The Book of Unknown Americans

Mayor Toro and his parents watch the Riveras through the front window of their apartment as the Riveras—whom the Toros assume are Mexican due to their shortness—move into the building. Rafael Toro asks his wife Celia if the new family has a lot of things—Celia answers that it doesn’t look like it. Rafael is satisfied, proclaiming that perhaps the new family is similar to them.

The Toros learn from their busybody neighbor, Quisqueya Solís, that the new family’s last name is Rivera, and that they are all in the States legally—their visas are sponsored by a nearby mushroom farm. Quisqueya has heard this information from Nelia Zafón, who heard it from Fito, the landlord. Celia says it will be nice to have a new addition to the building, and Quisqueya expresses a hesitation—she begins to say something about “the girl,” but hesitates when she realizes Mayor is listening. Instead, she tells the Toros that they’ll “see for [themselves] eventually.”

The Toros continue to hear more and more rumors about the Riveras—many of which seem outlandish and untrue. Mayor has started a new school year and he hopes that this will be “the year the other kids stop picking on [him.]” He wears his college-soccer-star older brother Enrique’s gym shorts, hoping that “some of Enrique’s popularity [will] rub off on [him,]” but he’s teased nonetheless.

Garrett Miller, a bully with a neck tattoo, has made Mayor his “special project.” He calls Mayor “Pollo” due to his scrawny legs. Garrett went to juvenile detention the previous year for beating another student bloody, so Mayor does not want to retaliate against Garrett’s taunts in any way.

The other anxiety Mayor faces with the start of the new school year is soccer. He feels forced into playing the sport by his father, for whom “the logic” is that “soccer [is] for Latinos.” Mayor’s older brother Enrique was a natural at soccer in high school, and Rafael is disappointed that Mayor has not even come close to matching his brother’s skill. Mayor attends practice after school and falls during a drill—a group of nearby girls “erupt in laughter” after his fall.