Blogcritics

Interview: Ana Castillo

Gina Ruiz — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 00:28:51 EDT

A conversation with an icon of Chicana feminist history, prolific author, and poet Ana Castillo.
A Conversation with Ana CastilloAna Castillo is a celebrated poet, novelist, short story writer, and essayist. She is considered to be one of the leading voices to emerge from the Chicana experience. Castillo is an incredibly prolific author and poet whose work has been critically acclaimed and widely anthologized in the United States and abroad....

Book Review: The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

Gina Ruiz — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 07:22:57 EDT

This is the long-awaited first novel from one of the most original and memorable writers working today.
I was in New York this June for Book Expo America and was walking through a crowded aisle on my way to a meeting when something caught my eye and made me stop dead in my tracks. The name Junot Diaz on a simple white cover was enough to stop my fast moving walk to a meeting a had about a minute to get to clear on the other side of the Javits center....

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Book Review: The Guardians: A Novel by Ana Castillo

Gina Ruiz — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 05:00:42 EDT

Ana Castillo is one of those writers that I always expect not just the best of, but the best of the best of. She certainly doesn’t disappoint in her lyrical new book The Guardians.The book tells the story of the main protagonists in four intersecting voices. One of those voices belongs to the fifty-something redhead Regina, a widowed virgin who is eking out a poor living on her desert land while working as an underpaid teacher’s aide and caring for her nephew. She’s a strong character and embodies self sufficiency, love, and the desire to get ahead.Regina’s raising Gabo, a deeply troubled and religious young man. His mother was murdered seven years before in a border crossing, with her body mutilated for its organs. Now his father Rafa is missing and Regina begins a search. The search leads her to Miguel, or Mike, a divorced teacher at the school where Regina works. Miguel becomes a friend to them both and helps Regina in the search for her brother.These three and an unlikely fourth, Miguel’s grandfather Abuelo Milton, form a strange band of searchers as they hunt for clues to Rafa’s disappearance. Each chapter is written in one of these four voices and gives depth and an interesting spin to the story. We see the intersection and the different views of the people who are living it."I don't think they could come up with a horror movie worse than the situation we got going on en la frontera," as Abuelo Milton says.Throughout the novel is the story of desperation, the illegal crossings, the coyotes who take advantage of the people they bring across. Castillo weaves into this intricately elegant story the Juarez murders of women, the Minutemen, the politics and the desert border town. It’s an amazing feat. She compels with each word, breathes magic into her words and we’re there, in a border meth lab where border crossers are held hostage until their families can come up with the money to ransom them. We feel the desperation of crossing the desert, the thirst that kills, the desire to make it through, to come to a better life. The Guardians stands as a political statement about immigration, the rights of women, and I think -- most of all -- it is a cry of outrage.

Gina MarySol Ruiz is a freelance writer, poet and book reviewer. Gina has maintained several blogs over the years. Gina is also a columnist with Blogcritics.org. She has also been a panelist for the Cybils awards two years running in the Graphic Novel category. She is a member in good standing of SCBWI - Los Angeles Chapter, Linkedin Journalists and Las Comadres Para Las Americas. You can find her on Foodbuzz, Facebook, Myspace, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Book Review Carry Me Like Water by Benjamin Alire Saenz

Gina Ruiz — Sat, 12 May 2007 10:27:10 EDT

This lush and touching novel by Benjamin Alire Saenz, a series of interconnected stories of a most amazing cast of characters, is simply astounding. There is the thoughtful and deaf Diego, living in El Paso, working on his suicide note and making friends with a cholo named Mundo, whom he finds stabbed in a dumpster; Mary or the Virgin Mary; and the wise, irreverent Luz. There is Jake and Joaquin, a gay couple struggling with the fact that Joaquin’s dying of AIDS; Helen and Eddy the rich couple in Northern California awaiting their first child; and Lizzie, the nurse who one day while tending an AIDS patient, finds he is her twin brother, that he has given her his gift of being psychic and that she is really a Mexican named Maria de Lourdes. Each character is a puzzle waiting to be solved and amazing in their reality.Each story dovetails neatly into another, producing a rich and delicious stew of a novel dealing with love, secrets and the ghosts of the past. We find that Helen is really Maria Elena or Nena and she is Diego’s sister. Eddy, her husband has his own past as a molested child to come to terms with and a brother to find. Jake is dealing with his anger and grief at losing Joaquin. And then there is my favorite character in the book, Lizzie. Lizzie can leave her body, she is coming to terms with her newfound psychic ability and finds something in herself to give. She holds Jake and Joaquin together and becomes their anchor as they battle with illness and death.The river too, is a large character in this book. It is the river in El Paso that separates Mexico from Texas. Diego and Luz spend Sunday mornings on the river watching the swimmers from the other side trying to cross over into a better life. The book deals with prejudice and hate, struggling to make a life in this land, gives an amazing view of what people give up to come here and what they find when they do.Diego is thoughtful, reflective and kind. He speaks without speaking, says much in his thoughts and handwritten notes to Mundo or Luz. He is the heart of the book, the story within a story.All in all, it is an amazing story, a commentary on life, on the issues that plague us today like border crossings, prejudice, AIDS, being Chicano, being gay, love, death and fear. The dialogue is crisp and interesting, each chapter seamlessly flows like the river into the next. It is poetic, which is not surprising considering Saenz is an eloquent Chicano poet. As in his other book, In Perfect Light, he has created a masterpiece of imagery, color and a unique and beautiful story.

Book Review: Nothing, Nobody - The Voices of the Mexico City Earthquake by Elena Poniatowska

Gina Ruiz — Fri, 11 May 2007 02:53:42 EDT

To me there is no greater woman journalist than Mexico’s beloved Elena Poniatowska. Every book I read of hers touches me in so many ways. Nothing, Nobody -- the chronicle of the earthquake in September of 1985 that devastated Mexico City -- in particular haunts my days and nights. It is the story of the search for bodies amongst the rubble and the Mexican government’s failure to respond. There is such poignancy in the writing, the post-earthquake testimonies from survivors, from aid workers and most of all, from the people who never did find their loved ones. It is a story of the heroism that exists in even the most insignificant of us. There is courage in the face of disaster, hope and hopelessness.As if the testimonies and the stories in this book weren’t enough to touch the heart, to outrage the mind, there are photos of the devastation, of the faces of the people, of the tears.Ms. Poniatowska weaves together each story with her usual mastery. She is able to put a face on the side of Mexico that gets shoved under the carpet – the poor Mexican. This book was written pre-Zapatista uprising and I feel that by reading Elena Poniatowska’s fascinating chronicles of important events in the years leading up to it, we can all better understand why the Zapatista movement had to happen. There are many books about it and many opinions on why – but I think that all we need to do is read books like Nothing, Nobody to see the face of the forgotten, to feel their pain and frustration, to know them intimately. Once we do that, there is no need to suppose or wonder about the worthiness of the fight against oblivion – we just know.

Book Review Mama: Latina Daughters Celebrate Their Mothers by Various Authors

Gina Ruiz — Fri, 11 May 2007 02:18:07 EDT

Mama: Latina Daughters Celebrate Their Mothers is a beautifully illustrated collection of memories, stories and homage to the mothers of some of our most successful Latina women is simply beautiful. It is filled with love and devotion, hope and loyalty, honor and dignity.There are stories here from the likes of Celia Cruz, Esmeralda Santiago, Lisa Lisa, Maria Hinojosa, Judge Marilyn Milian, Jaci Velasquez, Rosario Dawson, Christina Saralegue, Christina Vidal, Lauren Velez, Denise Quinonez, Jackie Guerra and more. It is a loving tribute by these famous daughters to their mothers. The book is filled with portraits of mothers and daughters, all stunningly done in rich black and white.Maria Perez Brown interviewed Latinas from many different walks of life, some famous, others not so famous. She spoke with Latinas of many different nationalities, and in their own words each woman tells of the bond she has or has had with her mother. In each, the mother was a strong and resounding force, someone to be respected, loved and honored.This book is truly an amazing collection and would be an amazing gift for any mother. The stories within will touch your heart and make you laugh, smile and cry.

Book Review: Dancing to Almendra by Mayra Montero

Gina Ruiz — Tue, 1 May 2007 07:00:24 EDT

Dancing to Almendra takes place in Mafia-dominated 1950s Cuba before Castro takes over. It begins with a bizarre killing of a hippopotamus at the local zoo and young journalist Joaquín Porrata is sent to write up the story. Joaquín usually covers fluff pieces but desperately wants to be a real reporter covering more important things. He stumbles onto something at the zoo where he learns that the killing of the hippo was a warning to mob boss Umberto "Albert" Anastasia, who really was murdered in 1957. Joaquín starts investigating and begins to uncover an incredible story. He is threatened, beaten, warned and scared the hell out of, but he keeps on investigating and uncovering more and more.As the investigation deepens, Joaquín’s life starts to spin out of control. He travels to New York, meets both Meyer Lansky and George Raft and finds out much more than any person should know about the Mafia. The characters are all intensely interesting and detailed. Joaquín’s father and brother Santos, his lesbian sister, and his tragic martyr of a mother are all fascinating. Yolanda, the ex-circus performer, one-armed mulatta lover of Joaquín, as well as Santos Trafficante and mother of a trapeze artist is simply too wild and wonderful not to love. The story is told in Joaquín’s hard-bitten, matter-of-fact voice with alternating chapters told in a mystical way by Joaquín’s lover Yolanda. The Cuba of the '50s comes to life with Mayra Montero’s incredible writing. She paints a decadent picture of nightclubs, music and gaudy casinos where an underlying threat of revolution is bubbling to the surface. Dancing to Almendra is a gorgeous book about a crazy time and Montero manages to paint both the garish, brightly lit surface as well as the darkness underneath it all with a deft hand.

Book Review: Bitter Grounds by Sandra Benitez

Gina Ruiz — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 04:21:58 EDT

A week ago, I finished Bitter Grounds by Sandra Benitez for the second time in five years. The book is an epic story spanning three generations of women from two families, one rich and the other poor. It is more than just the story of these two families, it is the story of the brutal massacre of indigenous people, the story of the conflict and bloody history of El Salvador, the battles of rich and poor, of tradition, against so-called progress.The women in this story are strong, determined, vibrant survivors. There is love here between mothers and daughters, sisters and friends. There is betrayal and anguish, the loss of children, loss of life, loss of a way of life. Ms. Benitez speaks eloquently of El Salvador’s beauty and the brutality against the indigenous. I ached when I read of the massacre. I cried bitter tears when the melodic language of the Pipil was silenced and when I read that they had given up their beautiful rainbows of color in their indigenous dress so as not to attract the attention and brutality of the Guardia. At times, this book is so brutal in its truth, the violence and death so senseless that I had to put it down for a day or two just to get past it. I wanted to hate the rich family that made their money on the backs of indigenous workers picking their coffee, working their fields - but Ms. Benitez made them so human, so likeable that it was hard to find a villain. I sympathized and agonized with both. I wanted to stop things, make them see the inevitable disaster and got so involved with the story that I felt I was there. To be so involved in a book is a blessing no matter how hard the subject matter.Sandra Benitez is such a wonderful storyteller that for the days I read this book, and long after it absorbed me and changed me. It made me think. It made me want more. It made me educate myself more about El Salvador and its history. How many books can do that? How many books can you retain so much of for such a long time? The second reading was just as hard to digest. Brutality, violence, terror, war and injustice aren’t meant to be easy. It is, after all these years, just as hauntingly beautiful as when I first read it. Maybe more so now than before. I remain torn between the families, torn by the violence and injustice. I want to work harder than ever for social change, for promoting peace and tolerance, more motivated than ever to protect my culture, my native language, the costumes my family wears for our Aztec dances, our traditions. I don’t know what else I can say about this book other than to encourage everyone to read it. It’s not some new buzz book -- the publication date on my old copy is 1998 -- but look it up, buy it, borrow it, read it. Don’t leave it in the darkness of some old library shelf. It deserves much better.

Book Review: Rain of Gold by Victor Villasenor

Gina Ruiz — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 02:28:21 EDT

The first time I read Rain of Gold, I thought to myself, “My God, this is my family!” Victor Villasenor has the ability to draw in the reader and make him or her feel that they are living the story. This is particularly true in Rain of Gold. The book follows two people and their families in very different journeys through the hard times of the Mexican Revolution and into the U.S. and the very different life waiting for them there. They meet new challenges in and find each other as they adjust and learn to make a life in this new country. The book abounds with the mystical love of spirits, nature and God that is so commonplace for us Mexicanos. I believe it is hard for people not of our culture to understand just how real the spirits are to us. This is not magical realism but daily life us. Mr. Villasenor shows that aspect of our culture and our grandmothers so well that it brought tears to my eyes as I remembered my own mystical, wise and wonderful grandmother. The fact that Victor Villasenor is extremely dyslexic and encountered myriad problems in school at a very young age makes this book all the more astounding. He writes with pathos and humor, and his love for his beautiful family shines through it all. His simple style of storytelling makes you feel you’re sitting on the floor listening to an uncle or other family member and you are completely enraptured and caught up in his spell.Rain of Gold is the alternating story of Villasenor's grandparents, Salvador and Lupe. Each chapter tells a little more of their incredible lives. Lupe grew up in Lluvia de Oro or "Rain of Gold," a mining town in the mountains of Mexico, a place where orchids grew and butterflies were everywhere. The Mexican Revolution changed her young life and sent her family and many others on the long journey into the U.S. Salvador's story is quite different. His family was rich until the war and left his father a broken man. His mother was indomitable, setting an example Salvador looks up to all his life. Eventually, the two stories meet up as the couple meets and fall in love. It's an incredible story of love, hope, war, and the capability of the human spirit.

Book Review: The Door to Bitterness by Martin Lim�n

Gina Ruiz — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 01:15:33 EDT

This is the fourth in Martin Limón’s fabulous noir detective series featuring army investigators Chicano George Sueños and his partner Ernie Bascomb, set in the sleazy underbelly of the Korea of the 1970s. The writing is fast-paced, hard-boiled, gruff and gritty. It is direct and to the point but underneath it all there is a poignancy and haunting beauty. In this new installment, George Sueños meets a mad and beautiful Eurasian woman in a bar and ends up waking up in an alley missing his badge and his pistol. After a murder/robbery is committed using his gun, it is up to the pair to track down the murderers and get back the weapon to keep George from being court-martialed. The hunt to find the killers is filled with plot twists and surprises, taking the reader into the dark bars, brothels and the Korean black market, all brought vividly to life. George and Ernie must also deal with the Korean police and government investigating the same crime. Limón, a retired Army officer who was himself stationed in Korea, offers an uncommon setting told from a clipped and fascinating viewpoint.