Fantasmas: Supernatural Stories by Mexican American Writers [Paperback]

Rob Johnson (Author, Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 30, 2001

Cuentos de fantasma are a popular form of Mexican literature combining fantasy, folktales, and pulp fiction. Fantasmas is the first collection of such stories written by Mexican American writiers, including Kathleen Alcala, David Rice, Carmen Tafolla, Stephen Gutierrez, Elva Trevino Hart, and others. In her introduction, Kathleen Alcala distinguishes these stories from those by Latin American magical realists.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

These two works are similar in origin but different in genre. Bierhorst's features over 100 stories in a more traditional style from Mexico, Central America, the American Southwest, and South America. Many read like traditional European fairy tales, which should not be surprising since they reflect a strong Spanish Colonial influence, even though they have sprouted from the seedbed of indigenous folklore. The first part of this book contains Aztec and Inca legends but not very ancient ones; most date from the time just prior to or during the Conquest. The second part of the book features dynamic tales reflecting all short story or folktale genres: comic, anecdotal, moral, heroic, and religious. The tales are short and pithy and often pack a surprise punch line, making for extremely interesting reading. Fantasmas is a collection of stories by 19 well-known or emerging Mexican American writers whose inspirations seep from the cuento de fantasmas literally "ghost stories" but more a unique blend of folklore and faith, superstition and the supernatural. These tales and urban legends are modern, with a nod make that a bow to current pop culture's fascination with horror and the paranormal. They run the gamut from the grotesque ("Cantinflas," "Lilith's Dance") to those displaying gracia, that elusive, heart-lightening quality that divides art from craft ("Beyond Eternity," "Michelle's Miracle"). Still others, such as "The Gift," would make excellent X-Files material, although a strong moral is attached. Fascinating but disturbing, these tales may reflect the authors' need to purge themselves of personal or cultural fears. Public library patrons will enjoy the richness of the folktales and the sheer thrills transmitted by the fantasmas. And academic library patrons will have materials for cultural and ethnic studies now compiled into two convenient anthologies. Recommended for both types of libraries. Nedra C. Evers, Sacramento P.L.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Combining elements of folktales, traditional and urban legend, and pop culture, the 19 tales in this unique anthology illustrate the attraction of Mexican American writers to the fantastic and supernatural. The range of the stories themselves--in length, tone, setting, style, and the relative goodness or evilness of the spirits involved--adds to the richness of the collection. Among the most chilling is the shortest, "Cantinflas," by Stephen D. Gutierrez, in which in barely three pages a boy's puppet attacks and devours its young owner in a dream. Its horror is exceeded, however, by "Lilith's Dance," by Gary Hernandez, with a possessed NYU English professor on a killing spree. In a lighter tone, a serendipitous coexistence of the human and spirit worlds leads to middle-aged romance in "Beyond Eternity," by Elva Trevino Hart. And benevolence extends to the miraculous in "Michelle's Miracle," by Kelley Jacquez, in which women share stories of lives being saved by unexplained means. With something to haunt everyone, this could find a place in both literary and popular collections. Michele Leber
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Paperback: 185 pages
• Publisher: Bilingual Pr (Bilrp) (October 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931010021
• ISBN-13: 978-1931010023
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,362,084 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Long Awaited Release, March 21, 2002

By 

kittykatbookworm (Richfield, MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fantasmas: Supernatural Stories by Mexican American Writers (Paperback)

This book is actually edited by my former Creative Writing Professor, (in a later incarnation of the same class from which the book sprung). Dr. Johnson has a talent for seeing quality in other people's stories. If you like scary stories, try these on for size. They are interesting both in content and in cultural elements. It's about time that the literary world started taking Hispanic literature seriously. It has so much more flavor than a lot (not all, but a lot) of what comes out of (my own) WASPish heritage. Try it. You'll like it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly scary reading on a cold, dark night!, February 7, 2002

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fantasmas: Supernatural Stories by Mexican American Writers (Paperback)

Aptly edited by Rob Johnson (teacher of American literature at the University of Texas-Pan American, South Texas Valley) Fantasmas: Supernatural Stories By Mexican American Writers is an impressive and wide-ranging anthology of folklore-style fantasy tales, or cuentos de fantasma. Enhanced with an informative introduction by Kathleen Alcala, as well as being intrinsically shocking, spooky, and rich with cultural and traditional lore, the stories comprising Fantasmas make for truly scary reading on a cold, dark night!