Trip. My parents started using that word about a year ago—“one day, you’lltake a trip to be with us. Like an adventure.”Javier Zamora’s adventure is a 3,000-mile journey from his small town inEl Salvador, through Guatemala and Mexico, and across the U.S. border.He will leave behind his beloved aunt and grandparents to reunite with amother who left four years ago and a father he barely remembers. Travelingalone amid a group of strangers and a “coyote” hired to lead them to safety,Javier expects his trip to last two short weeks.At nine years old, all Javier can imagine is rushing into his parents’ arms,snuggling in bed between them, and living under the same roof again. Hecannot foresee the perilous boat trips, relentless desert treks, pointed guns,arrests and deceptions that await him; nor can he know that those twoweeks will expand into two life-altering months alongside fellow migrantswho will come to encircle him like an unexpected family.A memoir as gripping as it is moving, Solito provides an immediate andintimate account not only of a treacherous and near-impossible journey,but also of the miraculous kindness and love delivered at the mostunexpected moments. Solito is Javier Zamora’s story, but it’s also the storyof millions of others who had no choice but to leave home.
