Amor and Exile: True Stories of Love Across America's Borders

ACROSS the United States, American citizens are forced underground, exiled abroad and separated from their spouses for a surprising reason. Amor and Exile is the story of American citizens—including Veronica, Ben, J.W., and Nicole—who fall in love with undocumented immigrants only to find themselves trapped in a legal labyrinth, stymied by their country’s de facto exclusion of their partners. Journalist Nathaniel Hoffman visited both sides of the border to document the lives of these couples caught in the crossfire of America’s high stakes political fight over immigration. In his disarming and precise style, Hoffman also traces the historical relationship between immigration, love and marriage. Lending an authentic voice to Amor and Exile, coauthor Nicole Salgado delivers a searing first-person account of life in the U.S. with her husband while he was undocumented, her tortured decision to leave the country with him, and their seven years of exile and starting over together in Mexico. Amor and Exile tells of love that transcends borders—a story shared by hundreds of thousands of U.S. citizens—cutting through the immigration debate rhetoric and providing a courageous perspective for one of the most vexing policy problems of our time.

Early praise for Amor and Exile

“Immigration, at its core, is about the constantly changing American story, at the heart of this timely and important book. Immigration is not about ‘the border.’ It's about families, it's about communities, and as Nathaniel and Nicole vividly tell, it's about love.” — Jose Antonio Vargas, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, filmmaker and founder of Define American

“Beautifully told love stories that illuminate the many ways in which immigration can enrich our lives.” — Helen Thorpe, author of Just Like Us: The True Story of Four Mexican Girls Coming of Age in America

“The plight of same-sex binational couples is one of the nation's most significant untold stories. This moving, gripping book brings to life the serious injustice and struggle that discriminatory laws impose. As someone who is part of such a couple, I'm grateful that there's finally a book examining all aspects of this issue—and an outstanding book at that.” — Glenn Greenwald, Guardian columnist, former constitutional lawyer and author of How Would a Patriot Act?

"A mesmerizing, important look at some of the most overlooked people in the immigration debate—U.S. citizens who follow their deported loved ones into an agonizing exile... Amor and Exile deserves a wide readership." — Ellin Jimmerson, Ph.D., historian, theologian and writer/director of “The Second Cooler,” an award-winning migrant justice documentary, narrated by Martin Sheen

By Nathaniel Hoffman and Nicole Salgado

Nathaniel Hoffman has written about immigration and politics for more than a decade as a reporter and editor at newspapers in Idaho and California. Hoffman filed stories for the Christian Science Monitor, High Country News, The Miami Herald, AlterNet and NewWest.net and produced audio reports for KQED public radio in San Francisco and KBSU in Boise. He worked as a reporter at Boise Weekly, the Contra Costa Times and the Idaho Press-Tribune. Hoffman is the founding editor of The Blue Review, a journal of popular scholarship at Boise State University. He lives in Boise with his wife and two daughters and a large front-yard garden.

Nicole Salgado is a biologist, author/activist, educator and artist based in the Central Mexican highlands. Amor and Exile is her second book—she is also author and illustrator of The Bajio’s Bounty: Home Cooking from the Querétaro, Mexico Region. Salgado is actively involved in the environmental and education fields both in the U.S. and Mexico. Her writing and art centers on nature, sustainability, motherhood and biculturalism. Salgado is originally from Central New York and has a B.S. from Cornell University and an M.A. from San José State University. She lives in Querétaro, Mexico, with her husband, daughter, two cats and a flock of birds.

For more information, visit amorandexile.com.

Kindle edition available.