Crossing the Wire

Crossing The Wire

            I learned an immense amount of knowledge from this novel. Growing up in Washington State I have had experience with individuals who have relatives who have similar stories to that of Victor. Although I have heard stories, I never really gained as much insight as when I read this book. Following the struggles of Victor truly shows the type of childhood many young men in his culture have to encounter. I enjoyed seeing the perspective of individuals risking their lives to come to America from the point of view of the crosser rather than the media.

            Victor has to enter into adulthood way earlier than the majority of children in my culture, so this opened my eyes to something I was unfamiliar with. I was aware of individuals sneaking across the boarder, but I was unaware of how young individuals are when they risk their lives. Victor had to leave his childhood behind to be the ‘man of the house’ and support his family. I learned that children around the world have more to worry about than just receiving their number one most wanted toy for Christmas. Many have more responsibilities at such a young age than I ever will experience. Victor being a fifteen-year-old risking his life to raise money for his family is a concept that I find heart breaking, but informative. I feel that Victor’s story made me more aware of various lifestyles of children and the struggles they live with.

            The media plays such a huge role in our understanding of boarder issues. I can safely say that I am no expert when it comes to these issues, but I am aware of them. I loved that this book provided insight from the other side of the issue, the individuals crossing the boarders themselves. We rarely see that perspective in the news and reading the text in this novel grabbed my attention and made me think twice about the issues at hand. I have a grandfather that lives in Arizona who goes on and on about these boarders issues. Many people say that it is a generational thing with the elderly being so bitter towards different races and cultures, but to me I feel that seeing the side of the boarder crossers is valuable. This is why I feel that this book provided me with a new perspective and ideas on this issue and opened my eyes to the lives of children dealing with this boarder issue.