 | El Milagro and Other Stories Subjects: Mexican Americans -- Arizona -- Soclallife and customs -- Fiction; Mexican American women -- Arizona -- Social life and customs -- Fiction; Arizona -- Social life and customs -- Fiction; Here, Arizona writer Martin (Songs My Mother Sang to Me: An Oral History of Mexican American Women) presents "personal and collective memories" in plainspoken yet lyrical stories of her "mexicana life experiences" in the Los Angeles barrio. The painfully real and the irreal mix: in the fantastical tale "Plumas," a shy cafeteria employee is always late because she oversleeps while dreaming that she is Xochitl, a priestess of the Aztec creator goddess Tonantz'in; in "El Creciente," "third- and fourth-generation city slickers" go to a family reunion and get caught in a flood that carries past them "a phantom flotilla" of the town's dead. In the more strictly realistic "Dichos," a girl "drags her butt and feels like a martyr" when she goes to visit her great-grandmother, but once there is engulfed by the smells of cooking and the rhythm of the old woman's proverbial sayings. Though Martin overdoes the proverbs and cultural edification in some other stories, overall her blend of Spanish words, details and metaphors offers an affectionate depiction of life in a changing neighborhood. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved Patricia Preciado Martin is a native Arizonan and a lifelong Tucsonense. She is a honors graduate of the University of Arizona and has been active in the Chicano community of Tucson for many years. Her books include two collections of oral history, Songs My Mother Sang to Me: An Oral History of Mexican American Women and Images and Conversations: Mexican Amercans Recall a Southwestern Past . She has written a collection of prize-winning short stories, Days of Plenty, Days of Want , and her work has been included in numerous anthologies. Martin lives in Tucson with her husband, Jim, and counts the hours until her children visit. |
