Review of América del Norte by Nicolás Medina Mora

*America del Norte* by Nicolas Medina Mora (2024). Published by Soho Press.

If you’ve stumbled upon this blog post through the depths of the Internet, welcome! My name is Ashley, and while I am a writer and artist myself, I started this blog as a bit of a digital archive to keep track of all of the incredible work I was consuming. I’ve been running this blog for almost four years now, and sitting down to write for it honestly is one of the highlights of my day.

That said, I recently found myself unexpectedly unemployed. I spent Fall 2024 (this blog post is coming out in the Spring of 2025 because of the sheer amount of backlog I’ve managed to create) waiting for an opportunity I was promised to come through, and when it did not happen, I was disappointed.

I took a hard look at my finances and realized I was in a good position to sit back and focus on my life as a writer for a bit. While I wish I could be a full-time writer, it’s not a financially smart option for most people, let alone someone like me who has student loans and bills to pay.

Anyways, I used this time off to focus on reading, writing, and generating some blog posts for the blog in advance, especially as I know I’ll never get time like this again in my life. One of the books I stumbled upon in the new fiction section of my library was America del Norte, and I really wanted to read it once I saw the synopsis.

I devoured this book. I got through it over the course of two days, but if I wasn’t busy I probably would have finished it within a single sitting or two. Instead I read it over the course of four sessions.

Let’s get into the review! I could spend a lot of time rambling if left to keep going with just the introduction.

A Mexican elite and writer begins studying at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop.

Our main character in the novel is Sebastián, who grew up comfortable in Mexico City. His father is a prominent judge in Mexico, meaning that his upbringing and life has been pretty sweet so far. It’s not like those who come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, that’s for sure.

Sebastián has been working in the United States, in New York City, and has just gained admission into the prestigious Iowa Writers’ Workshop MFA program. He even has an American girlfriend, one who’s the pinnacle of knowledge throughout their time together. He’s prepared to leave New York behind, but little does he know he’s going to face other problems at the IWW.

One is the fact that his bi-national lifestyle, where he goes between Mexico and the United States, is slowly unraveling with the election of one Donald Trump. His visa situation becomes even more precarious because of this, and the fact he left behind a stable work visa in Brooklyn implies larger threats down the line.

Sebastián is also having problems with his girlfriend, and as one MFA cohort member notices his true privilege, they turn on him and begin making bitter comments about how he is not representative of the Latinx experience in the United States. Naturally, this Latina classmate grew up in a classic immigrant and working class household.

Sebastián’s mother has also been diagnosed with terminal cancer, which ups the stakes even more as he becomes locked into a region. Because all of this is happening, Sebastián slowly begins confronting what it means to be someone who is an elite moving back and forth, as well as how he engages with these scenarios.

Even in the classroom, he has trouble with students. As the main narrative shows Sebastián and his struggles, we cut to autofiction about Mexican history, folklore, and documentary work. In a way this part of the novel compliments how Sebastián is struggling with identity, as it seems like Mexican history is struggling, too.

This is probably where it makes or breaks the book for readers. If you’re expecting a narrative solely focusing on the narrator, this is where it gets complicated. But on the other hand, these little side stories and quests make us realize more about him as a character, which is important if you want to “get” the book more.

Overall Thoughts

One might find the meandering aspects of the novel to be quite overwhelming, and trust me, there were times where I was overwhelmed too. But something I realized is that the author is doing something really smart throughout all of this, leaving me in the state where I wanted to dig deeper and make connections.

There’s a lot going on in this novel, but if you take your time and sort through everything that’s thrown at you, I find that the journey of getting here is quite worth it.

That said, I liked this novel a lot. I’d recommend it to my friends, but it’s not for everywhere. As someone who has been to the Iowa Writers Workshop (for a program; I was rejected from their MFA), there’s a lot to understand about being there in that room, especially with this narrator.

Go and pick this one up if you’re interested. I think you’ll find it worth it.

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