Summary

In “Matamoros and the Moors,” the family arrives in Matamoros in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. Now Consuelo suggests that they play “looking-forward game” (97). The game ends with Sindy’s pronouncement that she looks forward to going home again. They sleep together on one inflatable mattress.

This chapter is followed by two poems, one titled “The River Never Happened to Me (i)” and “The River Never Happened to Us (ii)”. In the first, Claudia describes her trips to the river by Tía Soila’s house. In the second, Claudia describes the family crossing the Río Bravo, guided by the coyote.

In “My Side--Your Side,” Claudia describes her first impressions of the Río Bravo. They crouch behind bushes listening to Javi’s instructions on how to cross the river using the aluminum boats. Javi squeezes twenty people onto the boat, which...