Customer Reviews

El Paso Del Norte: Stories On The Border (Western Literature Series)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

While one might simply be satisfied with his intimate and artful texturing of images and people on the border, Yañez takes his stories to a higher level, layering time, place and character with spiritual journeys through struggles that are as specific to the border region as they are universally familiar. Through a palette of characters-a coming of age pre-teen, a widowed tire shop owner, a directionless and embittered high school graduate, and a half-sane woman on welfare, Yañez captures the dignity of a community by providing his characters with an equal amount of fallibility and promise. Throughout these stories humor is as ever-present as sadness, and in the end, Yañez consistently leaves us with subtle messages of hope.

A few years ago, I read the short story, "Lucero's Mkt.," in Bilingual Review. I didn't know the author but the story moved me with its powerful, poignant portrait of two lost souls: a woman who had lost her mind (known in the neighborhood as, "La Loquita") and Rafael, the lonely, owner of the tiendita. When I started to read Richard Yañez's debut collection, "El Paso del Norte: Stories on the Border," I was delighted when I came upon "Lucero's Mkt." It sat happily nestled among the other borderland stories in this slim, eloquent and vibrant collection. Yañez has a gift: he can bring to life one region in Texas (near the Mexican border) but he doesn't write the same story over and over again. The characters range across the map of Latino experiences: undocumented immigrants, pochos, young, old, male, female, middle-class, indigent. Yañez never falls in the trap known as bathos. He paints an honest picture of life on the border without pulling punches. But he also shows respect for the people he writes about even those who are riddled with imperfections. This is a very fine, accomplished book. I highly recommend it.

although i'm from califas i appreciate the high volume of chicano lit coming from the texas valley. yanez is a good addition to the growing shelf with this set of stories about life on the el paso/ juarez border. although this territory is not new yanez's vision is. he writes about the loss of innocence and about the people who must now struggle with the metaphysical borders that affect all of us no matter who we are and what our backgound is. happiness, disappointment, joy, grief, family and society are but a few of the pressures and desires that make us human and that the author explores through the triumph and downfall of us all: language.

I've just finished reading this collection for the second time, and I will say that I enjoyed it more this time around. As before, I appreciated the cultural icons and wonderful depictions of places that I grew up visiting, the sights I enjoyed, the sounds of English-Spanish-Calo that one hears everywhere one goes in the region. This is invaluable because it provides a comfort for readers who grew up in the area, but also because it creates a rich atmosphere from which these characters grow and these stories flourish. Unfortunately, though, one cannot depend upon this alone.

I like this collection. One of the common themes many of these stories share is struggle. Economic struggle against a system that is skillfully woven deep into the background (or atmosphere) of the social structural setting. This struggle digs into the marrow of the very land that provides inspiration for these characters, and yet, we're also privy to the realization that at least some of the responsibility for these chronic problems lie with the self-indulgence many of these characters exhibit. The man who refuses to stop drinking, the man who struggles to deal with the death of his wife (a woman who took care of daily life in the most minute of ways), etc. etc. etc. The border and the idea of crossing it provides one hell of a figurative solution/parallel issue, and it is never far from the lives of these people. The border is always there, it is always weighing heavily on the struggle of the border dweller, it is always an ideal and a punishment.

My biggest issue is that too many stories feel a bit underdeveloped. Too many rely upon that centuries old cultural shorthand, on that nudge and nod to those who've lived their whole lives immersed in such. For those outside of this, there isn't much to grasp beyond this. Still, it's worth a read or two, and I recommend it among the works of Saenz, Gilb, etc.

It has been several years since Richard Yanez wrote these short stories. Living in El Paso the past few years I have become interested in stories about my new home town. These stories do evoke many of the places and things that make El Paso unique. Yanez is clearly a talented wordsmith. His use of langauge is very strong. Where he is not yet a master is in the formation of his stories. A prior reviewer dismissed this book for the poor resolutions and seemingly disconnected elements of the stories. This is partly true. Because Yanez is so good at painting verbal pictures of time, place and the timeless elements of El Paso border life, you end up frustrated that he cannot bring the stories to stronger conclusions. I enjoyed some of the stories. However, make no mistake, Yanez is a gifted stylist and I beleive will get stronger at structuring his stories. I look forward to his next effort. I think he has the potential to be another Junot Diaz if he can find the right story to tell. (And, I should note, Diaz is equally confused at structuring his stories. It doesn't seem to have hurt him any!)

The stories are disjointed and incomplete. Several leave one without any definite indication of resolution or suggested direction of resolution. The plot never solidifies in some and is barely evident in others. A compiliation of rambling thoughts and occurences, barely connected overall into a cohesive, enjoyable story. Left me very disappointed.