WHY ISN’T EVERYONE TALKING ABOUT THIS BOOK?!

Set in an all-too-real dystopian future in an unnamed border state, this absolutely chilling book explores the dark side of America and the horrific effects of racist immigration policies. Chilling because so many of the terrible events in this fictional book are very real.

Our main character Iris is a second-generation Mexican-American who has always prided herself on being a rule-follower. Even though her name is based on a lie, she uses it proudly: “𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘐𝘯𝘦́𝘴,” she admits, but it was actually because a teacher couldn’t pronounce her name. “𝘕𝘰𝘸 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦 𝘐𝘳𝘪𝘴, 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦.”

Iris and her young daughter Melanie move into a new home in a suburb where Iris marvels at the neat and orderly neighborhood. Except that soon a wall begins to rise around Iris’s home, gleaming yet covered in broken glass. And no one else can see it.

Soon, a new identification system provides all “legitimate” citizens with a handy wristband. The government touts it as protecting the environment in a propaganda campaign designed to instill fear and suspicion among Americans. This does not seem very far-fetched at all which makes this novel all the more terrifying. All of Iris’s past attempts to conform will not help her now.

This terrifying thriller blends elements of satire and magical realism into a story that is both heartbreaking and inspiring all at once. A must-read!

 

About the Book:

 

Brando Skyhorse, the PEN/Hemingway Award—winning author of The Madonnas of Echo Park, returns with a riveting literary dystopian novel set in a near-future America where mandatory identification wristbands make second-generation immigrants into second-class citizens—a powerful family saga for readers of Mohsin Hamid’s Exit West and Rumaan Alam’s Leave the World Behind.

Iris Prince is starting over. After years of drifting apart, she and her husband are going through a surprisingly drama-free divorce. She’s moved to a new house in a new neighborhood, and has plans for gardening, coffee clubs, and spending more time with her nine-year-old daughter Melanie. It feels like her life is finally exactly what she wants it to be.

Then, one beautiful morning, she looks outside her kitchen window—and sees that a wall has appeared in her front yard overnight. Where did it come from? What does it mean? And why does it seem to keep growing?

Meanwhile, a Silicon Valley startup has launched a high-tech wrist wearable called “the Band.” Pitched as a convenient, eco-friendly tool to help track local utilities and replace driver’s licenses and IDs, the Band is available only to those who can prove parental citizenship. Suddenly, Iris, a proud second-generation Mexican-American, is now of “unverifiable origin,” unable to prove who she is, or where she, and her undocumented loved ones, belong. Amid a climate of fear and hate-fueled violence, Iris must confront how far she’ll go to protect what matters to her most.

My Name Is Iris is an all-too-possible story about family, intolerance, and hope, offering a brilliant and timely look at one woman’s journey to discover who she can’t—and can—be.