The Undocumented Americans Audiobook By Karla Cornejo Villavicencio cover art

The Undocumented Americans

Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

The Undocumented Americans

By: Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
Narrated by: Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $13.50

Buy for $13.50

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • One of the first undocumented immigrants to graduate from Harvard reveals the hidden lives of her fellow undocumented Americans in this deeply personal and groundbreaking portrait of a nation.

“Karla’s book sheds light on people’s personal experiences and allows their stories to be told and their voices to be heard.”—Selena Gomez

FINALIST FOR THE NBCC JOHN LEONARD AWARD • NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, NPR, THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY, BOOK RIOT, LIBRARY JOURNAL, AND TIME

Writer Karla Cornejo Villavicencio was on DACA when she decided to write about being undocumented for the first time using her own name. It was right after the election of 2016, the day she realized the story she'd tried to steer clear of was the only one she wanted to tell. So she wrote her immigration lawyer's phone number on her hand in Sharpie and embarked on a trip across the country to tell the stories of her fellow undocumented immigrants—and to find the hidden key to her own.

Looking beyond the flashpoints of the border or the activism of the DREAMers, Cornejo Villavicencio explores the lives of the undocumented—and the mysteries of her own life. She finds the singular, effervescent characters across the nation often reduced in the media to political pawns or nameless laborers. The stories she tells are not deferential or naively inspirational but show the love, magic, heartbreak, insanity, and vulgarity that infuse the day-to-day lives of her subjects.

In New York, we meet the undocumented workers who were recruited into the federally funded Ground Zero cleanup after 9/11. In Miami, we enter the ubiquitous botanicas, which offer medicinal herbs and potions to those whose status blocks them from any other health-care options. In Flint, Michigan, we learn of demands for state ID in order to receive life-saving clean water. In Connecticut, Cornejo Villavicencio, childless by choice, finds family in two teenage girls whose father is in sanctuary. And through it all we see the author grappling with the biggest questions of love, duty, family, and survival.

In her incandescent, relentlessly probing voice, Karla Cornejo Villavicencio combines sensitive reporting and powerful personal narratives to bring to light remarkable stories of resilience, madness, and death. Through these stories we come to understand what it truly means to be a stray. An expendable. A hero. An American.

©2020 Karla Cornejo Villavicencio (P)2020 Random House Audio
Americas Central America Emigration & Immigration Social Sciences Thought-Provoking
adbl_web_global_use_to_activate_webcro805_stickypopup

Critic reviews

“Punk and dazzling and remarkably human . . . like watching firecrackers go off.”—Jia Tolentino

“Brilliant, vivid, tender, furious.”—Louise Erdrich

“A scream and a song . . . a complex, human look at the fabric of this nation.”—Quiara Alegría Hudes

Featured Article: Honoring the Courage and Heart of Displaced Peoples on World Refugee Day


World Refugee Day is a time to celebrate the bravery and strength of those who have had to flee their homes in search of protection. But it's also a day of empathy, of understanding, and of listening, so that we may hear the stories of refugees and the struggles they've had to endure. This collection of biographies and memoirs written by and about refugees offers a window into their lived experiences and an invitation to a greater sense of compassion.

Raw Storytelling • Powerful Narratives • Authentic Voice • Compelling Immigrant Stories • Heartfelt Perspectives
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
it all hit hard. incredible writing, powerful reflections. I took notes. you should too.

poignant and impossible to forget

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Moving, inspiring, catalyzing. This book, it's story, emboldened my activist work on matters of immigration.

The real deal

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I don't think I've ever read any nonfiction book as vulnerable and raw as this one. I highly recommend it.

Outstanding work of nonfiction

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

The writing in this book is phenomenal! I also love that it’s read by the author!

Excellent Read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Reminds me of my mom an how I feel about the struggles of this “dream”

So much yes

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I felt the stories deeply and relatable for myself or the people I loved. I have never read something this raw about how living in the margins of society can be detrimental to your mental and physical health. I hope everyone reads this because it’s a small and mighty book of essays. I used it for a book club of a very diverse audience and everyone learned and empathy with everyone.

Must Read for Anyone with Immigrant Parents

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Karla Cornejo Villavicencio was featured on This American Life on NPR 04/10/2020, she read an excerpt of this gripping account of her life and it was absolutely heartbreaking and raw. It hurt my heart that someone right here in the USA, right this minute is being treated like garbage, less than. Its disgusting and we are not doing enough. This is not the ideal I was serving during my time in the military. We can do more. We must do more. No one is more entitled to this place than anyone else, all humans have the same birthright.

Raw, heartbreaking - we can do better by others

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Everyone should read this book. It’s beautifully written, deeply haunting , and even funny at times. Highly recommend.

Beautiful and devastating

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

excellent book. what a wonderful experience.
I recommend this book to anyone . it's amazing.

I loved every part of this book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Loved this book. It was tragic and funny. I enjoyed Karla's corky personality and felt her vulnerability.

Hit me to my core

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews