As different as The Tortilla Curtain by, TC Boyle may seem from George Orwell's
classic novel 1984, both books explore the common theme of rebellion from political and
cultural entrapment of humanity. These societies, whether it be modern day America in
The Tortilla Curtain, or the dystopian, government centered future of London in 1984,
leave the main protagonists with restricted rights and freedoms, and they find little choice but to execute acts of rebellion in order to keep themselves alive.
The Tortilla Curtain starts straight away with Delaney Mossbacher, an upper class white American, writer, and nature enthusiast, hitting thirty three year old Candido Ricon, an illegal Mexican immigrant, with his car in the Topanga Canyon near Los Angeles, California. Candido is badly injured, but instead of calling the authorities, or directing Candido to medical attention, Delaney shows little empathy for the Mexican that he hit, but is more concerned about his insurance rate skyrocketing.
As Candido knows little English and Delaney can't speak Spanish, the two can't come to understand each other, but Delaney consoles Candido with a mere twenty dollars as they part ways. While shaken up by the event, Delaney gets his car fixed and continues his life as usual at his community, the Arroyo Blanco Estates. There, he enjoys the company of his wife Kyra; a real estate agent dreaming of living in a bigger house private from the enclosed community of Arroyo Blanco, the Da Ros place. His days are routine; every morning he makes breakfast for his wife and seven year old stepson Jordan, and after he had been sent off to school and his wife to work, he would sit and write for the nature magazine Wide Open Spaces. His routine is only interrupted when a coyote jumps over...