READING GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDE
GENERAL QUESTIONS
What was your experience reading The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez? Were you surprised at what you learned? Were there scenes or moments that were particularly painful or joyous for you?
Aaron Bobrow-Strain is an academic researcher, but takes a narrative approach in this book. How did the book weave people’s stories with history, politics, and economics? How did reading about the border and immigration in narrative form affect the way you learned about these topics?
Why do you think the book’s title is “The Death and Life,” in that order? What do you think Aida’s “death” was? Was this a literal or metaphorical death? How does Aida manage to overcome death in the story?
Many people intersect with Aida’s life in different ways, including Raúl, Luz, Aida’s sisters, Rosie, Ema, Alvaro, Jesse, Katy, and others. Who was your favorite secondary character? What role do Raúl, Rosie, and Ema’s backstories play in the book?
The critic Oscar Villalon, writing in LitHub, concluded that, “What makes The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez exceptional and powerful is that by getting us to care about Hernandez, and by not relying on a dishonest, feel-good ending, the book also guides us, whether intentionally or not, to ask if a story about the undocumented living along the border is also a story about the value we place on the well-being and the futures of Mexican Americans in general.” What did you think about the book’s ending? Do you agree with Oscar Villalon?
Are you an immigrant or the child of immigrants? How did it feel to read The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez from that perspective? In what ways were your, or your family’s, experiences of immigration and the border similar to or different from those of Aida and other characters in the book?
If you are the descendant of people who immigrated (or were forced to come) to the United States generations ago, what do you know about how your ancestors’ experiences were similar or different to those of Aida and other characters in the book? Did you think about your own past as you read the book?
IMMIGRATION AND THE BORDER
Were you surprised by the book’s depiction of communities on the U.S.-Mexico border? How was it similar or different to the way the border is talked about in national media? What did you learn about how the border came to be the way it is today?
On page 45, Aaron Bobrow-Strain writes that “The ‘illegal immigrant’ was thus invented in Washington D.C., conjured out of contradiction.” Did the book change the way you think about undocumented immigrants? If so, how? After reading this book, how would you respond to arguments that undocumented immigrants don’t deserve rights or protections because they are “criminals”?
The author calls Aida and others in her position, “citizens without citizenship.” What do you think this means? How have we created an immigration system that results in people being “citizens without citizenship”? Do you think that this is fair? If you could change the immigration system, how would you change it?
Rosie Mendoza often says, “Humans make mistakes, immigrants can’t.” Why can’t immigrants make mistakes? Aida is far from perfect, and has made many mistakes. She’s doesn’t fit the flawless, high-achieving “model” immigrant type that often gets held up to make the case for immigration reform. Aaron Bobrow-Strain calls the good immigrant / bad immigrant narrative that’s so prevalent in immigration debates an “impossible binary.” Why? Do you agree? Do you think that immigrants who have made mistakes, or otherwise don’t fit into the “model” category, deserve rights and protections?
The book describes a twenty-five-year bi-partisan effort to secure the U.S.-Mexico border by making it more difficult and dangerous to cross. What would you say those efforts have achieved or not achieved? What you a truly secure border look like, in your opinion?
RACE AND IDENTITY
The geopolitical line between the United States and Mexico is the most obvious example of a border in this story. What other borders do you think appear in the book? What role do these divides play in Aida’s story? What about the other characters in the book?
The category of “Latino” is often presented as a single, homogenous unit. What kinds of differences and divides within this category did the book depict?
What role do music, clothing, and popular culture references play in the narrative?
Aaron Bobrow-Strain reflects on his social position and the many differences between him and Aida in the chapter “About This Book.” What kinds of ethical and political dilemmas do you see in researching and writing a story like this? How did he navigate those dilemmas?
DOUGLAS, ARIZONA
Many reviewers have noted that the town of Douglas, Arizona is a character in this book. Do you agree with that assessment? If so, what kind of character is Douglas? What did you learn about the town? In what ways does the history of Douglas parallel (or not parallel) Aida’s life?
Were you surprised by the attention this “border story” paid to the economic history of Douglas? How do you see the history of deindustrialization and poverty relating to the story of immigration and the border?
VIOLENCE AND SURVIVAL
On page 343, Aaron Bobrow-Strain tells readers that, before meeting Aida Hernandez, “I had not considered writing about trauma and violence against women. Aida’s account made it instantly clear that the large forces at work in Douglas couldn’t be understood apart from those subjects.” What do Aida and others’ stories reveal about the ways that border and immigration policies make women more vulnerable to violence, or even encourage violence against women? How does the current immigration system produce trauma? Can this be avoided?
Aida is a survivor. What gives her the strength to survive? What lessons can we draw from Aida’s story about resilience and survival? Do you find hope in Aida’s story?
WHAT NEXT?
Aaron Bobrow-Strain has said that one of his goals in writing this book was to expand the boundaries of empathy to include people whose messy, human lives don’t necessarily fit into the “model immigrant” or “deserving poor” categories. Did you feel an empathetic connection to Aida and others while reading the book? Why or why not?
Do you think that increasing empathy is an important starting point for creating social change? Is empathy enough? How do you move from feeling empathy to taking action? Can you think of examples of times in your life when feeling empathetic connection helped you take action for social change? What about examples where you weren’t able to make this leap?
On page 350, Aaron Bobrow-Strain writes, “For U.S. readers—particularly those who observe border and immigration debates from a comfortable remove—this book should be a look in the mirror as much as it is a portrait of Aida. After all, the forms of institutional violence against immigrants and border communities described here are carried out in our name—purportedly to keep us safe.” The news coming from the U.S-Mexico border can be overwhelming sometimes, even paralyzing. Are there particular actions, however small, that you feel motivated to take after reading this book? Are there particular smaller issues within the larger sweep of border and immigration policies that you feel motivated to try to change?
Are you already part of a group or community that could take action around the border and immigration together? What resources and skills do you already have that might contribute to this work?
