One of the most anticipated books of the year dropped on Tuesday, and it’s already been praised by authors like Stephen King and been chosen by Oprah as her next book club read.
But in the few days since its release, Jeanine Cummins’ “American Dirt” has been the subject of a growing backlash, according to NBC News.
Though it has received high praise from some literary figures, others have argued that it is problematic and potentially racist, and points to a broader problem within the publishing world of which authors and kinds of stories are promoted and celebrated, according to NBC.
The kind of controversy surrounding Cummins’ novel is not new in the book world. Here’s what you need to know and why it matters.
What is “American Dirt”?
“American Dirt” is a novel about a woman and her son in Mexico, who are the sole survivors of their family after they are attacked by members of a cartel. Knowing that the cartel will come after them next, they begin a journey to the U.S. border, where they hope to cross into the United States and be safe, according to USA Today.
The author, Jeanine Cummins, has previously written three other books, including the memoir “A Rip in Heaven.”
Why is it controversial?
Cummins has identified as white (though she has recently begun to discuss the fact that she has a Puerto Rican grandmother) — something that she herself acknowledged as a challenge to telling a story about Mexican characters in the author’s note of her book, according to Vox.
“I worried that, as a nonmigrant and non-Mexican, I had no business writing a book set almost entirely in Mexico, set entirely among migrants,” Cummins wrote, according to Vox, adding, “I wished someone slightly browner than me would write it.”
But, as many Latino authors are pointing out, there are books about both Mexicans and migrant experiences that have been written by Latino authors, Vox reported.
According to NBC, this has sparked debate over “who claims ownership of certain narratives?” And it raises questions about whether the attention that is being given to “American Dirt” and white authors devalues and detracts from works written by Latinos.
The novel has also faced criticism that it does not effectively portray the characters as fully-formed human beings, and instead “fetishizes the pain” of the characters, according to Vox.
What are people saying?
The novel has received some high praise since its release. Author Stephen King praised it as “an extraordinary piece of work,” while Don Winslow has called it “a ‘Grapes of Wrath’ for our times,” according to Entertainment Weekly.
Oprah announced on Tuesday that “American Dirt” was her next pick for Oprah’s Book Club, writing on Instagram that it is “a novel not for our times, but for THIS moment in our times. This story changed me and hopefully it will change you, too.”
Mexican American author Sandra Cisneros has also spoken out on behalf of the book, saying, according to Vox, “This book is not simply the great American novel; it’s the great novel of las Americas. It’s the great world novel! This is the international story of our times. Masterful.”
However, it has also been the subject of criticism. Mexican American author Myriam Gurba published a scorching review online, after Ms. Magazine, who she originally wrote it for, refused to publish it because it was “too negative,” according to NBC.
“It is being marketed as a social justice and protest novel when instead it treats migrants like a zoo curiosity,” Gurba told NBC.
Esmerelda Bermudez, a staff writer for the Los Angeles Times, reflected on Twitter about her experience as an immigrant fleeing El Salvador with her family, writing, “I see no part of myself reflected in #AmericanDirt, a book white critics are hailing as the great immigrant novel.”
Meanwhile, author Julissa Arce Raya tweeted, “As a Mexican immigrant, who was undocumented, I can say with authority that this book is a harmful, stereotypical, damaging representation of our experiences.”
What is the author saying?
Cummins wrote in the author’s note of the novel that her reason for writing “American Dirt” was to humanize the experiences of Mexican migrants, according to Vox.
“At worst, we perceive them [migrants] as an invading mob of resource-draining criminals, and, at best, a sort of helpless, impoverished, faceless brown mass, clamoring for help at our doorstep,” she wrote, according to Vox. “We seldom think of them as our fellow human beings.”
She also noted that her husband is an immigrant who used to be undocumented. However, she does not mention that her husband immigrated from Ireland, which is a different experience than migrants crossing the Mexican border, Vox reported.
Cummins acknowledged the controversy surrounding her choice to write this story in a recent interview with the New York Times.
“I do think that the conversation about cultural appropriation is incredibly important, but I also think that there is a danger sometimes of going too far toward silencing people,” Cummins told the Times. “Everyone should be engaged in telling these stories, with tremendous care and sensitivity.”