A Glass of Water [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Jimmy Santiago Baca (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2009

Award-winning memoirist, poet, and activist, Jimmy Santiago Baca has established himself as an inspiring and important spokesperson for the Chicano experience, continually giving voice to the voiceless. His first novel, A Glass of Water is a gripping tale of family, loyalty, ambition, and revenge that takes us inside the tragedies unfurling along our country’s borders. Having made the nearly deadly journey across the border from Mexico, Casimiro and Nopal spend their days in the chili fields, building a life for their young sons. But when Nopal is brutally murdered, the boys are left to navigate this capricious new world without her. The elder son, Lorenzo, follows his father’s footsteps, devoting himself to the land, and falling in love with a strong-minded young woman who’s come to their migrant camp to study the lives of its workers. But Vito, hot-blooded and restless, breaks away to find fame as an itinerant boxer, gaining notoriety inside the ring and out. Eventually, the brothers’ journeys converge, bringing them face to face with a common enemy. A Glass of Water is a searing, heartfelt tribute to brotherhood, and an arresting portrait of the twisted paths people take to claim their piece of the American dream.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Poet Baca's blistering novel takes to task the treatment of Mexican migrant workers in the US. When a young Mexican couple, Casimiro and Nopal, cross the border in 1984, their new life begins promisingly: they find work on a Texas farm and build a stable home for their two sons, Lorenzo and Vito. But before the boys reach adulthood, Nopal is murdered and her killer escapes. The family struggles to go on, with Lorenzo eventually taking over his father's farm duties and settling into domestic bliss with Carmen, a college student studying migrant workers. Vito's restless spirit leads him to fight in amateur boxing matches and to everyone's surprise, he shows a tantalizing level of talent and considers a serious fighting career. But even as the brothers find their own measures of success, they are haunted by the injustice of Nopal's murder. Interspersed with Lorenzo and Vito's lives are glimpses of Casimiro's youth and even Nopal's thoughts from the world beyond. A general sense of social and political unrest permeates the story, often to the point of distraction. But the sheer passion that drives Baca's novel is undeniable. (Oct.)
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Review

“Jimmy Santiago Baca’s poems read like novels, and his novels read like poems. . . . Baca fills his prose with evocative, naturalistic details, [and] his poetry’s beating heart . . . weaves stories of Chicano loss and redemption, often through a reconnection to Earth’s natural elements. . . . Baca’s tangible earthiness seeps through [A Glass of Water] . . . but his bucolic prose is anything but lulling; as the story builds to a violent resolution, so do the political undercurrents. But ultimately, it’s transcendent performance—Carmen’s song and Vito’s populist pugilism, not to mention Baca’s own transformation through literature—that offers salvation.”—Wells Dunbar, The Austin Chronicle

“[With A Glass of Water] Baca manages to put a face on desperation. He decries the exploitation of migrant farm workers in the United States . . . [and] derogates not only an exploitive American economic system, but also Mexican drug lords driving the poor off their land, who become homeless or victims of violence. . . . [But] a field worker’s life isn’t all toil and gloom as reflected in the lives of the characters. There’s also passion, joy, love of family, adventure, love, longing, and accomplishment. The imagery is striking, the prose lyrical.”—Aurelio Sanchez, The Albuquerque Journal

“[A] blistering novel . . . The sheer passion that drives Baca’s [work] is undeniable.”—Publishers Weekly

“[With] image-rich writing . . . A Glass of Water adds another strong voice to the growing body of literature on immigrants and migrant farm workers. . . . Baca should be commended for tackling injustice in his fiction.”—Don Waters, High Country News

“A well-written and at times lyrical saga told with understanding and compassion.”—Library Journal

“Impressive . . . Fierce and uncompromising, but also beautiful and wise, A Glass of Water might be [Baca’s] most accessible work yet. . . . Baca’s concerns are universal: family, loyalty, the dignity of hard work, and, above all, love.”—Kevin Canfield, Pasatiempo

"Buy an extra copy of this book and send it to your senator. I’ll pay for it! It’s the best antidote around to the sorrowful, dehumanizing discourse on undocumented immigrants going on in Washington. Hard economic times always translate into extra misery for the more vulnerable. Ay, and we used to be known as the land where people were given a fair chance!"--Ilan Stavans

Product Details

• Hardcover: 215 pages
• Publisher: Grove Press; First Edition edition (October 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802119220
• ISBN-13: 978-0802119223
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,140,329 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I'm still thirsty, October 11, 2009

By 

The Voice (Albuqerque, New Mexico) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Glass of Water (Hardcover)

I love Jimmy Santiago Baca's poetry so, when I was walking around the book store today and, "A Glass of Water" caught my attention, I sat down for a quick sip. It didn't take long for me to decide to buy the book. This is his first novel (according to the jacket) and it is incredible. It was so engaging that I read it entirely in one sitting - a 4 hour drink to be exact.

I won't give any spoilers so, my synopsis is deliberately brief. The story is about two brothers whose divergent paths re-converge at the story's end. This 215 page work attests to Baca's powerful story-telling abilities.

His prose is even more enjoyable as it echoes Baca's passion and accomplishment as a skilled poet. There are moments in the story where the writing is lyrical and rich in details - something only a poet can do.

The story line tangentially details the plight of undocumented Mexicans and, if I have any regrets, they would be that the underlying story - the bigotry that so many Americans harbor against Mexicans was not delved into more deeply. For my part, the story is great but I was left wanting to know more. There are parts of the story that could have been expanded and elaborated upon quite a bit more without making the book unnecessarily long (eg. the brothers' childhood relationship, ancillary characters such as the man with nickle-tipped boots, the land owner, Carmen and her work, the concentration camps).

The story deals with tension, strife, romance, angst, violence, revenge intrigue, regret, rage and forces of compromise. While the protagonists' character development were sufficient to carry the story, their development was more reflective of the title; drinks that only left me thirsty. I wanted to know more.

I am not sure what the title has to do with the story and, at least for this reader, a drink was not enough.

This book could easily work out to be part of a series because, there remains so much more to tell.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I'd like to see a movie out of this, January 4, 2010

By 

Carel Miske "Ashz" (Nevada) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Glass of Water (Hardcover)

I am unfamiliar with Baca's writing, but this book caught my attention. I put it back and then went back for it. A very interesting read, it is both sympathetic and brutally lacking sympathy (sometimes at the same time) for the plight of the immigrant farm laborers. I read the book in one sitting. I was unable to put it down as I needed to know where this brilliantly crafted story was taking me. It was fascinating and somewhat surreal despite being set in a very real and harsh environment. I only regretted that the book was not longer and more fleshed out. I didn't want to leave these characters at the point when I left them. That is the only reason it did not get 5 stars: the end seemed abrupt and the story incomplete.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I never thought Baca would ever top "A Place To Stand", but history will record "A Glass of Water " a classic., November 12, 2009

By 

Will (DC) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Glass of Water (Hardcover)

"A Glass of Water" could be a true story providing the reader a glance of the historic struggle of Mexican immigrants. It is a brilliantly told story combining the words a great poet and story teller, a story which only Baca could write. Without question, this is a master piece you must read.