian immigrant Ana Falcón and her family.... Melissa Rivero’s The Affairs of the Falcóns does poetic justice to this riveting tale of identity, belonging, and transformation.”

Cristina García

Melissa Rivero is a gifted writer with a clear view of the human heart. This novel shows us new things. It’s a winner.

Luis Alberto Urrea

Timely and beautifully rendered.... Rivero succeeds in drawing to light the challenges many new immigrants face.... A complex and compelling portrait of Latin American immigrants and the experience of undocumented families.

Booklist

Melissa Rivero writes about love with all of its beauty, fierceness, and complications: of motherhood and hard choices, the bonds of family and homeland, and the sacrifices made for survival and a better future. Ana Rios is an unforgettable character and a necessary American hero.

Lisa Ko

At a time when the United States is wracked with debates about what constitutes a ‘real’ American, this rendering of the immigrant experience couldn’t be more important.”

Refinery 29

The Affairs of the Falcóns is a powerfully honest testament to the strength of immigrant mothers. May we all see them, honor them, and fight for them in the way Melissa Rivero sees, honors, and fights for Ana Rios, free of judgement and full of love.”

Natalia Sylvester

A beautiful, serious and life-affirming book.”  

Washington Post

Beautiful.... The theme is immigration, but at heart, this is a story about family—the long-standing tensions, the profound bonds, the depth of spousal, parental and filial love. It’s at once a timeless work and a book we urgently need now.

Rumaan Alam

A beautiful, serious and life-affirming book.”  

Washington Post

Timely and beautifully rendered.... Rivero succeeds in drawing to light the challenges many new immigrants face.... A complex and compelling portrait of Latin American immigrants and the experience of undocumented families.

Booklist

An unsparing look at the world of the undocumented through the life of Peruvian immigrant Ana Falcón and her family.... Melissa Rivero’s The Affairs of the Falcóns does poetic justice to this riveting tale of identity, belonging, and transformation.”

Cristina Garcia

2019-01-21

A nuanced look at the human cost of immigration policy.

It's New York in the 1990s. Ana Falcón works as a seamstress. Her husband, Lucho, is driving a cab. Along with their two small children, the Falcóns are living with Lucho's cousin's family. The pressures—personal, financial—that Ana faces will be recognizable to most readers, but the fact that the Falcóns are undocumented immigrants adds a layer of complexity and peril to every choice they make. Ana and Lucho are limited in the kinds of jobs they can find and vulnerable to employers willing to hire workers illegally. Housing is hard to come by, and they know that their welcome with extended family is not indefinite. With no access to banks, they are forced to do business with loan sharks. Rivero offers a portrait of the immigrant experience that will undoubtedly ring true to many, but she also writes with great specificity. She offers insight into the economic and political instability that drove Ana and Lucho to leave Peru, and she depicts the ways in which class and race factor into the lives of the Falcóns. Ana's background is rural and indigenous. Terrorists and soldiers were a threat to her and her mother. Lucho's family is from Lima, and these differences color Ana's relationship with Lucho's cousin Valeria. Ana is a very well-crafted protagonist, sympathetic but not perfect. Her situation is circumscribed, but Rivero gives her considerable agency—including the freedom to make dubious choices. This is, obviously, a book that has a lot to say to our current moment, but it also has an emotional appeal that is timeless and universal.

Thoughtful and eye-opening, this is an admirable debut.

Kirkus Reviews