THE AFTERLIFE
“Even the beauties of language, of words rightly chosen, are riddled with who we are, class and race, and whatever else will keep us—so we think—safe on the narrow path.”
In The Afterlife, retired English professor and Dominican immigrant Antonia is trying to regain her footing after suddenly losing her husband. Just as she begins to adjust to her new reality, Antonia is confronted by dual crises: an undocumented, pregnant teen in need of help appears on her doorstep - and Antonia's unstable sister has gone missing. As she grapples with her responsibility toward this stranger and her sibling, Antonia seeks to reclaim her sense of self in the next stage of her life.
The strength of this short, introspective novel is in its lovely writing, filled with tiny details that act as a magnifying glass into Antonia's psyche, especially her grief. The nuances of language barriers and identity struggles could only have been described with such authenticity by the author. This story provides an interesting backdrop to unsettling questions: how much do we owe to another human being? To what degree are we all responsible for each other? While I enjoyed this book, I craved more depth in the connection to the young visitor in Antonia’s life, her motivations in helping her, and how she was changed by that experience. That said, Afterlife is a poignant, interesting story and the issues it tackles are important and timely.
The hypocrisy of Antonia’s community toward immigrants is evident in the form of a beloved Mexican restaurant called Lulu’s. It seemed that the townspeople are accepting of local immigrants so long as they serve their own purposes, like delicious enchiladas - but most, save for a few good samaritans, seemed not to see them as individuals. A disheartening thought - but I hope books like this one may create change, one story at a time. Lulu’s enchiladas may be legendary, but I opted for something a little lighter and easier to make: fish tacos with pineapple salsa, broccoli slaw and grilled corn.
