Dan Slater’s Wolf Boys is a courageous piece of investigative journalism that dives into the world of drug cartels and the people involved in it. It focuses on two American teenagers, Gabriel Cardona and Bart Reta, who are taken in by the Zetas cartel. The book shows the lines between victimhood and guilt when facing failure. Slater’s writing is deliberate and his storytelling effectively conveys the magnitude of the tragedy.
Wolf Boys is a study in differences: Mexican freedom vs. American structure, cartel brutality vs. kids, and idealism vs. disillusion. Slater did years of research, personal interviews, and examined law enforcement records to write this book. He tracks Gabriel’s movement from a high school athlete in Laredo, Texas, to a teenage killer for one of the most dangerous cartels in the world. Slater never sugarcoats his words, and tells Gabriel’s story with a brutal truth.
Slater’s greatest strength is being able to show the readers what turns a highschool kid into a feared cartel member. He doesn’t just show what makes a criminal, he looks at everything that affects the kids involved. Schools, parents, small businesses that seem completely legal, the city they live in, everything is involved in creating young members. His portrayal of Robert Garcia, the man who tries to get rid of this hostile environment for kids, provides a necessary balance, not only showing the struggles of people in the cartel, but also of those who try to take it down.
Slater’s writing is very impressive. His understanding of the cartel goes deeper than reading about it and secondhand accounts. He talked to Gabriel in hundreds of interviews, coming from the countless times he visited Gabriel in prison. He definitely did his research outside of Gabriel too. His understanding of every character in the book adds a level of depth that shows the reader how passionate he is about this topic.
The writing is smooth, it keeps you on the edge of your seat, and you start to question your understanding of the cartel. There were many times in my reading where I had to stop and think how something would connect to the Cartel. This book shows how big the business is, and shows that it’s not just drugs. Slater uses a clean, controlled style that shows his respect for the terrible events that happen in the book. Nothing is untrue, nothing is blown out of proportion. His vocabulary is simple yet descriptive, making it an easy read for someone not looking to put much thought into understanding it. However, if you want to get as much understanding and contemplation as you can from this book, Slater makes it very easy. Many things that aren’t vital to understand for the sake of the story are little things about the cartel that most people don’t know.
In conclusion, Wolf Boys is more than a crazy story, it’s a report of a disaster that keeps getting worse. Slater’s investigative rigor, discipline in writing, and clarity make this a great book for anyone wanting to understand the effect the Cartel has on every aspect of life.