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 enlarge | Author: Ted Conover
Publisher: Vintage
Category: Book
List Price: $14.95
Buy Used: $5.70
You Save: $9.25 (62%)
New (24) Used (34) Collectible (3) from $5.70
Avg. Customer Rating:  30 reviews
Sales Rank: 28833
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.7
ISBN: 0394755189
Dewey Decimal Number: 331.6272073
EAN: 9780394755182
ASIN: 0394755189
Publication Date: August 12, 1987
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: paperback in good condition has no writing/highlight thru out pages.
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| Customer Reviews:
 An often unseen vantage point September 30, 2006
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is an important book, particularly in today's charged political climate. It is very easy to deal in absolutes when one deals with abstract ideas, but what Conover does well, is to humanize those ideas. While many speak of illegal imigration, Conover speaks of specific imigrants. He shares their perspectives,not condemning them, not glorifying them, but merely letting them tell their stories.
Aditionally Conover is remarkable for the amount of energy he put into getting to know his subject. Half of the worth of the book is the story of the migrants, the other half certainly is Conover's own story.
 Outstanding book August 31, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I live in Southern California, and work with and around illegal aliens (or undocumented workers) on a daily basis. This is one of the best works written by an Anglo-American on the subject I have read. Conover took the time to really get to know these people, and not just from an investigative point of view. He worked the fields with these men, lived as they did and currently do, and even took a beating for it. Actually knowing and physically feeling what these migrants do gives him credibility far beyond other reporters/journalists who ask only questions, and feel that they are "in depth" after spending a week with their "subjects". Conover makes his experience personal, and the reader feels like this is a story told over dinner. The next time you are at the grocery store, after reading this book, you'll have a greater appreciation for the bag of oranges you are buying, and the story behind them.
Outstanding glimpse into the lives of undocumented Mexicans June 26, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Written all the way back in the mid-1980s, long before all the heated rhetoric about illegal immigration going on in the US today, this book has turned out to be amazingly prescient. I feel like I would have had a much better understanding of this subject (not to mention appreciation of the people involved) had I discovered it a long time ago, but I suppose late is better than never.
Ted Conover did what I don't imagine very many other Americans would have the courage to do: Cross illegally from Mexico into the US with Mexicans doing the same thing. In doing so, he gives readers incredible insight into what compels some Mexicans to make that journey (i.e what life is like where they come from), what the journey is like, and what awaits them on this side of the border. I found myself exceedingly grateful for having been born American and simply in awe of the Mexicans who live such vastly disparate lives from their privileged neighbors to the north.
Conover simply relates his experiences to readers without the kind of ideological commentary or other editorializing that can get in the way of the facts surrounding the contentious issues involved. Coyotes is a well-written, touching, informative, and inspiring book that should be required reading for all Americans before they open their mouths about illegal immigration.
Fascinating adventure! May 22, 2006
Highly recommended, non-fiction you won't want to put down. The unrelenting drive and work ethic of the mojados (wetbacks) is incredible, and to me, admirable.
Conover writes very well; I'm online to buy more of his books right now!
A Different Perspective of Illegal Aliens! April 10, 2006
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
This is an exceptional book that puts a face on the current hot topic of illegal aliens in America. Having purchased property in Mexico I am reading many books and finding the culture much more diverse and charming than Americans realize. My latest book was Finding Enrique, the story of children left in Central America who are raised without their mothers as they are in the USA earning a living for the family. These kids endure a heartbreaking journey trying to join their mothers. Imagine arriving in Texas and asking which way to San Francisco!
Having learned so much, I purchased this book to review how the illegal alien environment was in the late 1980s as that is when this book was written. Frankly, it sounds very similar to today as so many of the workers are migrant farm workers and travel back and forth each season. Frankly, I just assumed that once across the aliens stayed here but in this book that is not the case as they continually travel back to their village. In addition, there is an entire "word of mouth" network of recommending new workers from certain villages to American farms of previous employ.
This author starts on orange groves in AZ. The living conditions are deplorable and it's interesting how he lives and works among the Mexicans but they treat him with such respect. From AZ, they head to FL for a different season. This is one of the comical parts of the book as over 6 people load in to a $300 car and head across America in a blizzard with repeated car trouble. After many mishaps they do make it to Florida where conditions are similar to slightly better.
The Author then spends a great deal of time in villages of workers he has met in central Mexico. This gives him great insight in to how their culture is being pulled apart by the migration to America, specifically how it breaks down the core family in this heavily Catholic country. This visit includes an illegal passage into America specifically through the AZ desert which is quite dangerous. Also, when revisiting AZ, there is a side trip to Los Angeles for work that due to poor transportation they decide to fly. This sounds like a good idea until you see that these men have never been in an airport before which creates great comedy and sympathetic stories. Finally, there is an extended stay in Los Angeles where it shows living conditions for those who have lived in America for a while in a big city.
I must say this author took great risk, physically on crossing and legally as he could have been accused of harboring illegal aliens that carries high penalties. I compliment him on this unique research that generates a compelling read. I found this book extremely educational and entertaining. And, it may change your view of the plight of these aliens. I'm not sure what the solution is but I have great respect for the hardworking tenacity of many of these people.
A very important book concerning current events.
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