- Paperback: 480 pages
- Publisher: Ballantine Books; Original edition (Mar 2 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0812977556
- ISBN-13: 978-0812977554
- Product Dimensions: 13.1 x 2.6 x 20.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 340 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #521,169 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
Review
"Eighteen-year-old Roque Montalvo must travel from California’s East Bay to El Salvador to help Tio Faustino illegally reenter the U.S. Faustino has been arrested in an illegal-immigration sweep in Oakland and immediately deported. Faustino’s son has made the arrangements for passage with MS-13, the Salvadoran multinational gang. But Roque soon learns that he must also shepherd a mysterious Arab as well as rescue Lupe, a beautiful, terrified, embittered, young Salvadoran woman, who is to be given to a psychotic MS-13 lieutenant en route. The journey is perilous, but so, author Corbett makes clear, is life for illegal aliens in California. Corbett is covering familiar ground (Blood of Paradise, 2007) but in this powerful, evocative, character-driven novel, he has written what should be a breakout success. What drives Corbett’s characters to risk death, violent gangs, ICE, armed “Minutemen,” deportation, and life as a fugitive in the U.S? As the Arab says to Lupe: “Yes, there is little hope in the world. But without America, there is none. Despite everything, you will have a chance.” Readers who devour and then forget formulaic crime novels won’t soon forget this one."--Booklist, starred review
"With lyrical yet muscular prose, an ahead-of-the-headlines plot, and utterly believable characters, David Corbett's Do They Know I'm Running? is nothing short of superb. This is not just a thriller, but an elegant novel, full of heart, soul, music, food, cruelty, betrayal, poverty and love. The line runs through Ernest Hemingway and Graham Greene, straight on to David Corbett. I'm not kidding. He's that good."—John Lescroart, author of A Plague of Secrets
"A scintillating, politically fuelled mystery that grabs you by the heart and never, never lets up. Think Graham Greene writing today with the narrative drive of Michael Connelly. Borders–in every sense of the word–are transformed and manipulated by writing that seems as effortless as it is compelling. Rarely does a novel knock you totally out of the park; this one does."—Ken Bruen, author of The Guard
"David Corbett's new novel is a bold look into the darkness that is human-trafficking, a sharp revelation of the intended and unintended consequences of such evil. With powerful and observant prose he takes us on the smuggling routes, into the lives of those involved, the moments of terror and of hope. After reading Do They Know I'm Running? you can't plead ignorance anymore."—Daniel Woodrell, author of Winter's Bone
"With lyrical yet muscular prose, an ahead-of-the-headlines plot, and utterly believable characters, David Corbett's Do They Know I'm Running? is nothing short of superb. This is not just a thriller, but an elegant novel, full of heart, soul, music, food, cruelty, betrayal, poverty and love. The line runs through Ernest Hemingway and Graham Greene, straight on to David Corbett. I'm not kidding. He's that good."—John Lescroart, author of A Plague of Secrets
"A scintillating, politically fuelled mystery that grabs you by the heart and never, never lets up. Think Graham Greene writing today with the narrative drive of Michael Connelly. Borders–in every sense of the word–are transformed and manipulated by writing that seems as effortless as it is compelling. Rarely does a novel knock you totally out of the park; this one does."—Ken Bruen, author of The Guard
"David Corbett's new novel is a bold look into the darkness that is human-trafficking, a sharp revelation of the intended and unintended consequences of such evil. With powerful and observant prose he takes us on the smuggling routes, into the lives of those involved, the moments of terror and of hope. After reading Do They Know I'm Running? you can't plead ignorance anymore."—Daniel Woodrell, author of Winter's Bone
Product Description
From acclaimed author David Corbett, a stunning and suspenseful novel of a life without loyalties and the borders inside ourselves.
Roque Montalvo is wise beyond his eighteen years. Orphaned at birth, a gifted musician, he’s stuck in a California backwater, helping his Salvadoran aunt care for his damaged brother, an ex-marine badly wounded in Iraq. When immigration agents arrest his uncle, the family has nowhere else to turn. Roque, badgered by his street-hardened cousin, agrees to bring the old man back, relying on the criminal gangs that control the dangerous smuggling routes from El Salvador, through Guatemala and Mexico, to the U.S. border.
But his cousin has told Roque only so much. In reality, he will have to transport not just his uncle but two others: an Arab whose intentions are disturbingly vague and a young beauty promised to a Mexican crime lord. Roque discovers that his journey involves crossing more than one kind of border, and he will be asked time and again to choose between survival and betrayal—of his country, his family, his heart.
Roque Montalvo is wise beyond his eighteen years. Orphaned at birth, a gifted musician, he’s stuck in a California backwater, helping his Salvadoran aunt care for his damaged brother, an ex-marine badly wounded in Iraq. When immigration agents arrest his uncle, the family has nowhere else to turn. Roque, badgered by his street-hardened cousin, agrees to bring the old man back, relying on the criminal gangs that control the dangerous smuggling routes from El Salvador, through Guatemala and Mexico, to the U.S. border.
But his cousin has told Roque only so much. In reality, he will have to transport not just his uncle but two others: an Arab whose intentions are disturbingly vague and a young beauty promised to a Mexican crime lord. Roque discovers that his journey involves crossing more than one kind of border, and he will be asked time and again to choose between survival and betrayal—of his country, his family, his heart.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
There are no customer reviews yet on Amazon Canada
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.9 out of 5 stars (12 customer reviews)
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Incredible Character-Driven Work, May 10 2010
By Theresa O'Loughlin - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Do They Know I'm Running?: A Novel (Paperback)
Do They Know I'm Running is absolutely outstanding. It is a beautifully written, at times lyrical, work which tells a universally human story of family, love, and loyalty against a backdrop which is not only timely, but which is also important to know more about.
David Corbett vividly paints the picture of the terrible price involved in trying to cross the Mexican border into the United States. And he does so in a way which informs without preaching.
A real highlight of David Corbett's writing is his characters. Every character is fully fleshed out and fully real. Every one of them has his/her own well-written history, which informs the present, and his/her own distinctive voice. Some of these histories, such as Tio Faustino's, are told through anecdotes which are beautiful standalone vignettes. And one example of how complex and multi-layered his characters are is that the rancher and his wife, who appear for less than 20 pages of the 450-page book, have a a whole heart-breaking story of their own.
I highly recommend Do They Know I'm Running, as well as David Corbett's other three books--The Devil's Redhead, Done for a Dime, and Blood of Paradise.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Chracters that stay, Jun 16 2010
By NY mystery fan - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Do They Know I'm Running?: A Novel (Paperback)
It took me a while to open the book; I needed to be ready for the rough
and emotional ride.
But I'm glad I did. I finished reading /Do They Know I'm Running/ about
three weeks ago. And somehow Lupe and Roque
and Tio Faustino and the rancher and his wife still stay with me. I love
it when characters do that.
It took me a long time to accept that sometimes you don't know what
happens to them later, but the fact that you wonder means they're real.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Do Thrillers Come Any Better Than This?, Jun 6 2010
By Joseph Clifford - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Do They Know I'm Running?: A Novel (Paperback)
Wow. If there is a better thriller out there, someone please let me know. Like "No Country for Old Men" (which I love) but with better characters, sharper writing, and a more convincing and compelling plot. This is the "other side," what gets lost in the immigration debate; it's the story of real people, broken but somehow still hopeful, lost in the shadows chasing that impossible American Dream. Corbett doesn't sugarcoat, doesn't placate, and isn't interested in playing by "commercial" rules. His characters are both ugly and beautiful, capable of extreme selfishness and sacrifice, almost in the same breath. In short, they are real. The book tackles immigration, terrorism, and patriotism, and somehow does so in an understated way. It's the story of a couple Mexican cousins, Happy and Godo, who've fought in a hypocritical war only to return banged up and unwanted, and who put their new "skills" to use to fix their fractured family, sending the darling baby of the family, Roque, across the border to fetch his uncle who's been deported. How tough could it be? Pretty d*mn tough. No one, nothing are what they seem. From the double dealing US government to the unspeakable inhumanities of the drug lords and cartels on the human smuggling pipeline, "Running" plays out like a frantic game of hide and seek, taking the reader down Mexico's dusty roads and into the cracks of an America many will never see. With an ending that is spot-on perfect. As flawless as it gets. And Corbett even manages to squeeze in a love story that cuts and lingers long after the book is put down. And what makes "Running" such a rare treat is the writing itself, which too often in mysteries is relegated to an afterthought. Here, the prose reads poetic and poignant; it's lyrical and rhythmic, stark and illumining, with lines that will break your heart. If this novel doesn't win major awards or isn't optioned into a Blockbuster, I lose what little faith I have left in the arts. "Do They Know I'm Running?" is the real deal, the best book you will read all year.
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
