The search for a sense of home and belonging is one of the novel’s driving themes. As the son of immigrants, Arturo wants to feel as if he truly belongs in American society. He embarks on a career as a writer because he wants to find fame, wealth, love, and acceptance. He leaves behind his family home in Colorado in the hope of proving himself to those who once taunted him for being from a poor, immigrant family. Above all, he wants to pursue the promise of the American Dream—the idea that anyone in America can overcome their social circumstances to become rich and successful.

During his time in Los Angeles, however, Arturo fails to find a sense of home and belonging. Although he eventually achieves some financial and critical success as a writer, these achievements do not bring him the happiness and social acceptance that he longs for. Throughout his time in the city, he lives in a hotel, a space that is inherently transient and liminal. Near the end of the novel, he tries to make his dream of home a reality by renting a house for himself and Camilla in Laguna Beach. He chooses a place that seems to be the perfect American house, complete with a “white picket fence” (159).