The Great Divide: A Historical Novel of the Panama Canal

This was my first book by author Cristina Henriquez. She has such a beautiful way of writing a historical fiction story about the Panama Canal and the effects it had on the local people. It was an in-depth multiple POV story. I did make a list of characters to track all of them. I enjoyed learning about a different side of this historical event that was so important. Overall, I enjoyed this story and the gorgeous cover to go with it! I would definingly recommend this book.

I had the honor of reading this ARC thanks to NetGalley, the author Cristina Henriquez and the publisher Ecco Books

This is story set in Panama during the time of the building of the Panama Canal. Ada Bunting is a 16 year old girl from Barbados who comes to Panama to earn money to help her mother and ailing sister. Omar Aquino is a worker in the canal who lives with his fisherman father, Francisco, who is disappointed in him for not following in his footsteps. Ada is hired by John Oswald, a scientific researcher who is attempting to eliminate malaria in Panama, to care for his wife, Marian who falls ill. There are three story lines: life with the Oswalds, Omar's life and that of his worker friends, and the story of Ada's mother, Lucille in Barbados and his relationship with Henry Camby, a rich white planter. In addition, there is a bit about the town of Gatun, which is scheduled to be demolished and destined to be Lake Gatun. The people there are not happy about the attempts of the government to move them to a different location. Having just come back from a vacation in Panama I was interested in learning more of the history of this region. However, the individual stories were not compelling, except for the horrific tale of the mistreatment a canal worker by one of the overseers. I thought it was a pleasant book to read, but not one that I'd recommend to others.

I chose this book because it was on the monthly reading list of one of the public libraries in town. I do not choose all the books from this librarian, however, when there is a book that calls to me, I do it. Henriquez takes the reader to the steamy, hot and rainy Panama. In the time that the canal area was being dug up by thousands of labors. She focuses on the individuals impacted by the canal activity and the invasion of capitalism into a poor country that was not necessarily in need of the US. The US needed Panama. You feel the hot dirty air of the busy and chaotic city and you take a breath when you are brought back into the tiny towns. Each time that Omar, Valentina, Joaquin, or even when Francisco ventures into town to find Omar disrupting his daily routine for the love of his son, the noise is loud, the air is foul, and people are moving like ants through the maze of development. And foreign presence. I liked Ada, more of Ada would be a joy, maybe another book? And I did not feel any compassion even at the end for John Oswald. This characterization of Panama in the time of the US construction of the canal, reminds you of what colonialism does to the native culture and gives you hope for the resilience of people. When Omar parts from Ada, he thinks of all the amazing places in Panama that he could share with her, I took a breath and was happy to know that there are treasures of life that the invasion had not destroyed. I particularly liked the style of writing. I felt like I was in a Latina's approach to a Wes Anderson's screen play! The stopping at points to draw in the future for several characters. The style, it gives you a sense of humanity and how it keeps going beyond the story. Read this book. It was delicious.

This is not an actual history of the building of the Panama Canal. The author gives us interlocking stories of various people and how she imagines that time and place was from different perspectives. Unfortunately, i found it to be much too wordy and meandering to be a memorable reading experience.

Great book !!!