The Devil’s Highway is almost claustrophobic in its oppressive depiction of desperation. Because the reader knows from the beginning that the trip will fail, the only mysteries are what goes wrong, and which of the walkers will survive. But because the reader is given such limited information about the walkers, even that tension is diminished. What is left is an airless sense that there is no hope for those who walk on the Devil’s Highway.

Desperation is produced by a void, and all of the walkers are desperate in their own way. Ultimately, because so little change comes of the tragedy, the feelings of futility on every page are vindicated by the result. 

One of the major problems with discussing immigration is that politicians tend to present reductive positions on the matter. In order to appease their constituents, they must make the problem smaller than it is. The truth, as The Devil’s Highway clearly shows, is that immigration is an incredibly complex issue. One way to ensure that nothing ever changes is to spout platitudes and offer simple solutions, such as: “We’ll just deport everyone” or “Build a wall.” But the fact that a problem is complex is no excuse for not having a real discussion about it.