Brides have their dreams, sinners their secrets, but sometimes it’s not so easy to tell them apart. In the border town of El Paso—better known to its Mexican American residents as El Chuco—dramas unfold in humdrum households every day as working-class men come home from their jobs and as their wives and children do their best to cope with life. Christine Granados now plumbs the heart of this community in fourteen startling stories, uncovering the dreams and secrets in which ordinary people sometimes lose themselves. Many fictional accounts of barrio life play up tradition and nostalgia; Brides and Sinners in El Chuco is a trip to the darker side. Here are memories of growing up in a place where innocence is always tempered by reality—true-to-life stories, told in authentic language, of young women, from preteens to twenty-somethings, learning to negotiate their way through troubled times and troubled families. In the award-winning story “The Bride,” a young girl recalls her sister as a perennial bride on Halloween, planning for her eventual big day in a pink notebook with lists of potential husbands, only to see her dream thwarted at the junior prom. In another, we meet Bobbi, the class slut, whose D-cup chest astounds the other girls and entices everyone—even those who shouldn’t be tempted. Granados’ tales boldly portray women’s struggle for solidarity in the face of male abuse, and as these characters come to grips with self-discovery, sibling rivalry, and dysfunctional relationships, she shows what it means for Chicanas to grow up in protective families while learning to survive in the steamy border environment. Brides and Sinners in El Chuco is an uncompromising look at life with all its hard edges—told with enough softness to make readers come back for more.
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
El Paso is El Chuco ("the disgusting one") to locals of the border town where Granados sets the 15 stories of this debut. A young woman models her wedding on those she saw in magazines full of gringas, but her reality (as is the case with many of the characters to follow) differs starkly from her glossy fantasy. In "A Scenic Night," a young woman is saved from humiliation by a deceptively chivalric bartender, who promptly takes her outside for an even greater embarrassment. The young girl in "Man of the House," forced to adopt the role of caretaker for her irresponsible mother, is on the verge of caring about her mother's new boyfriend, but must accept that he will leave like all the rest. The small disappointments of the book are tempered by the characters' abilities to rally hope from unlikely sources, such as the young protagonist in "Enough," who finds solace in a close relationship with her alcoholic, possibly "loca," Aunt Manuela. The author's affection for her characters emerges in her way of bringing them to life with an attention to detail and language that clearly evokes the intensities of half-filled desires.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
“The author's affection for her characters emerges in her way of bringing them to life with an attention to detail and language that clearly evokes the intensities of half-filled desires.” —Publishers Weekly “She has kept the spirit of the border city with her. Her tales may be filled with heartache, but they by no means lack heart.” —El Paso Scene “A stunning debut collection from a gifted writers who has herein collected a dozen dreams deferred to produce art.”—Multicultural Review “An uncompromising look at life . . . . told with enough softness to make readers come back for more.”—Pluma Fronteriza “Christine Granados is not afraid to tell it like it is, especially when life is painful and raw. Originality and ironic humor keep these tales spinning page after page.” —Santa Fe New Mexican
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
About that review excerpted above!,
By xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Tejas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Brides and Sinners in El Chuco (Camino del Sol) (Paperback)
"El Chuco" does not mean "the disgusting one," though whoever wrote that has a disgusting opinion about El Paso, Texas, that has nothing to do with the border town or the people who live there. That is one of those that says more about what is in a reviewer's mind that what is in an author's. "El Chuco" comes from the shortened word for "Pachuco," which is a name for what Chicanos in gangs were called in the 50s, and it's a Chicano slang nickname for the city. Nothing else, doesn't even translate as "disgusting" for people who speak Spanish or include words in a Spanish dictionary. It's very offensive.
Granados' collection is one of the best written which is set there. It is honest, funny, and poignant.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Brides and Sinners in El Chuco,
This review is from: Brides and Sinners in El Chuco (Camino del Sol) (Paperback)
Christiine Granados' debut short story collection entitled "Brides and Sinners in El Chuco" certainy pushes the edge in a number of different ways. Granados is not afraid to explore a dark underworld of taboos, whether it be spousal abuse in "Comfort" or child molestation in "My Girlfriend Bobbi". The stories for the most part are quite successful at capturing the reader's attention right from the start. Granados's writing style is very raw and easy to connect with on various levels. I particuarly enjoyed Granados's distinct style of setting. The mood of the bordertown of El Paso seems to mesh very well with the dark type of material that Granados seems to work best with, although I still felt as if the haunting events depicted in some of the stories could be taking place anywhere, which is why the reader is likely to identify so well with her writing. Overall, it was an enjoyable collection of short stories, and a promsing debut for a young writer like Granados.
5.0 out of 5 stars
El Paso!,
By Frank (Dallas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Brides and Sinners in El Chuco (Camino del Sol) (Paperback)
A fine collection of stories! Recommended to me by a friend who knows my love for Chicano, Latino, and Latin American stories, Brides and Sinners in El Chuco is refreshing and fearless. These are stories that are not going to sell well at a new Hispanic mall where bland and pretty are almost the same. These stories are raw, funny, and tragic. Real, in other words, by someone who knows El Paso not as someone who grew up on the West Side. Granados reminds me of a female Rivera and Gilb, with an edge like Castillo but a lot more fun to read. More!
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