My Side of the River

September 1, 2023

The U.S.-born daughter of Mexican immigrants, Gutierrez was entering high school as a top-notch student when her parents were forced to return to Mexico after their visas expired. Left to care for her younger brother and get herself through school, she eventually attended the University of Pennsylvania and is currently serving as a product manager at a Big Tech company. Here she discusses separation trauma, the opportunities and costs of staying in the United States, and the love between her and her brother, who's pursuing his own dreams. Prepub Alert.

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Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2023
A second-generation immigrant's story of holding her dreams, her parents' expectations, and America's demands in balance. Born in Arizona to Mexican parents on tourist visas, Camarillo Gutierrez was told from an early age that she would need "to be the best." This directive became her mantra as she moved through her childhood in Tucson, and both volatility and education were driving forces. In this debut memoir, the author, a product manager at a big tech company, leaves almost no facet of the immigrant experience unexplored: dire economic circumstances, arbitrary and opaque visa policies, the premium placed on achievement, organizing in the face of rising anti-immigrant sentiment. Camarillo Gutierrez's life and interests have breathtaking scope. We follow her from scenes set at the gate between Mexico and the U.S. to the halls of the Ivy League and positions in finance and technology, and the author offers memorable thoughts about religion, the environment, and mental health. She displays the voice, insight, and personal connection to turn any one of these topics into its own volume. At a few points in the narrative, however, the scope is unmatched by the depth, leaving some threads without continuity, others without closure, and many with surface-level analysis. If this trait sometimes leaves readers unsure where to focus, it also reveals the enormity of the pressure immigrants in America, especially immigrant youth, must withstand--the compromises and sacrifices that must be made, the contradictions that elude reconciliation. Camarillo Gutierrez's open and candid personal exposition hints not only at the tensions inherent in her own life, but also at those in American culture and policy. By bringing readers into the precarious and emotional positions that these tensions force individuals and families to endure, she invites deeper, more compassionate analysis and conversation. A moving story of the humanity at the center of the often-breathless and uninformed immigration debate.

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January 1, 2024

Gutierrez's memoir poignantly conveys her story of being born and raised in Tucson, AZ, by Mexican immigrants. Her parents wanted her to get the best education she could in the U.S., and she excelled academically. Her parents' visas expired when she was 15, which forced them to return to Mexico while Gutierrez stayed behind in the U.S. to continue her education. She moved several times, staying with neighbors, school administrators, and even strangers who took her in. Through sheer determination, she fought back against the oppression, trauma, and racism that worked against her, to create the life her parents dreamed of for their children. Written in an immersive and easy-to-read style, the book shows readers what it was like for Gutierrez throughout those difficult times before she achieved an impressive level of success. VERDICT Perfect for readers who want to learn more about how the U.S immigration system affects the families its laws separate. Also a great pick for fans of memoirs about people who overcome the odds against them.--Leah Fitzgerald

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January 1, 2024
Gutierrez's captivating memoir shares her experience as a first-generation American. The author's parents came from Mexico to Arizona to have her and her brother, wanting to provide a better life for their children through U.S. citizenship and access to the American educational system, but were forced to leave the U.S. when their tourist visas expired. Relating a truncated childhood and chaotic early years lived in the U.S. and Mexico with exceptional courage, grit, and resilience, Gutierrez respectfully references the multifaceted role that her family played during this time as a source of both frustration and encouragement. As a teenager, Gutierrez flourished despite abrupt family separation, poverty, homelessness, and ongoing intergenerational trauma. She suppressed her personal goals, suffering bouts of deep cynicism and hopelessness, to pay homage to the tremendous sacrifices made on her behalf. The author modestly recounts the rigorous education she procured while simultaneously assuming guardianship of her younger brother and financially supporting her family back in Mexico. This is an inspirational example of dedication, devotion, and triumph over multiple oppressive juggernauts.

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February 26, 2024
Camarillo Gutierrez transforms her 2020 TED talk into a potent debut about her separation from her parents and her experience as a first-generation college student. Born in Tucson, Ariz., to Mexican immigrants, Gutierrez’s childhood was marked by the constant threat of collapse. Her parents worked under-the-table jobs, collected cans for money, and housed their four-person family in a one-room shed. In 2011, when Camarillo Gutierrez was 15, her parents’ tourist visas expired and they were blacklisted from further entry into the United States for at least three years. Camarillo Gutierrez opted to leave her parents and younger brother in Mexico and remain in Tucson alone, where she would pursue college and attempt to become the family breadwinner. She graduated high school at the top of her class, secured admission to the University of Pennsylvania, and eventually landed an analyst position at Wells Fargo in New York City, where she took in her brother so he could also attend college. Camarillo Gutierrez sustains a sense of urgency to her writing, whether about her first memories of Tucson’s rushing Rillito River or the ins and outs of caring for her teenage brother, and creates an involving, inspirational portrait of personal resilience and firm family bonds. It’s galvanizing stuff. Agent: Johanna V. Castillo, Writers House. (Feb.)Correction: An earlier version of this review mischaracterized the circumstances of the author’s separation from her parents.