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saidtheraven's review
5.0
I am in love with this book!
I am currently taking a Mexican American Literature class and our Professor decided to open the course with this novel. I could not have been more satisfied. It is very rare the time that I can love a book and really identify with it.
Growing somewhat near where the location of the book took place, it was certainly interesting to see how life was back here in the early 1900's. And how many of those things are still happening today.
Really, it is a book that deals with assimilation, colonization, acculturation, and all the terms that a Mexican American has to go through. Identity is really big. There were times that I could relate entirely to Gualinto and understand that divide of both cultures that he experienced. And seeing him deal with that divide was what I loved reading the most.
Now the ending might come as a bit of a surprise and utter disappointment, but as Paredes said, he had to keep it real as to when the book was written. The ending made the book more realistic and it certainly riles up a reaction from the reader, as it did to me.
I cannot say how much I loved this book from beginning to end. It really is a genius work of art and I'm so glad to have fully had a connection with it.
I am currently taking a Mexican American Literature class and our Professor decided to open the course with this novel. I could not have been more satisfied. It is very rare the time that I can love a book and really identify with it.
Growing somewhat near where the location of the book took place, it was certainly interesting to see how life was back here in the early 1900's. And how many of those things are still happening today.
Really, it is a book that deals with assimilation, colonization, acculturation, and all the terms that a Mexican American has to go through. Identity is really big. There were times that I could relate entirely to Gualinto and understand that divide of both cultures that he experienced. And seeing him deal with that divide was what I loved reading the most.
Now the ending might come as a bit of a surprise and utter disappointment, but as Paredes said, he had to keep it real as to when the book was written. The ending made the book more realistic and it certainly riles up a reaction from the reader, as it did to me.
I cannot say how much I loved this book from beginning to end. It really is a genius work of art and I'm so glad to have fully had a connection with it.
cocoanut7's review
3.0
Interesting read. I haven't ever really learned much about Mexican and Texan relations so that was unique for me. It definitely has some great commentary on the situation, but I found the plot to be a bit dry and dull reading. It's certainly unique and it's not like it has pointless development or anything. I just wasn't drawn into the book as much. And it's not necessarily my cup of tea either. But it's still well written and I'm glad I've read it. I feel a lot more aware of the situation than ever and it's a shame that we don't talk about this kind of stuff more.
shaunnow38's review
5.0
Devastating tale of growing up on the US/Mexican border. Paredes has an eye for anthropology, dialing in the emotions and landscapes of the Southwest. His text is made off of full, real characters, and he places those characters in a roiling desert of stories, tradition, and transition. The story continues to hurt you as it goes on, but it does not punish.
Reading Paredes work makes me want to learn more of the conflicts surrounding literary identities, as this is essentially a racial conflict scaled down to one individual. Gualinto experiences the contradictions of being a TexasMexican is every chapter. He hears the traditions and history of his people, while being pushed to renounce that identity for the AngloAmerican way. The conflicts are never presented simply as self-hatred, but there is an evolution of identities and an evolution of conflict to compliment the ever changing sense of Gualinto/George Washington.
Reading Paredes work makes me want to learn more of the conflicts surrounding literary identities, as this is essentially a racial conflict scaled down to one individual. Gualinto experiences the contradictions of being a TexasMexican is every chapter. He hears the traditions and history of his people, while being pushed to renounce that identity for the AngloAmerican way. The conflicts are never presented simply as self-hatred, but there is an evolution of identities and an evolution of conflict to compliment the ever changing sense of Gualinto/George Washington.
nicolinesimone's review
3.0
Interesting read on Mexican American culture clashes in Texas in the early 20th century.
italo_carlvino's review
3.0
Thanks to my brother for recommending the book. I liked it. It was an interesting study of how a racist society can instill internalized racism. The book was very easy to read (like an off-the-shelf western with something to say), but it felt a little unfinished especially toward the end.
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