The Tortilla Curtain cover art

The Tortilla Curtain

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The Tortilla Curtain

By: T. C. Boyle
Narrated by: T. C. Boyle
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About this listen

 A Radio 4 Book Club Selection.

Topanga Canyon is home to two couples on a collision course. Los Angeles liberals Delaney and Kyra Mossbacker lead an ordered, sushi-and-recycling existence in a newly gated hilltop community: He is a sensitive nature writer, she an obsessive realtor. Mexican illegals Candido and America Rincon desperately cling to their vision of the American Dream as they fight off starvation in a makeshift camp deep in the ravine.

From the moment a freak accident brings Candido and Delany into intimate contact, these four and their opposing worlds gradually intersect in what becomes a tragicomedy of error and misunderstanding.

Winner of the Prix Medicis Etranger and now a major motion picture.

Click here to see all the titles in our Radio & TV Book Clubs collection.©1995 T. Coraghessan Boyle (P)2006 Blackstone Audio Inc. Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Urban Fiction Comedy

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Critic reviews

"A compelling story of myopic misunderstanding and mutual tragedy." ( Chicago Tribune)
"This highly engaging story subtly plays on our consciences, forcing us to form, confirm, or dispute social, political, and moral viewpoints....Boyle manages to address these issues in a nonjudgmental fashion, depicting the vast inequity in [the characters'] parallel existences. This is a profound and tragic tale." ( Booklist)
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Excellent apart from a few wincing moments when the narrator clearly made a guess at the pronunciation of words novel to him.

Great story mostly well read.

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I really enjoyed the complexity of this story and I disagree, I think it is the perfect ending. There is no resolution to this narrative which reflects life. I loved it.

Great listen

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The way that Boyle can show total understanding and empathy for people that are at times completely detestable makes him one of the greatest writers of this generation. Managing to depict people at their worst, yet at the same time, giving you the empathy to understand exactly how they got there.
Not only is this story very entertaining and simplistic in the best way, it is also, I believe, a very important story for the current western world with a growing disparity in our ideologies and so much hatred being justified by our selfish and individualistic culture. To do this without being preachy or condescending is a great achievement.

Incredibly empathetic story from an unwavering rationalist

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This is not an easy listen, although enthralling. The story of a clash of cultures, hopes and disappointments and racial tension… I was totally gripped by the entwining stories, however it ends abruptly halfway through the story with no resolution - which is incredibly frustrating!! I had to double check there wasn’t a final chapter missing!

Important story, strangely abrupt ending

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Great to read and wonderful to listen to. Amazing performance by the author, I would strongly recommend this novel. Really interesting story line

Great book

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This got recommended to me but I have to say I found it so relentlessly gloomy and depressing I wanted to it end long before it actually did.

Relentlessly gloomy.

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