Beschreibung
Werner J. Eglis Geschichte über die Tunnelkids von Nogales schlägt uns heute genauso in ihren Bann wie damals, als sie
geschrieben wurde. Die Abwasserkanäle von Nogales sind das Reich der Tunnelkids. Wer illegal in die USA will, kommt an ihnen nicht vorbei. Auf seiner Flucht durch Mexiko trifft der 15-jährige Santiago auf Lucia, das Mädchen mit der Katze. Für eine kurze Zeit bleiben die beiden zusammen, bis das Schicksal sie wieder trennt. Santiago schließt sich einer Bande der Tunnelkids an, bis er Sombra kennen lernt, die Tochter eines Beamten des amerikanischen Grenzschutzes, doch seine Liebe zu Lucia bedeutet ihm mehr als der Lockruf der Freiheit.
„Kurz gesagt: Tunnel Kids knistert vor Hochspannung!“ SIKJM.
Rezension
Composed in beautiful, sensual, and lyrical language, Tunnel Kids by Werner J. Egli is an engaging story of Santiago Molina, a fifteen-year-old boy who leaves his small village near San Cristobal de las Casas and travels to Mexico City to start a new life. But his journey doesn’t end in Mexico City because Mexico is just another stop that propels him further toward the United States.
The story starts with a powerful, disquieting memory and reminiscences from the narrator’s childhood, including the inciting incident of Sta Claus whom the author describes as a gringo and his attempt to touch his elder sister improperly. The narrative moves on pretty fast and different conflicts are introduced. The author’s father is killed. His sister runs off and, unable to live in peace with his mother, he leaves to start a new life abroad. However, as soon as he reaches Mexico City, things go awry for him. He is beaten by a gang and the police and arrested for robbery, but a kind man of justice takes him to his opulent home. The protagonist is fueled by a sense of revenge and goes after the police officer who abused him. But he finds himself in a place where there is no life, the floodwater tunnel of Nogales, where many children live and where he falls in love and loses the love of his life to the cold hands of the flood. To survive, he will have to travel to the end of the tunnel.
Tunnel Kids is a wonderful story, told in a powerful, clear, and exciting voice. The story is told in first-person narrative, and the author seems to have a unique mastery of this narrative style. The beautiful prose is enticing, featuring very powerful descriptions that capture the setting and the culture in vivid detail and clarity. I enjoyed the emotional insights and the psychological depth of the story as well as the internal conflict. The protagonist is a character who readers will love. It is also interesting to notice how the themes of love, family, death, crime, and adventure are seamlessly woven into the story. It’s a page-turner, an exciting and delightful read.
Reviewed by Romauld Dzemo, San Francisco Book Review
