anya_reading's review against another edition
4.0
Make no mistake about it: none of these short stories have happy endings, and everyone is cruel to each other. Also, seemingly everyone in this book hates natives.
I found myself quickly immersed in these stories, and loved the author's tone as she narrated each story - her all-knowing attitude comes off as strong and sometimes mocking. It reminded me of the tone Dostoyevsky sometimes used when describing character interactions in his books - like he knows more about the characters than they do themselves, but still, he can't change the ridiculous ways they are going to act.
This is the first book by a Mexican author, set in Mexico, that I have ever read. (I think.) This book illuminated some very basic facts for me, as a northern neighbor: just like there are subtle differences between states in their cultures, there are more differences still in rural areas in far-removed states, and within native and mixed populations.
Additionally: in every culture, there are going to be people who feel they are superior to other people who live in the same area as them, and they will often go to extremes to show or "prove" how superior they are. This culminates in acts of brutality against the native population, up to and including straight up murder, as one elderly woman does to a native man after she tricks him into working for her for free. Native people are absolutely seen as disposable in the stories in this book: it is heartbreaking. Even when someone tries to set things right, their actions are met with confusion, worry, and distrust, as in "The Gift Refused." The reader can clearly see how systematically oppressed the native people have been, and how that cycle just continues under the weight of all that these people have suffered.
Another thought provoked me while reading these stories, many involving farms or the mention of going to work on a farm/ranch. As a young girl, I read stories about a little girl whose father owned a hacienda (I believe it was in New Mexico, as this was an American Girl series - I hope you'll forgive me for oversimplifying, but this series introduced me to the concept of a ranch/hacienda). In those stories, I remembered the ranch was some sort of good, wholesome thing, and nobody seemed to be treated badly; but in the context of this book, working on haciendas and ranches seems to have been akin to plantation-style slavery for the native population. It made me feel like I was seeing a different side of the coin: the owner of the ranch and his family would be much more well-off than the folks that did the drudgery.
I would recommend this book, even though the stories don't go down easy.
(#7 - An #ownvoices book set in Mexico or Central America)
I found myself quickly immersed in these stories, and loved the author's tone as she narrated each story - her all-knowing attitude comes off as strong and sometimes mocking. It reminded me of the tone Dostoyevsky sometimes used when describing character interactions in his books - like he knows more about the characters than they do themselves, but still, he can't change the ridiculous ways they are going to act.
This is the first book by a Mexican author, set in Mexico, that I have ever read. (I think.) This book illuminated some very basic facts for me, as a northern neighbor: just like there are subtle differences between states in their cultures, there are more differences still in rural areas in far-removed states, and within native and mixed populations.
Additionally: in every culture, there are going to be people who feel they are superior to other people who live in the same area as them, and they will often go to extremes to show or "prove" how superior they are. This culminates in acts of brutality against the native population, up to and including straight up murder, as one elderly woman does to a native man after she tricks him into working for her for free. Native people are absolutely seen as disposable in the stories in this book: it is heartbreaking. Even when someone tries to set things right, their actions are met with confusion, worry, and distrust, as in "The Gift Refused." The reader can clearly see how systematically oppressed the native people have been, and how that cycle just continues under the weight of all that these people have suffered.
Another thought provoked me while reading these stories, many involving farms or the mention of going to work on a farm/ranch. As a young girl, I read stories about a little girl whose father owned a hacienda (I believe it was in New Mexico, as this was an American Girl series - I hope you'll forgive me for oversimplifying, but this series introduced me to the concept of a ranch/hacienda). In those stories, I remembered the ranch was some sort of good, wholesome thing, and nobody seemed to be treated badly; but in the context of this book, working on haciendas and ranches seems to have been akin to plantation-style slavery for the native population. It made me feel like I was seeing a different side of the coin: the owner of the ranch and his family would be much more well-off than the folks that did the drudgery.
I would recommend this book, even though the stories don't go down easy.
(#7 - An #ownvoices book set in Mexico or Central America)
leilaniw's review
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
dreesreads's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
1960 short story collection. Castellanos used her position as a Latina author to show how the Mayan descendants were still treated in Chiapas--by the Latinos, the Catholic Church, and Protestant American Missionaries.
More...