Rain of Gold

"📚 Book Review: Rain of Gold by Victor Villaseñor ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Wow, wow, wow! What an incredible and powerful book! I don’t think I have enough words to fully express how moving and impactful Rain of Gold is. I laughed, I cried, I got angry—I felt every emotion. This book captivated me from beginning to end, and even after 562 pages, I didn’t want it to end. What stood out to me the most was the strength and deep faith of Villaseñor’s family. Through unimaginable hardship, violence, and displacement, they pushed through with unshakeable spiritual wisdom and a firm belief in God. Even in the darkest moments, they never stopped thanking God for their blessings and good fortune. That resilience, rooted in faith, moved me deeply. It reminded me of the strength within our own communities—the way prayer, gratitude, and spirituality carry us through. Set against the backdrop of the Mexican Revolution and the immigrant experience, Rain of Gold is more than just a family saga—it’s a political and historical narrative that explores forced migration, structural violence, intergenerational trauma, and the myth of return. Many of our people didn’t choose to leave their homeland—they were forced to flee due to war and injustice. And while they rebuilt their lives, the dream of returning home never left them. Reading this during a time of rising anti-immigrant rhetoric and racial tensions made it all the more impactful. The book highlights the systemic racism, social marginalization, and economic exploitation our people endured—and continue to endure. And yet, through it all, there is love, hope, and fierce perseverance. Victor Villaseñor has officially become one of those authors I’ll read anything by. His storytelling is magnetic—I could not put this book down. I carried the characters with me long after I finished. This book is not just a memoir—it’s a legacy. A must-read. 🇲🇽✨ #bookreview #rainofgold #victorvillaseñor #memoir #mexicanhistory #family #faith #bookrecommendat"

"Villaseñor wrote a beautiful family saga, and a true telling about how his family ended up in California. Specifically from el barrio de Carlsbad. <br/>Carlsbad, California is definitely not a barrio anymore, it is now a very sought after and pricy city to live in. <br/> <br/>His father, Juan Salvador Villaseñor was raised in the beautiful hills of Los Altos de Jalisco Mexico, before he and his family decided to make their way to the US. They escaped the hunger, lack of jobs, loss of resources, and abuse, left behind during the Mexican Revolution. The same circumstances were true for his mother, Lupe. <br/><br/>Rain of Gold really digs deep into what it was like growing up during a revolution, and getting taken advantage by soldiers, people both from the US and Mexico, and Europeans. It also touches on how the native people were killed, raped, abused, and worked like dogs. <br/>To escape one nightmare and go into a new territory where people still disrespected and mistreated them. <br/><br/>This story is laced with Mexican sayings that are mystical but are simply true in some way or another. Love, strength, and devotion are what kept these people alive and able to persevere when times seemed hopeless."