"Yanez deftly explores the coming-of-age of Raul Luis Cruz, a Mexican American teenager who grows up in El Paso, just across the Rio Grande from Juarez ... Yanez, also born on the border, brings that region to life as he portrays with humor, perception, and compassion what it is like to grow up there, perhaps wishing to never leave." -- Booklist
"A thoughtful story of growing up next to the border in New Mexico and the assortment of challenges that go with it all, 'Cross Over Water' is a thoughtful read and very solidly recommended." -- The Midwest Book Review
"Simultaneously charming, funny, heartbreaking and heartwarming, this book skillfully toes the line between the familiar and the distinctive." -- Texas Books in Review