Customer Reviews

Thirteen Senses: A Memoir

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Victor Villasenor writes like the very re-incarnation of the Muse itself. A classicist who knows his plot, knows his characters, knows the very stars from which we all come because he writes the truth that is stranger and more mysterious than fiction. His publisher says he writes about his own family. We know better. We know he writes about us, about us as family, about who we want to be and how we settle for who we are. And how, at the very moment of doom, we can and must demand justice from our God in order to get it.

Lupe is the heroine of this fantastic saga of human adventure. You will love Lupe. You will learn what it really means to be a beautiful woman from Lupe. You will learn what it really means to love a man from Lupe. You will learn what it really means to love life from Lupe. You will learn what it means to wake up one morning, as a new bride, and realize you have just made the biggest mistake of your life from Lupe. You will learn what it really means to honor the major commitments of your life from Lupe. You will learn how to be practically and deliciously wicked from Lupe. But most of all you will love Lupe.

I am an avid reader. There are few books that can lead me into a matrix of wisdom and forever change my world. Villasenor has a universe of wisdom to share through his captivating stories. I have read Rain of Gold which is superb and now Thirteen Senses which is every bit as marvelous. I just found out about Wild Steps of Heaven and
plan on partaking in yet another masterpiece. Everyone I have loaned one of his books to has become a true fan. I would highly reccommend Thirteen Senses! For that matter you can't go wrong with any of his books.

I too was moved to read "13 Senses" by a PBS radio interview. What a great story. I apreciated the fact that Victor Villasenor did not list the thirteen senses but uses the story to illustrate what they are. An extremely mature writing style that I enjoyed.

After reading "13 Senses" I then read "Rain of Gold". Thirteen Senses is to me by far the better book. It is not just reporting facts and dates; it is reporting life and feelings. Victor Villasenor in this book believes, not just reports. The many years between the two books reflexes his attained maturity and sureness.

Victor Villasenor has done it again. He brings the gift of his family's continuing history once again. We meet up again with Lupe and Salvador on their journey through life together. I can say that this book along with Rain of Gold has touched me like no other. I have finished the book and already miss the characters. I applaude and thank the author for his wonderful gift...

I really looked forward to reading this book. I had read Rain of Gold in Spanish, and actually I read this one in Spanish too. Mamma mia! I have never read a book with so many exclamation marks. All the bolded phrases about Papito Dios etc became quite annoying as time went on. The story related in this book was also tedious and silly. I'm sure his parents were great- the photos are the best part of the book- but I began skimming about halfway through because I couldn't bear the hysterical and preachy tone anymore. Sorry!

The words float from the pages of this marvelous continuation to the masterpiece, RAIN OF GOLD. Calling it a sequel minimizes the impact of the journey Villasenor leads us through. It is a priviledge to read the prose that this great author allows us to view and what a gift that Villasenor chooses to give us all in sharing such a magnificent story with us. The realization that there are many stories like his is present, yet Villasenor has allowed us to enter a world of adventure, love, passion, mysticism and reality. Though for conventional western thought his story borders on strands of credibility, the indigenous influence never dies within those who possess it. Mr. Villasenor, I Believe!

I think the sequence where Lupe is talking with her mother-in-law an Idigeneous Mexican Indian was very moving. Finished the book on our way to San Francisco were we visited our daughter-in-love" and our son and grandchild. Have been struggleing with the "Thirteenth Sense" all my life, and if I can't make it on a beautiful barrier island on the Gulf of Mexico, with my husband of 37 years, there is no hope for the rest of us. Buying the book for Christmas gifts to give all the people who give meaning to my life. Beautifully written and with such sensitivity it makes you want to invite Victor for dinner.

I am a big fan of Victor Villasenor's literature. He has such a style that is serious but can make you laugh out loud. In Thirteen Senses, it starts where Rain of Gold left off. The boo chronicles the first few years of Lupe and Juan Salvadors marriage. This book is very intertaining and a delight to know that these events actually took place. I would recommend this book to anyone!

I would suggest reading "Rain of Gold" first as it lays the background for Thirteen Senses and I, personally, thought Rain of Gold was the better story which pointed out the meaning of LOVE in a myriad of ways that was better than most other descriptions I have ever read.

The weakness of this story is the overuse of the Almighty's powers and Salvador's mother's retelling her philosophy of life page after page after page. If 50 to 75 pages of this type dissertation was edited out, it would be a much better story. The religious nature of both primary familys' is very important to the story, however, it is overdone. While reading I was comparing the American Indian's religious beliefs (which I love) along with the Mexican Indian's outlook. Quite the same in many ways, particularly when actually changing from human to animal form and then back to human. Fascinating.

I read this book out loud to my wife and she also enjoyed it and would most certainly recommend this being a fine reading experience, however, she also agrees there is too much philosophy given by Dona Guadalupe, Salvador's mother. Her meanderings are important to the story, but you can pass by many paragraphs when she gets too wound up.

Started out a little slow, but became one of my favorites by the end. The second time I read it, it was much better. It is definately on the top of my recomindation list.