Series: Latino Voices | Publication Date: June 13, 2005
In 1980, with the Sandinistas newly in power, tailor and pig farmer Bernardo Martinez witnesses an extraordinary thing: an otherworldly glow about the statue of the Virgin Mary in the church where he works as sacristán. Soon the Holy Virgin appears. She tells Bernardo to forget his money problems and fear of ridicule and spread her message of peace and faith to his neighbors. Though a work of fiction, Bernardo and the Virgin is based on actual events in Bernardo Martinez's life. The visitation of the Virgin Mary at Cuapa, Nicaragua, remains one of the few such events accepted by the Roman Catholic Church in the last sixty years.
Silvio Sirias' sweeping novel tells many stories: that of a humble man touched by the transcendent; that same man as a devout boy denied the priesthood because of poverty; and those in his orbit, past and present. It is also the stormy epic of Nicaragua through the long Somoza years to the Sandinista revolution. Sirias' beautiful language mixes English with Spanish and details of dusty village life with wondrous images of Catholic mysticism. His portrayal of the rich recent past of Central America resonates with the experiences of both the natives and the thriving communities of Nicaraguans, Salvadorans, and others putting down roots in the United States.
"The details of Bernardo's Nicaragua are wholly entertaining and enticing, with images of Catholic mysticism juxtaposed against the particulars of life in the dusty village of Cuapa. Sirias' prose is lovely." --San Antonio Express-News
Silvio Sirias was born in Los Angeles and he grew up there and in Nicaragua. His other works include writing Julia Alvarez: A Critical Literary Companion (Greenwood, 2002), editing Salomón de la Selva's Tropical Town and Other Poems (Arte Público Press, 1999), and co-editing Conversations with Rudolfo Anaya (University Press of Mississippi, 1998). Sirias is currently an associate professor at Florida State University-Panama.
Product Details
Hardcover: 464 pages
Publisher: Northwestern University Press; 1 edition (June 13, 2005)
A Nicaraguan-American, Silvio Sirias is originally from Los Angeles, where he grew up until the age of eleven. His parents then moved to Nicaragua, their country of origin. This move is, without a doubt, the most significant milestone in his life as it shaped the bicultural and bilingual way in which he perceives the world. As an adolescent living in Nicaragua, he learned that Central America is full of wondrous, and often heartbreaking, stories. During those years, the realms of politics, family life, literature, and spirituality became of particular interest to him.
After graduating from high school, Sirias returned to Los Angeles to attend college. He fell in love with the study of literature and eventually received a doctorate in Spanish from the University of Arizona. For several years afterward he worked as a professor of Spanish and U.S. Latino and Latina literature. But then, just as he had earned tenure at Appalachian State University, in North Carolina, an irresistible urge to return to Nicaragua overcame him. He surrendered to the call and moved back there in 1999.
Since adolescence Sirias has enjoyed writing, but he is a late bloomer in the writing of fiction. Somewhat bored with producing works of literary criticism, while conducting interviews with several Latino and Latina novelists--as part of a project to compile a collection of conversations with these authors--he saw how much fun they were having as pioneers in a new U.S. literary horizon, so he decided to join in.
In terms of scholarly writing, in addition to numerous published articles, he wrote JULIA ALVAREZ: A CRITICAL COMPANION (Greenwood Press, 2001)--a full-length study of the novels of the talented Dominican-American author. He also prepared the second edition of Salomón de la Selva's TROPICAL TOWN AND OTHER POEMS (Arte Público Press, 1998). Originally published in 1918, by the John Lane Company in New York, TROPICAL TOWN represents the first English-language collection of a poet of Latin American descent to be published in the United States. With Salomón de la Selva being from Nicaragua, and also writing in English, Sirias has felt a lifelong connection with this author. To produce this edition, he received a grant from the Recovering the U.S. Hispanic Literary Heritage Project. Also, out of admiration for the work of Rudolfo Anaya, Sirias collected and co-edited the interviews that appear in CONVERSATIONS WITH RUDOLFO ANAYA (University Press of Mississippi, 1999).
With BERNARDO AND THE VIRGIN (Northwestern University Press, 2005), he launched his career as a novelist. Hailed by MOON HANDBOOKS' GUIDE TO NICARAGUA as a work that "stands head and shoulders above other books about Nicaragua," BERNARDO AND THE VIRGIN is based on the "true" tale of the Virgin Mary's 1980 apparition in the small village of Cuapa--an event that had significant religious and political repercussions. Because of the broad canvas of this "epic" account of Nicaragua in the latter half of the 20th century, the author had the opportunity to explore every theme that possesses him: politics, history, religion, spirituality, family, war, immigration, biculturalism, shifting traditions, superstitions, and death.
MEET ME UNDER THE CEIBA (Arte Público Press, 2009) won the 2007 Chicano/Latino Literary Prize for Best Novel. This story of greed, love, lust, death, and homophobia--also inspired by a true incident--relates the bizarre circumstances of the 1999 murder of a woman in the town of La Curva, in the province of Masaya. The writer Rolando Hinojosa-Smith, judge of the 2007 Chicano/Latino Literary Contest, expressed that MEET ME UNDER THE CEIBA is "a fascinating read--very well-written, with a delightful, lively pace."
Since 2002, Silvio resides in Panama, where he continues to write and teach. For more information on the author, visit his website at www.silviosirias.com
This review is from: Bernardo and the Virgin (Latino Voices) (Hardcover)
I never knew much about Nicaragua, but after reading Bernardo and the Virgin I now feel that I have been there. I've read many books by Latino writers, and Sirias' is one of the best. Bernardo and the Virgin contains many beautiful stories. The spiritual dimensions of this novel remind me of Bless Me, Ultima, but it's the political aspect, the wringer Bernardo is put through after the Virgin appears to him, that propels the story. The novel also stands as a loving tribute to the people of Nicaragua. I will definitely recommend that my Latino literature professor put this book on her reading list. And to anyone who enjoys the magic of Latin American literature, I absolutely recommend it.
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This review is from: Bernardo and the Virgin (Latino Voices) (Hardcover)
As a former student of Dr. Sirias I was very interested in reading this book. I found it to be very insightful, thoughtful, and descriptive. While the topic of spirituality and appearances of the Virgin Mary may scare off some readers, they should know that it is much more a story of Nicaragua and its struggles than anything else. Anyone interested in Latino literature will find this book very engaging. As a first major fictional work, I found the book to be very enjoyable!
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This review is from: Bernardo and the Virgin (Latino Voices) (Hardcover)
I am from Nicaragua, but I have been living in the States since the age of 15 when my family fled the country during the political problems of the early 1980's. I have to say that "Bernardo and the Virgin" perfectly captures the Nicaragua I remember. The characters are authentic "Nicas" in the way they act, think, and speak. I had often heard other Nicaraguans talk about the Virgin's appearance in Cuapa, and now it is wonderful to have this story told so beautifully. Of all the novels about Nicaragua I have read, this one is the best. "Bernardo and the Virgin" is a must read for anyone interested in Latin American politics and religion.
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