Cristina Henriquez sets her newest novel in 1907, during the construction of the Panama Canal. But the story isn’t about the engineering marvels that led to one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. Instead, “The Great Divide” focuses on ordinary people — both native Panamanians and immigrants — whose lives were forever changed by the massive project.
The expansive cast of characters is confusing at first, but Henriquez manages to harness the stories into a manageable and satisfying whole.
Francisco is a local fisherman who resents the interference of foreign powers in his country, so he feels confused and betrayed when his son decides to work as a digger in the excavation zone. Ada Bunting is a 16-year-old girl from Barbados who travels to Panama as a stowaway to find work and send money home for her sister’s surgery. And John Oswald is a doctor and medical researcher who journeys to Panama in hopes of eradicating malaria.
The characters’ lives converge in fascinating ways, and Henriquez provides enough backstory to keep the reader invested in each person’s storyline. Along the way she offers an honest look at a period of history that most Americans probably know little about, including the deaths of more than 20,000 workers from disease and accidents. “The Great Divide” also refers to differences in race and class that dominated the building of the canal; workers labored in terrible conditions, while the people overseeing the project had luxurious homes, plentiful food and hired help.
Fans of historical fiction will appreciate this journey to a different setting and time, with writing that transports you into the sweltering jungle heat.
