Introduction

Set amid the perils of illegal border crossings, The Iguana Tree is the suspenseful saga of Lilia and Hector, who separately make their way from Mexico into the United States, seeking work in the Carolinas and a home for their infant daughter.

Michel Stone's harrowing novel meticulously examines the obstacles each faces in pursuing a new life: manipulation, rape, and murder in the perilous commerce of border crossings; betrayal by family and friends; exploitation by corrupt officials and rapacious landowners on the U.S. side; and, finally, the inexorable workings of the U.S. justice system.

Hector and Lilia meet Americans willing to help them with legal assistance and offers of responsible employment, but their illegal entry seems certain to prove their undoing. The consequences of their decisions are devastating. In the end, The Iguana Tree is a universal story of loss, grief, and human dignity.

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Excerpt

The other twin did not emerge, and his brother paced the bank frantically calling to the river.After ten minutes, Lilia and the man and his boy had to proceed, to meet their contact on theAmerican side. The twin would not leave his brother behind, and he jumped and ran along theshore with grief and confusion, crying and cursing and pleading to God. Lilia and the others lefthim there beside the river, along with the rope and the trash bag that had carried the boy acrossthe water.They followed the bank to a patch of abandoned cars Carlos had told them to find. Thevehicles were strewn about like bones from some forgotten massacre. They were to climb inside,hide, and not show themselves until someone approached and called out the name Juan.Lilia recalled Carlos's instructions: “You may see others hiding like you. You'll have no needto speak to them, no need to answer when someone approaches and calls out Pedro or José orJesús. You listen for

Juan

. When you hear this name, you move quickly to him, and he will takeyou on your way.”Lilia, shivering from wet clothes and exertion, chose a car similar to the others: paint longgone, make and model indiscernible, front seat and steering wheel missing. She curled into theback seat. The interior, sun-bleached and ragged, looked to have once been red, and strips hungfrom its ceiling like a weathered tapestry. The interior smelled of others who'd come before Lilia,a distinct human essence. This car graveyard seemed unlikely cover for those seeking a betterlife.Weeds grew through the rusted-out floorboard. Tiny purple blossoms at the tips of long, thinstems reached for the morning sunlight streaming through the broken window. Lilia fingered adetermined stem, bending the tiny blossom to her nose, but it released no scent. She'd never seen

this species in her village, and understood her future would be filled with experiences new andstrange.“Victor.” She heard the word clearly and froze. Again, “Victor.” The sound was a man'svoice, deep, hoarse. Lilia imagined the burly man behind the sound. She imagined she heard theslightest shuffling outside, and she dared not move. Silence resumed. She had heard neither theman's approach nor departure. She had heard nothing save for the calling of the name, but sheknew those waiting for Victor had departed.The creaking of the car door centimeters from her face startled Lilia, and she gasped, but didnot scream, when a man crawled onto the seat beside her. Their eyes met, and he seemed wary of Lilia, like one who comes upon a snake in the weeds. He was not the twin feared drowned but adark-eyed stranger wearing gray denim pants and a faded brown t-shirt, both wet, as was his hair.His silent nod said both “I will not hurt you” and “You will not harm me in return.” Sheacquiesced, made room for him. He folded himself onto the seat beside her, careful not to touchher as he pulled the rusted door closed behind him.They did not speak but remained sequestered, each to a side of the seat like mice cagedtogether for the first time, unsure but aware they were both in new territory. She wondered abouthis story, his hometown, his family. Did he have children? Was he gentle? Corrupt?She considered all she would endure to get to America, what others such as this man besideher had to endure. She wished to say to the man that this experience made them see each otherthe way a dog sees a dog in the street or a bird sees another bird in a tree, but she said nothingand stared at her hands.Lilia believed the man beside her would not harm her. How could she know this? Everythingnow seemed reduced to its base; humanity had been stripped to skin and bone and pounding

hearts, to the rise and fall of breasts praying to get beyond this point, to another place. Sheunderstood that she and this man awaited their fates, the completion of journeys begun so thatone day they would experience the sweetness of hoping for more than their ancestors could haveconsidered.“Juan.” The word broke the silence, and Lilia looked at the man beside her who had alsoheard the call. This was not the name he awaited. As she nudged the door open, the man noddedfarewell to her. She slipped out, careful not to crush the purple flowers that stretched toward thelight view abbreviated excerpt only...

Discussion Questions

1) With which character do you feel more empathy: Hector or Lilia, and why?

2) How did this novel affect your thoughts/opinions on the US/Mexico border and immigration?

3) What is the theme of this book and give examples to support your answer.

4) What role do wild animals play in the book and what might they symbolize?

5) (for parents) How far would you go or what would you be willing to risk/do if you believed a better life for your child were possible?

Weblinks

»	Author Michel Stone's web site

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