The book tells stories in a non-linear manner. It was almost as if I could pick any given chapter and rearrange the book. Then I realized that each anecdote is placed in that particular sequence because each one relates to other, similar to a chain. The last sentence of “El año perdido” introduces the next story by mentioning the things the protagonist sees and hears before he sleeps and the untitled second story picks it up by mentioning spirits. Perhaps it parallels to the ghosts that the protagonist of the first story hears. The second story mentions a glass of water and “Los niños no se aguantaron” pivots on the loss of water and life. The connections between them are very subtle and it is almost as if Rivera wants the readers to make these connections on their own.

Perhaps each character’s personal struggle relates to another’s or maybe their struggles affect each other in ways they do not realize. A few things are left ambiguous. It seems as if the things that are not mentioned are the most powerful ones. Some anecdotes remain untitled. The table of contents identifies them by the first few words of the opening sentence but they do not function like a real title. It seems like a conscious decision on Rivera’s part to also make these anecdotes shorter than the titled ones to distinguish its importance.

Many characters remain nameless almost like a blurred memory or the loss of something so basic. The first story preludes to it with the title pertaining to loss and the loss of words on the protagonist’s part. In a way, the book reflects the lack of precision when it comes to memory. Sometimes things are forgotten like the untitled story of the soldier’s mother on page 13. Her son “está perdido en acción.”

The book’s lack of chronology allows the readers to empathize with the characters. There were times when I felt confused because of the book’s lack of sequence and the unnamed characters. I was not sure who was doing what. Perhaps the migrants felt the same way, disoriented and insignificant.

Perhaps the lack of chronology also mimics something that adults find insignificant- the act of collecting. As young children, we collect various objects, such as rocks, shells, etc. to familiarize ourselves with the landscape. Similarly, the various stories function as a collection that help the readers identify the land seen through the migrant workers’ children.