My (Underground) American Dream

This was an excellent immigrant story that was gripping from beginning to end. Although it was hard to root for the protagonist towards the end of the book after the way she "beat the system," it was a book worth reading for sure.

I received a courtesy ARC of My (Underground) American Dream through Netgalley and the publisher, Center Street, in exchange for an honest review.

For an undocumented immigrant, what is the true cost of the American Dream? Julissa Arce shares her story in a riveting memoir.
When she was 11 years old Julissa Arce left Mexico and came to the United States on a ARCE_My+Underground+American+Dream_covertourist visa to be reunited with her parents, who dreamed the journey would secure her a better life. When her visa expired at the age of 15, she became an undocumented immigrant. Thus began her underground existence, a decades long game of cat and mouse, tremendous family sacrifice, and fear of exposure.
After the Texas Dream Act made a college degree possible, Julissa's top grades and leadership positions landed her an internship at Goldman Sachs, which led to a full time position--one of the most coveted jobs on Wall Street. Soon she was a Vice President, a rare Hispanic woman in a sea of suits and ties, yet still guarding her "underground" secret. In telling her personal story of separation, grief, and ultimate redemption, Arce shifts the immigrant conversation, and changes the perception of what it means to be an undocumented immigrant. (via Goodreads)
I went into this book having read nothing about it but the summary, and not really knowing what to expect. Julissa Arce is a skilled writer, and her story makes a compelling read.

I would like everyone to read this book, especially if they don't know anything about immigration. The immigration process is so hard to understand because it's so complicated. There's so much you can learn by listening to other people's stories, and Julissa really put herself out there by telling her story.

"Immigrants do not come to the United States to take anything away from Americans. We come to America to give our sweat, blood, and tears to pursue our dreams."
I'd recommend this book for people who want to learn more about the life of an undocumented immigrant that doesn't match the stereotypes we see in the media, even in some of our presidential candidates speeches every day. Every single person has their own story, their own issues, and this can be a good reminder of that. If you enjoy shows like Jane the Virgin or Ugly Betty, I think you'd enjoy this book, because they both touch on immigration in a way that is compassionate and honest.

I'm rating this book four stars, because it's a really important narrative, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It was released on Sept. 13, so order it through your local bookstore or through Indiebound!
four stars and one empty one meant to signify a four star review
Julissa Arce, NYC
Julissa Arce, NYC
Julissa Arce is a writer, speaker, and social justice advocate and author of the forthcoming book, MY (UNDERGOUND) AMERICAN DREAM (Hachette Book Group, September 2016). She made national and international headlines when she revealed that she had achieved the American Dream of wealth and status while undocumented. She is the co-founder and chairman of the Ascend Educational Fund, a scholarship fund for immigrant students regardless of their immigration status. She is also on the board of directors of the National Immigration Law Center and the national board of directors of CollegeSpring. Prior to becoming an advocate she built a successful career on Wall Street as a vice president at Goldman Sachs and a director at Merrill Lynch. Julissa now uses her inspirational story to change the conversation around immigration. Read her full biography here.

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoy a book that teaches me something new. I was glad to read this to learn more about immigration and the issues in this country. Julissa's story was compelling, inspiring and left me in awe. I learned so much from reading her story and I now have a completely different outlook on things. I'm glad she was willing to share her story.

A great read about the everyday life and struggle of the author as an immigrant in the U.S. I like that Julissa gives back to the community but I dislike that she had to buy fake documents and marry to obtain a green card. The book gave me an insight into the hardships suffered by children of immigrants who are undocumented. Certainly a problem for the U.S. Thank you Net Galley for my copy. I reviewed on Goodreadds.

FTC: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.

My (Underground) American Dream by Julissa Arce was an amazing book. When I saw that this book was available for me to review I knew I had to pick it up because I have always wondered about the children that grow up like this. I really enjoyed this book because it was a true story and I love books that really happened. I found it easier for me to get into this book because it was true and I knew that everything really happened. I also loved getting a different view of what it is like to live in the United States. I had a rough childhood but I know I had it better than most people do in this country. I loved everything about this book because it was written well enough that I understood and felt like I was there with the author. If you love memoirs than I know you will love this book as much as I did.

Read this book as an adventure that you wish it has a happy ending! A beautiful story about hope and belief in the American Dream, despite all the odds and challenges! This story is also aimed to offer inspiration and food for thought to lawmakers and decisions makers in the US in general, for changing the perspective on undocumented immigrants. It doesn't encourage people to infringe the immigration laws but it tries to find solutions particularly with people whose knowledge and skills can contribute to the American society as such. An inspiring book that makes you appreciate the advantage of living or being born in the Western world.

This was fantastic! As I read, I have thought of numerous people to recommend it to for various reasons - the American dream, the life of an immigrant, coming of age, an insider's look at Wall Street ... highly enjoyable overall. It encouraged me to do some further reading on Arce, as well. I will buy several copies for my school.

This book is a memoir about Julissa Arce's life story. It discusses her childhood on how her parents brought her to the United States as an undocumented immigrant. Her parents did it in the best intentions to provide the American Dream for their children. It is what she had to overcome in living with this status. On how she climbed the ladder to be an executive working on Wall Street for Goldman Sachs.
Overall I rated this book four stars out of five. This was an amazing story. It is hard enough to grow up in America and graduate college with top grades, and never the less secure a job in Wall Street and then add on to that difficulty of doing all this while being an undocumented immigrant. The author told her story in an emotional way. She brought forward all the stereotypes that some of have of immigrants and proved them all wrong. I think this is a very important book that should be read by everyone because we can all learn something from Julissa Arce.
I would like to thank Netgalley, Julissa Arce, and Faithwords for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I went into this book with very high expectations after reading the back cover blurb. I was hoping this book would shed some new light on the plight of immigrants in the United States and it did. This book met every expectation I had and many more. Arce's writing was so open and honest and flowed well as she told about her entire life from childhood to adulthood and from undocumented to US Citizen.

Arce's story isn't as poverty stricken as many stories you will find about undocumented immigrants that come to the United States but financial status isn't really what it is all about and this book proves that. I really appreciated Arce's insight into why her family did things the way they did and why they chose to move her to the United States when she was 11. I was so glad she shared from her heart what it was like to come to the United States as a child and have to start school not really knowing hardly any English. I loved the following passage from the book. I wish more people viewed speaking a language other than English as a blessing not a fault.

"There was and still is a stigma that if you don't speak English it means you aren't smart. This couldn't be further from the truth, of course, but perception is everything. Somehow ESL means "remedial" to a lot of people, when it should just mean "I speak one more language than you do."


Another part of this book that was especially well done was the constant inclusion of the Mexican culture in Arce's life along with her assimilation into the life in San Antonio. I loved the stories of her favorite moments as a youth in San Antonio. It was especially neat to read about her upbringing and know that it wasn't all perfect but she still had many good childhood memories. I also loved that many of her struggles in school were similar to mine and I'm sure many other people's of wanting to be included and liked.

Her family wasn't perfect but they worked hard to support each other. I think I can learn a lot from how the Hispanic culture bands together to support family no matter what it takes. I also loved how supportive and protective she was of her little brother and how he often returned the favors. Being bilingual myself I have always loved the Hispanic culture. Family is so different in Latin America. So close and so important.

So many aspects of Arce's story are things that I took for granted. Reading about her plight to simply get into a college reminds me that I never should have taken my opportunity for an education for granted. She did an excellent job sharing the fears she lived with day in and day out in this book without making it a pity party but instead an opportunity to educate readers about what immigrants go through to simply get into a school and get a job.

There were also so many reminders in this book about what is important in life. Arce took care to present herself well in her career but did not waste money on overly frivolous things. I really liked that about her. I loved how she was always supporting charities and her church, sending money to her family, and also starting scholarship funds for undocumented immigrants so they too could go to school. I appreciate the fact that she needed her 6-figure Wall Street job to do these things but I loved that she didn't flaunt her success.

I hope that reading this book will help people in the United States learn more about the plight of immigrants and also bring awareness to the need for immigration reform and also scholarships and grants for undocumented immigrants trying to attend college. I was so thankful that Arce tackled these difficult topics in her book and I hope it helps people view immigrants differently in the aspects of education, jobs, welfare, and taxes because of the truths she exposes in this book.

I'll leave you with one other favorite quote from this book. I highlighted far more than two passages but the one I already quoted and this one struck me as the most important to share with review readers.

"Immigrants do not come to the United States to take anything away from Americans. We come to America to give our sweat, blood, and tears to pursue our dreams."

I received an electronic advanced copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review which I have provided here.

What a great story! And so timely. I can't imagine being that self-aware - or that brave - at such a young age. While I would have loved her to have expanded the story in several areas, rather than giving equal weight to almost every aspect of her life story, it was an engrossing book. And one I will recommend to anyone.

My Underground American Dream follows Julissa Arce from her carefree time as a well-cared for little girl in Taxco, Mexico to her struggles as an undocumented teen in San Antonio who eventually works her way up to the hallowed halls of Wall Street.

I won't retell the story for you, but the events that transpire to get Julissa into the United States and then keep her there are at times wacky (there's an instance with a Playboy magazine) and tragic (a terrible accident that nearly kills her mother). We ride the rollercoaster of successes with her as she learns English, gets scholarship after scholarship, while one-by-one her family returns to Mexico and she's left behind for a "better life". This isn't a cautionary tale or a hard-luck story. Julissa wins, but she doesn't come out on the other end of her trials with the immigrantion office, her family, her romances unscarred and while we're supposed to be happy that she finds a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow she's quick to let us know that there a lot of things that matter that money can't buy.

I loved this book. It was a page-turner for me and hit all of my sweet spots. I identified with her commitment to her family, God and the need to find her purpose in a world where money seems to be the answer to everything. Once I got into the groove of it I felt energized by her tenacity and perseverance. I kept turning pages to soak up the next kernel of information that might help me achieve success in my own endeavors. Readers also get an up close and personal look at the very real toll that immigration policies have on real people. How do you survive without a bank account, a driver's licence, or access to credit cards? How do you become a citizen if you really want to? What kinds of hoops are there? How expensive is it to get a chance to jump through them? She answers all of these questions and more.
Discussion Questions and more can be found on my blog at www.shannamiles.net

Arce is an excellent writing and her story is an engaging one that highlights the problems that America has with immigration. All together this is an entertaining and illuminating read.

As an undocumented immigrant, Julissa Arce climbed to the upper echelon of the finance world, making waves at Goldman-Sachs. It's an amazing story, and one that ran in dozens of newspapers around the globe. Her full-length autobiography is no disappointment.

Detailing her life from her early childhood in Mexico through her teen years in Texas, Arce describes her long struggle to succeed, from getting into college without a social security number to landing enviable internships and job opportunities with a fake green card. How did she do it? Revealing the nitty-gritty legal and logistic challenges and showcasing her intense personal drive, Arce paints an impressive picture of her life over the last two decades.

Very entertaining book which was hard to put down. Never loses the readers attention.
Definitely gave you food for thought with regard to immigrants.

My (Underground) American Dream is an eye-opening look at one woman’s journey to fulfill her dreams and contribute to society while living in the shadows.. I just couldn't put this book down!

A complete review has been posted on UnderratedReads.

This was a real eye opener of what life is like for undocumented people in America.
It also shows what can be accomplished with some luck and a lot of hard work.
Julissa's story shows how much outlooks require changing in America.

It is a real eye opener about immigrants, thank your for writing this book! This book makes me laugh and cry at the same time. I’ve always enjoyed a book about survival. I'd really recommend this book for everyone, especially if you're a fan of memoir, which I am. The author's writing was so engaging that I can't put this book down. She is a very strong and brave woman. She is an inspiration for me.

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.