The Tortilla Curtain

By: T. C. Boyle

Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat

Length: 13 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

PEN-Faulkner Award-winning author T. Coraghessan Boyle weaves together the stories of two families in Southern California: one affluent, the other destitute. As Boyle creates a counterpoint of personal needs, civic responsibility, and social custom, each family's quest for the American Dream fuels deep fear and anger that ultimately lead to a perilous confrontation.

©1995 T. Coraghessan Boyle (P)2003 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"This highly engaging story subtly plays on our consciences, forcing us to form, confirm, or dispute social, political, and moral viewpoints. This is a profound and tragic tale, one that exposes not only a failed American Dream, but a failing America." (Booklist)

The Tortilla Curtain

A book that challenges social conscience.
An illegal immigrant and his young pregnant wife strive to survive while staying invisible in a wealthy southern California. They interact with other immigrants, unscrupulous and sometimes predatory employers, the authorities, and the wealthy citizens of the area. We see how one of these citizens, who at the onset is a supporter of America as being a land of opportunity for all, by the end sees the squatters as the cause of problems complicating his family's life and damaging the ecology of their land. Its possible to sympathize with both sides and realize there is not a simple answer..

Overall Good Book

I had to read this book for school. The narrator was good for me. Easy to understand and comprehend. She used Spanish when needed and a dramatic voice to help comprehend the story line. It was somewhat of a disappointing ending but it helped when I used my imagination to hope that things got better. Overall I enjoyed the book, it was a harsh reality to different perspectives but it had an impact for sure.

The Dark Reality of Illegal Immigration

This book has Stayed with me many months after listening to it. The characters are real people for me. Their trials and adventures are real. I was born and raised in the area where this book is set. Although it is a work of fiction, every detail is vividly correct. The environment is one of the characters. I know this setting and now I know the inner lives of the people in this book. I do not look at day workers or the ongoing debates about immigration the same way since listening to The Tortilla Curtain. This is a fascinating and beautifully crafted story and a major commentary on an ongoing problem. I highly recommend this book for pleasure and for enlightenment..

Ugh!

This was a sad, depressing story that just never picked up. The narrator is one of my favorites, and she did a great job. I just couldn’t wait for it to be over. A real downer. :(

Good Story bad Performance

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No I wouldn't. The narrator was not good.

What did you like best about this story?

The story was good. The life of undocumented workers shows how terrible people and their hatred of people because of race can affect how they are treated. The story shows just how both sides can be as bad as the other.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Barbara Rosenblat?

Anyone else.

Did The Tortilla Curtain inspire you to do anything?

No

Any additional comments?

The fact that the narrator keeps taking loud breaths throughout the story was very distracting.

What a ride!

This book takes on some of the most potent and divisive topics of our time and weaves them into a great story. I am speechless.

The Tortilla Curtain

At times, very exciting, but overall quite boring. The ending left me unsatisfied,

Annoying !

The woman who reads this book was annoying to listen to -- to say the least. I could hear her continually swallowing and making various smacking sounds. I found myself thinking about how I couldn't stand to listen to her (but had to because it was for a class reading assignment) more than listening to the story. Appears author used his thesaurus frequently also annoying... you'll understand when you start listening. Wouldn't recommend to anyone.

really drags

Learning how the immigrants survive is interesting. But as an audiobook this really drags. I prefer unabridged audiobooks but abridgement is needed to make this book tolerable. The social theme of contrast between comfortable life of residents vs desperate life of the immigrants is hammered way, way beyond what is needed. We get it already, let the events speak for themselves. The internal dialog of the characters is tedious. Also, there are too many descriptions, many of which are not at all of interest. Avoid this audiobook.

So hard to listen to

Nothing but sadness and adversity. I kept waiting for them to overcome. For there to be a noble character for there to be some triumph and it never, ever comes. I cannot recommend this book because it doesn't inspire it only depresses.