DREAMING FROM THE TRUNK OF AN AMERICAN CAR

An Albanian-born immigrant reflects on his journey to America in this debut memoir.

As detailed in the book’s harrowing opening chapters, Camaj first arrived in America in the 1980s via the trunk of a car. Denied entry into the United States, the author and his twin sister, Drita, traveled from their home in the former Yugoslavia to Mexico. In Tijuana, they joined a distant relative, Luigji, who accompanied them on their journey across the U.S. border into San Diego. “I reluctantly became the last to hop in the trunk of an early 1980’s Chevrolet Monte Carlo,” Camaj writes; “the final sardine to fit in the can.” Told in intimate detail, the narrative chronicles the manifold difficulties encountered by the author and his sister in their quest to relocate to the United States. During their time in Mexico, for instance, the duo did not even know how to speak Spanish or English as they attempted to navigate a journey across the border that involved significant physical and financial risks—a trip to California at the time cost them thousands of dollars, all paid under the table. Sprinkled throughout the book are flashbacks to the author’s life in the Malesia (highlands) region of Albania and Montenegro. (“A rugged geographic region,” he observes. “Malesia matches its people.”) Camaj recalls fond memories spent with family, including working alongside his father on an extended trip to Bosnia in 1979. (His father would tragically die the following year.) He also highlights the religious and ethnic diversity of the Balkans, providing firsthand sociopolitical commentary on the region. When discussing the area’s co-mingling of Christian and Islam faiths, the author notes that “our religion does not define us. Our nationality, Albanian, defines us.”

While the journey to the United States takes center stage, the author is especially adept at chronicling the psychological turmoil of an immigrant. Camaj’s family had lived in the same house and toiled on the same land for as many as 16 generations. He asks himself, “did their legacy, for me and my birthplace, end with my departure—did I sin against them?” This sense of betrayal would continue to haunt the author long after finding success and settling down in the United States. Ultimately, he concludes, it was only by leaving his home country that he was able to keep the legacy and memory of his ancestors alive. (“I could only realize my dreams in my new country,” the author reflects.) While much of the book’s narrative comes from Camaj’s own memories, it is supplemented by the experiences conveyed to him by his parents and other people he encountered along the way. Though the book’s jumbled chronology may at times be a bit disorienting, the author’s engaging writing style sustains reader interest throughout. The project’s authenticity is underscored by Camaj’s decision to use Albanian (and some Turkish and Serbian) terms throughout the text, and the book includes a glossary of non-English words to assist readers. This emphasis on engaging readers is further evidenced by a wealth of family photos.

A poignant reflection on the experiences of an immigrant to the United States.