An Occasional Blog From An Occasional Writer - Manuel Ramos

Fini

2006-04-18T18:01:00.000-06:00

This blog is done. You should click on LA BLOGA.

Este y Eso

2006-03-08T00:01:00.000-07:00

Manuel Ramos

COLORADO AND NEW MEXICO PIONEERS
The Colorado Society of Hispanic Genealogy has published Hispanic Pioneers in Colorado and New Mexico, and is celebrating with a reception at the Colorado History Museum, 1300 Broadway, Denver, on December 9 from 2:30 to 4:30 PM. More details at the Society's website.

PROPS FOR A HOMEBOY
Congratulations to Denver writer, director, musician and activist, Tony Garcia. Here's the press release:

"El Centro Su Teatro Executive Artistic Director Anthony J. Garcia has been awarded a $50,000 fellowship from the newly established United States Artists (USA).

Garcia, who was nominated by the National Association of Latino Arts and Culture (NALAC), is among the 50 fellows chosen by USA from over 300 nominees. USA selects fellows based on the nominee’s artistic quality, creativity, innovation, and risk-taking.

Garcia has been a member of Su Teatro since 1972 when he joined the company as a guitar player and singer. Garcia’s plays have garnered much critical acclaim including the Denver Post’s Ovation Award, the Denver Drama Critics Circle Award for Best New Play, and the University of California, Irvine Chicano Literary Award. Garcia also received a directing fellowship from Theatre Communications Group in 1989, which allowed him to visit theatre groups across the country and solidify his standing as one of the Southwest’s preeminent theater visionaries.

According to USA, 96% of Americans value art in their communities and their lives; however, only 27% value artists. This paradox is one of the main catalysts for USA’s inception. Through this unparalleled fellowship program, USA hopes to encourage creative output in the United States in order to invigorate the economy and celebrate our most talented creative thinkers.

Garcia received his honor at a public reception at the Lincoln Center in New York on Monday, December 4. For more information please call El Centro Su Teatro at (303) 296-0219."

LUMINARIAS DE SANTA FE DRIVE
December 8: 13th Annual Luminarias de Santa Fe Drive. Get in the holiday spirit by joining this popular cultural event that will focus on the history, tradition, and architecture of Santa Fe Drive, also known as the "Gateway to Denver." Marvel at the Luminarias light bags adorning storefronts, traditional Mexican dancers, and local carolers while viewing art in more than 30 galleries and artists' studios.5-9 pm. Free. Santa Fe Dr. area between 5th and 10th Avenues MAP.303-534-9740

PISTOLERA
Daniela Capistrano tells me that she is a Chicana Associate Producer and avid reader of La Bloga, both of which sound cool to me. Daniela also says that she thinks the NYC folklorico band Pistolera delivers "strong, positive messages," that they just finished a West Coast tour, and that they will be touring Europe and the Southwest in the spring. Daniela shot a performance clip at a recent Pistolera CD release party, which you can watch here. The band does Cazador, a song that deals with immigrants and immigrant rights. Again, cool. Daniela will direct the band's first music video this month. Check out the clip, watch for the band.

Sorry, not much from me this week-- winter-like weather and winter-like blues slowed me down.

Later.

Los Dichos Moms

2006-03-06T17:26:00.000-07:00

I came across an article about Los Dichos Moms, a group of about 80 moms who read weekly at elementary schools in the San Jose, CA area. According to the story in the Mercury News, Los Dichos de la Casa is a storytelling program where "the main activity is reading from books that reflect life in Latin America or immigrants' experiences in America. Hearing these stories in Spanish reinforces for the children that their heritage is important, the moms say. Hearing the stories read by real moms only enhances the experience." The article mentioned two books by Carmen Lomas Garza as examples of what stories are read to the kids: Cuadros de Familia (Family Pictures) and Making Magic Windows (an explanation of the craft of papel picado). This project not only enhances the educational process for the students but it gets the parents more involved in the schools, so much so that there is now consideration that the nickname might have to change since dads have expressed an interest in doing some reading. Sounds good.

Pursuit

2006-03-02T07:29:00.000-07:00

The current issue of January Magazine features an excerpt from Pursuit (Henry Holt, 2006), the latest Inspector Espinosa mystery from Luis Alfredo Garcia-Roza. January says this about Garcia-Roza:

"Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza is a bestselling novelist who lives in Rio de Janeiro. The Espinosa mysteries have been translated into six languages. Pursuit is the fifth book in the series. The previous four titles are available in paperback from Picador."

And here's what January says about the book:

"A hospital psychiatrist feels he's being stalked by a patient. For as long as possible, he convinces himself that the young man is harmless, but when the doctor's daughter disappears and the patient goes missing too, he calls on Espinosa for help. Soon after, the patient turns up dead."

Check out the excerpt.

Hammett Prize Nominees

2006-02-21T07:26:00.000-07:00

The North American Branch of the International Association of Crime Writers is pleased to announce nominees for their annual HAMMETT PRIZE for a work of literary excellence in the field of crime writing by a US or Canadian author. The nominees are as follows: John Brady, Islandbridge (McArthur & Company) Joseph Kanon, Alibi: A Novel (Henry Holt) Martin Limón, The Door to Bitterness (Soho Crime) Cormac McCarthy, No Country for Old Men (Knopf) Don Winslow, The Power of the Dog (Knopf) A reading committee of IACW/NA members selected the nominees, based on recommendations from other members and the publishing community. The committee was headed by J. Madison Davis and included William Bayer, Cara Black, Lorenzo Carcaterra, and Ann Romeo. The winner will be chosen by three distinguished outside judges: André Aciman, author of Out of Egypt (winner of the Whiting Writer’s Award) and most recently editor of The Proust Project; Karen Rothmyer, managing editor of The Nation; and Lynn Slotkin theatre reviewer for CBC Radio’s Here and Now and editor of The Slotkin Letter. The organization will name the HAMMETT PRIZE winner on June 10, during the Bloody Words mystery conference in Toronto. The winner will receive a bronze trophy, designed by sculptor Peter Boiger.

RUDOLFO ANAYA

2006-02-13T07:26:00.000-07:00

Lots of good news from Rudolfo Anaya. On February 26, The Tricentennial M atanza celebration honors Anaya at the Wine Festival Grounds in Bernalillo, New Mexico. The agenda for the day includes a traditional matanza menu, music and dancing, a cash bar, and the general good times of a New Mexican party. All proceeds (tickets are $10) benefit the Rudolfo Anaya Scholarship Fund, which supports "an Hispanic student enrolled in the MFA Creative Writing Program" at the University of New Mexico. This will be great time for a great cause. For more information, contact Sharon Ord Warner, Director of Creative Writing at UNM, swarner@unm.edu. The artwork above is Matanza by New Mexican artist Ray Martin Abeyta.

The best piece of news is that a collection of Rudolfo Anaya's short stories, representing thirty years of his writing, will be published by the University of Oklahoma Press in March. The title of the collection is The Man Who Could Fly And Other Stories. The press says: "Unlike his novels, which range broadly over the American tapestry, Anaya's short stories focus on character and ethical questions in a regional setting - from the harsh deserts of the American Southwest and northern Mexico to the lush tropical forests of Uxmal in the Yucatán. These tales demonstrate Anaya's singular attitude toward fiction: that stories create myths to live and love by." This sounds like one of those "must have" books. I note that this book is Volume 5 in the Chicana & Chicano Visions of the Américas series from University of Oklahoma Press. Now I have to find the other four volumes.

To top it all off, the University of New Mexico Press has published a new trade paperback edition of Anaya's initial dip into Chicano crime fiction, Alburquerque.This book won the PEN Center West Award for Fiction and marked the first appearance of Chicano private eye Sonny Baca.

So far, a pretty good year for the National Medal of Arts winner.

Congratulations to Daniel and Maruca Salazar

2006-01-29T22:13:00.000-07:00

2005 Mayor's Awards for Excellence in the Arts
Free community reception Tuesday, Feb. 21, 5:30-7:30 pm in Ellie Caulkins Opera House at Denver Center Performing Arts Complex. 2005 recipients are Ron Henderson, co-founder and Artistic Director of Denver Film Society; artists Daniel and Maruca Salazar; Shadow Theater Company; and Ellie Caulkins, Honorary Chair of Opera Colorado, whose late husband, George, is also being honored at this event.

Justo Vasco

2006-01-26T08:00:00.000-07:00

JUSTO VASCO
On January 22, 2006, Justo Vasco, one of the founding members of the International Crime Writers Association, died from a stroke. He was 63. Cuban by birth, Justo moved to Gijón, Spain in 1996. He is survived by his son Enrique, his wife Cristina Macía, and Laura, his three-year-old daughter. Justo wrote crime fiction, la novela negra, and was friends with and had befriended many of the world's best crime fiction writers. In the past several years he had assumed several of the organizational and administrative responsibilities of the annual Semana Negra crime fiction literary festitval in Gijón. That's where I met Justo and I remember him as a gracious, affable man committed to crime fiction as literature. Rest in peace.

Mario Acevedo Interview

2006-01-26T07:29:00.000-07:00

My interview of first-time novelist Mario Acevedo shows up on La Bloga, January 27. Mario's book is Nymphos of Rocky Flats (Rayo HarperCollins, March), the story of private eye Felix Gomez, who recently returned from Iraq as a vampire and who is hired to investigate the strange outbreak of nymphomania at infamous Rocky Flats. Something for everybody. Mario is a funny guy and some of that humor comes through in the interview.

Lucha Corpi Interview

2006-01-17T00:01:00.000-07:00

I recently interviewed my friend Lucha Corpi for La Bloga. She said some very intriguing and insightful things about writing, Chicana/o Literature, crime fiction, poetry versus fiction, etc. Go to La Bloga and read the interview there - it will be posted January 20. I may store it here on this site as well.

Max Martínez

2006-01-06T22:16:00.000-07:00

Max Martínez died in November, 2001. I'd like to belatedly commemorate the anniversary of his death by reprinting a short piece I wrote about Max for the 2002 San Antonio Inter-American Bookfair & Literary Festival.

"A few years ago for a review I wrote: 'White Leg grabs the reader by the throat almost from the first page and doesn’t let go until the last gunshot when the reader finally must gasp in relief with a worried, nervous shake of the head. ... Martínez has injected his own droll humor and warped vision in the book, and his characters speak with validity about their dead-end lives, cheap betrayals, and misplaced values. ... Played against a backdrop of Texas small-town politics, family scandals, and the pillars of greed and racism, White Leg definitely is not a casual stroll through literary lane.'

Max’s life was at least as colorful and hard-boiled as that of any of his characters, yet I remember that he treated my wife and me with utmost respect, and a gentle graciousness. My wife loved the man, if for nothing more than that they shared a passion for greasy, sloppy food smothered with chile and Mexican attitude; sly, underdog humor; and music that makes you want to dance.

When we traveled to San Antonio he showed us his town, and we learned not only about his writing and his extensive knowledge of Chicano literature, but also about puffy tacos, his favorite bar, the best place to listen to Chicano music, and his own brand of chisme.

I will always see San Antonio through his eyes–the eyes of a man who drank and smoked too much, a man who knew too much, who wanted too much out of life but who lived it on his own terms, and, so, he suffered a bit. He didn’t achieve the literary fame that rightfully belongs to him, but he wrote exactly the kind of books and stories he wanted to write. He wasn’t the center of attention at a party or any other kind of gathering, but he certainly was among the most interesting people anywhere. At the end of his life, he lacked what we sometimes use to measure success: wealth, fame, power. But at the end, Max had friends who remembered him with cariño and respect, who wished they had spent more time with the guy, and who were actually fond of him. He also left an enduring legacy in his writing–his articles, novels and the stories that only he could tell. Max, I can only say that your writing nailed it, bro."

Martínez wrote three novels, Layover (Arte Público Press, 1997), White Leg (Arte Público Press, 1996) and Schoolland (Arte Público Press, 1988), and two collections of stories, The Adventures of the Chicano Kid (Arte Público Press, 1982) and A Red Bikini Dream (Arte Público Press, 1989). It appears as though all except Adventures of the Chicano Kid are still available from the publisher.

Holiday Break

2005-12-21T07:38:00.000-07:00

Until Next Year, PAZ.

Crimson Moon

2005-12-20T08:12:00.000-07:00

Lucha Corpi's detective novel, Crimson Moon, is reviewed over on La Bloga by Michael Sedano. Michael offers some good comments about what Lucha does with her novels and what it might mean that this book features Dora Saldaña and not Gloria Damasco, Lucha's previous series star.

More Texas Music

2005-12-07T08:05:00.000-07:00

You all hip to Chip Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez? Rodriguez's soulful twang and finger-poppin' fiddle playin' are perfect for this duo's brand of back-porch music. She's the daughter of Austin's singer-songwriter David Rodriguez. Taylor, in a much earlier life, wrote Wild Thing and Angel of the Morning. Their latest CD, Red Dog Tracks, stopped me in my tracks.

Third Annual Randy Garibay Legacy Fund Dance/Fundraiser

2005-12-01T08:43:00.000-07:00

Those of you in the San Antonio area can support some great projects by dancing your butts off this weekend. The Randy Garibay Legacy Fund Dance/Fundraiser takes place at the Blanco Ballroom, 3719 Blanco Rd., San Antonio on Sunday December 4 from 6 - 11 PM. Only $10. There is a list of more than two dozen musicians and entertainers who are helping out - sounds like a great night. For those of you not familiar with the name, Randy Garibay is a legendary and sorely missed Chicano blues man. His friends and family have carried on his name by helping to sponsor events that support worthwhile causes, sick musicians, and that good old Chicano music from San Anto.

Cocono of the Year Award

2005-11-24T11:59:00.000-07:00

The Turkey of the Year goes to:

Not one Chicano/a, Latino, Hispanic novel on the list.

Hope you all had a great holiday.

Happy Birthday, KUVO!

2005-11-19T11:41:00.000-07:00

Happy Twentieth to radio station KUVO, 89.3 on the FM dial, www.kuvo.org, 24 hours streaming around the world. The station went on the air on August 29, 1985, but the big party is November 19, 2005.

Here's the info from the KUVO website:

jazz89 KUVO 20th Anniversary Celebration Concert and Fundraiser
Featuring Jazz Piano Legend Marian McPartland
$20 for Members, $35 for Non-Members, and $75 for VIP tickets
Dates and Times:
Saturday, November 19; 6:00-7:00 p.m. for VIP Reception
Doors open for General Admission at 6:15 p.m.
Artist/Group:
Marian McPartland
Description
Join jazz89 KUVO along with Honorary Chairpersons Senator Ken Salazar, Mayor John Hickenlooper, and former Denver Mayors Wellington Webb and Federico Pena in welcoming jazz pianist legend Marian McPartland to Teikyo Loretto Heights auditorium to celebrate the station's 20th Anniversary. The evening will begin at 6:00 with a VIP cocktail reception. Doors open for General Admission Tickets at 6:15 p.m.
At 7:15 the jazz89 20th Anniversary All-star Band with guest star Lew Tabackin will take the stage to start off the evening's music. At 8:30 auctioneer Gary Corbett will lead the aucience through a live and paddle auction. Please make plans to also visit the silent auction during this fundraising event.
Ms. McPartland will take the stage at 9:00 for a memorable performance.

Vine Deloria, Jr.

2005-11-18T07:47:00.000-07:00

Vine Deloria, Jr. died on November 13 in Golden, Colorado. The N.Y. Times said, "Mr. Deloria, who was trained as both a seminarian and a lawyer, steadfastly worked to demythologize how white Americans thought of American Indians. The myths, he often said - whether as romantic symbols of life in harmony with nature or as political bludgeons in fostering guilt - were both shallow. The truth, he said, was a mix, and only in understanding that mix, he argued, could either side ever fully heal." Maybe a good way to honor his memory is to read or re-read one of his books: Custer Died For Your Sins; God Is Red; We Talk,You Listen; Red Earth, White Lies; many more. QEPD.

Crime Spree Magazine

2005-11-09T12:00:00.000-07:00

Crime Spree Magazine has rapidly become one of the best sources available for reviews, interviews, short fiction, news - everything you want to know about the state of crime fiction. I'm pleased to note that I am all over the current issue, #9. First, my latest short story, Bad Haircut Day, is premiered in this issue. Second, Steven Torres, author of the very cool Precinct Puerto Rico series, interviewed me for the magazine. He asked some unique and unexpected questions. Finally, I interviewed one of my favorites, Brian Azzarello, the prolific graphic novel writer: 100 Bullets, Batman, Sgt. Rock, Hellblazer, many more, and now his latest, a western, Loveless. This guy is quite an interesting cat. The editors and publishers of Crime Spree, Jon and Ruth Jordan, produce a quality publication. They have stuff to say on their blog - Central Crime Zone. Hope you have a subscription or can get a copy at your favorite book store.

Awards - Churchill's New Book

2005-11-04T07:57:00.000-07:00

In this post: David Rice and Cristina Henríquez; P&W Lists Writing Prizes; Ward Churchill

David Rice and Cristina Henríquez

From David Rice's website I pulled the following bit of news:

The Alfredo Cisneros Del Moral Foundation recently announced the winners of the 2005 Awards. Texas writers Cristina Henríquez and David Rice were each awarded a grant for $5,156.

Cristina Henríquez is awaiting the publication of her first book, Come Together, Fall Apart: A Novella and Stories, forthcoming from Riverhead Books. Her short story Ashes was recently featured in The New Yorker, July 4, 2005 issue. She is writer-in-residence at the Writer's Garret Writers in the Schools Program in Dallas.

David Rice currently resides in Austin, but the landscape of his stories are set in the Rio Grande Valley where he was born. His books include Crazy Loco, which won the Best Books for Young Readers 2001 Award and Give the Pig A Chance and Other Stories (Bilingual Press, 1996).

The Alfredo Cisneros Del Moral Foundation was created in 2000 to honor the memory of Sandra Cisneros' father, an upholsterer. "My father lived his life as an example of generosity and honest labor," Cisneros has written, "Even as he warned us to save our centavitos, he was always giving away his own. A meticulous craftsman, he would sooner rip the seams of a cushion apart and do it over, than put his name on an item that wasn't up to his high standards. I especially wanted to honor his memory by an award showcasing writers who are equally proud of their own craft."

The Alfredo Cisneros Del Moral Foundation invites a panel of nominators to recommend writers from across the writing disciplines. For the past five years the awards have focused only on writers from Béxar County (Texas). This year the award expanded to include writers throughout the state. The 2005 judges were poet/musician Joy Harjo, essayist/humorist Marion Winik, and bookseller/literacy-activist Ruebén Martínez. [The Foundation does not accept individual solicitations.]

Sandra Cisneros has written: "In my own experience, grants not only allowed me time to write, but, more importantly, confirmed I was indeed a writer at precarious moments when my own faith in my art wobbled." It is her hope this award will strengthen the resolve of the award winners and further them along in their careers.

Poets & Writers Lists Writing Prizes

Speaking of Writing Awards - Poets & Writers lists several writing awards in its most recent issue. The mag says, "Poets & Writers Magazine announces state and national prizes in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. Because of space limitations, we list only prizes of $1,000 or more, prizes of $500 or more that charge no entry fee, and prestigious nonmonetary awards." Many of these have upcoming deadlines, so get on it if you have something to enter.

Ward Churchill

Everyone's favorite professor, Ward Churchill, speaks at the Tattered Cover (Denver, Lodo) on November 11, 7:30 PM about his latest book. The bookstore announced this event with these words: "Ward Churchill is a Professor of American Indian Studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder who has achieved an unparalleled reputation as a scholar-activist and analyst of indigenous issues in North America. Churchill will discuss and sign his recent book, Kill the Indian, Save the Man: The Genocidal Impact of American Indian Residential Schools." (City Lights, 2005).

Later

Día de Los Muertos or Halloween?

2005-10-28T00:01:00.000-06:00

Manuel Ramos

Being bicultural, I get to mix up things and who can say that I'm wrong? Día de Los Muertos and Halloween, for example. My wife reminds me that Día de Los Muertos is not a scary holiday - just the opposite, in fact (still, having all those skulls and calaveras around the house, late at night, in the dark - you get the picture). Meanwhile, Halloween has nothing to do with honoring ancestors and a lot to do with pagan rites and ancient stories originally meant to keep children in line. So, in honor of the upcoming worldwide commemoration of and festivities for those who have passed on, and with a bit of spooky thrown in, here's a list of reading that might keep you up at night.

Two short story collections deserve your attention, and both have Daniel Ol ivas. Daniel's collection, Devil Talk (Bilingual Press, 2004), is a great mix of off-beat stories that present hard-earned lessons of life or glimpses at an alternative reality. These are the kind of stories that make you go "Oh no, he didn't do that" at the end. Daniel also is featured in Fantasmas (Bilingual Press, 2001), edited by Rob Johnson with an introduction by Kathleen Alcalá. This collection is billed as Supernatural Stories by Mexican American Writers and in addition to Daniel the authors include Carmen Tafolla, David Rice, Stephen Gutiérrez, and sixteen others.

The Festival of Bones/El Festival de las Calaveras: A Little-Bitty Book for th e Day of the Dead by Luis San Vincente (Cinco Puntos Press, 1994) is described by the publisher in this way: "Mexico’s Day of the Dead fascinates kids, whether for its joyful celebration or its unusual traditions. With fantastic illustrations and a wild and fanciful poem, San Vicente captures the spirit of this most marvelous holiday. A short and fun essay, directed toward young readers, explains this important Mexican holiday, and the fun things kids can do to join in the festivities."

Cinco Puntos Press also features El Cucuy! A Bogeyman Cuento in English and Spanish (2002)by Joe Hayes, illustrated by Honorio Robledo.

All Chicana/o writers have a story in them about La Llorona. Rudolfo Anaya's contribution is his children's book, Maya's Children: The Story of La Llorona (Hyperion, 1997) illustrated by Maria Baca, a kinder, gentler tale in which the mother, Maya, does not kill her children but instead loses them to a tricky Señor Tiempo.

On the other, more serious, hand, Weeping Woman: La Llorona and Other Stories by Alma Luz Villanueva (Bilingual Press, 1994) has been described as painful and disturbing. The stories portray dark images of violence - rape, incest, abuse - but, as noted by The Library Journal, "out of the ashes of this cruelty rises a sense of hope."

My own llorona story can be found here for those of you who might be interested (originally published in 1986!)

Finally, something unique for La Bloga, Día De Los Muertos by Kent Harrington. This is noir fiction - bleak and as gritty as they come. The book has some relevance to La Bloga since Harrington's mother was from Guatemala, but in no way is this book Latino Literature. Even so, it is a very good book for those of us who like this kind of thing.

Bits

The play September Shoes was described by the author as "a complex, lyrical piece about the desert, shoes, forgiveness and redemption. We start you in a place where you are grounded, and then we begin to take you on this lyrical and magical journey." Written by José Cruz González, it runs through December 17 at the Denver Center Theatre Company. The Denver Post observed, "September Shoes is not only the first DCTC play by a Latino playwright since 1999; it will be the first staged by any female director since the same play, Barrio Babies. Director Amy González (no relation) describes the play as a suspenseful story that is revealed in little increments. 'It's a very personal story that has some deeper and universal resonances,' she said."

Meanwhile, I get to spend most of October 29 at the Boulder Public Library as part of the Guilty Pleasures - Mystery Writers Day. I join seven other writers for talks, lunch, a panel, book signings, and general positive reinforcement about the "writer's life." Come by if you get a chance.

Later.

Time's Best

2005-10-21T08:32:00.000-06:00

Manuel Ramos

Here's a post that I put over on La Bloga. Add to the discussion by posting a comment over on that blog.

Time listed it's choices for the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to the present. As with many such lists, it had some obvious picks and some real surprises. How can anyone argue with books like All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren, one of my favorite novels of all-time, or The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, or Paul Bowles' The Sheltering Sky? Surprises that clicked with me include The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler, Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy, and Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett, although we could quibble about whether these are Chandler's or Hammett's best.

But, and this isn't a surprise, I guess, no Latino books on the list. No Anaya, Cisneros, Hijuelos, Allende, Véa, Alvarez, Rivera, etc. Not one. Please correct me if I am wrong.

However, let's not dwell on the negative.

Time also listed the all-time graphic novels. I'm partial to graphic novels - always wanted to write one, enjoy reading them, even did an interview with Brian Azzarello, writer of the 100 Bullets graphic novels (among many others) for an upcoming issue of Crime Spree magazine. According to Time, a graphic novel "is a vague moniker that gets applied to any extended form of comics, including non-fiction and short story collections." This is a much more exclusive list than the best novels, only ten titles are "all-time" according to Time. And guess what? Chicanos made the list. Here's the quote from Time:

"Palomar: The Heartbreak Soup Stories by Gilbert Hernandez (Fantagraphics Books; 2003)
A kind of über graphic novel that collects a series of smaller graphic novels all situated in a small town 'somewhere south of the U.S. border,' this giant tome by a seminal comic artist will likely be the author's magnum opus. Part of the creative team behind the deeply influential Love and Rockets comic book series (along with his equally talented brother Jaime) Gilbert has created a pan-American epic that spans multiple generations of a family run almost exclusively by women. Hernandez' Palomar combines the look of Archie comics with Faulkner's richness of character and place into the melodramatic sweep of a sexy soap opera to create one of the most remarkable works of any narrative art."

Congrats to Gilbert Hernandez.

Chicano Music

2005-10-19T17:10:00.000-06:00

CHICANO MUSIC? La cancíon mexicana, latin jazz, movimiento protest songs, oldies, tejano, conjunto, hip-hop, reggaeton, o qué? Maybe all of that. There is a good shelf's worth of books to help figure it out.

A good place to start is A Texas-Mexican Cancionero by Américo Paredes (University of Illinois Press, 1976, reprint by University of Texas Press, 1995) , subtitled, Folksongs of the Lower Border. Paredes, one of the masters of Chicano research and historical preservation, collected sixty-six songs that were representative of the folksongs of the Lower Rio Grande Border from 1750-1960. Here are the words, the compositions, and the stories behind the songs that tell how life was for the people along the border in the days of shoot-outs with the Texas Rangers (¡rinches cobardes!) - Jacinto Treviño; smuggling tequila across the border - Los tequileros; and the first appearance of television and easy-payment plans (ya no tengo pa' cerveza por estar viendo los monos) - Ya se va la televisión. Unique photographs, too.

Moving several years forward, take a look at Barrio Rhythm: Mexican American Music in Los Angeles by Steven Loza (University of Illinois Press, 1993). Man, this book has it covered. The book jacket says, "Loza provides a historical overview of the music from the nineteenth century to the present and offers in-depth profiles of nine Mexican-American artists, groups, and entrepreneurs in Southern California from the post-World War II era to the present. His interviews with many of today's most influential barrio musicians, including members of Los Lobos, Eddie Cano, Lalo Guerrero, and Willie Herrón, chronicle the cultural forces active in this complex urban community."

The Old Barrio Guide To Low Rider Music, 1950 - 1975, by Ruben Molina (Mictlan Publishing, 2002), doesn't focus only on Chicano music. This book provides rundowns on the bands and singing groups that taken together defined and continue to define the urban sound of low rider culture - equal parts R&B, Chicano rock and oldies, with bits and pieces of jazz, blues, and maybe one or two corridos or rancheras. The book starts with Johnny Ace and ends with the Youngsters, and in between are thousands of details about everyone else that matters, from El Chicano to Thee Midniters, from the Premiers (photo at the top of this post) to Ritchie Valens. A fun book that looks fine, so fine, on the coffee table.

Back to Texas for The Billboard Guide to Tejano and Regional Mexican Music by Ramiro Burr (Billboard Books, 1999), another group-by-group, singer-by-singer compilation from Accordion to Henry Zimmerle y Conjunto San Antonio. Written by music journalist, syndicated columnist and critic Burr. This is the source for information about the wide range of styles and the diverse musicians that continue to produce the most popular Latino music in the country (yes, even more so than salsa.) If the word Tejano means Selena and nothing more, this book is for you.

Land of a Thousand Dances: Chicano Rock 'n' Roll from Southern California, by David Reyes and Tom Waldman (University of New Mexico Press, 1998), is a more-or-less chronological analysis of the various personalities, influences, musical styles, low and high points of the Chicano rock scene in SoCal, from Chico Sesma and Lalo Guerrero to Los Lobos. Many, many details and personal insights that create an insider's feel to the book.

Two other excellent sources are Chicano Popular Culture: Que Hable el Pueblo, by Charles M. Tatum (University of Arizona Press, 2001), and Chicano Renaissance: Contemporary Cultural Trends, by David R. Maciel, Isidro D. Ortiz, and María Herrera-Sobek (University of Arizona Press, 2000), both of which have outstanding sections or chapters on Chicano music.

This list lacks a reference for the music scene in the Bay Area (California) - Santana, Malo, et al. - and a definitive work on the music of New Mexico - Al Hurricane, Roberto Griego, Tobias Rene, etc. Any suggestions?

Law and Literature

2005-10-13T12:57:00.000-06:00

On October 18 I have the pleasure of talking with the students in Mimi Wesson's Law and Literature class at the University of Colorado School of Law. Mimi has published several crime fiction novels and consistently attracts a very interesting group of students for this class. The students have been reading The Ballad of Rocky Ruiz and thinking up questions such as: why do so many lawyers write fiction; is there room in a busy lawyer's life for creativity? Daniel Olivas?

Cruisin' The Heart of Aztlán

2005-10-05T08:45:00.000-06:00

Just returned from the Milagro Tour, organized by KUVO. Great trip through the land of Bless Me, Ultima and The Milagro Beanfield War, southern Colorado and northern New Mexico. Here are a few photos, which don't do any kind of justice to the beautiful country and the simpático people.

The church at San Acacio, oldest in Colorado

El Rancho de las Golondrinas

Harvested Chile at El Rancho de las Golondrinas

KUVO, 89.3 FM, celebrates 20 years of great music and community service in 2005. The Fall Pledge Drive starts soon - please show your tangible support of this rich cultural asset by renewing or starting your membership.

Poets & Writers Notes La Bloga

2005-10-04T11:45:00.000-06:00

I do most of my blogging over at La Bloga. Recently we found out that Poets & Writers had recognized our efforts. Here's the post from La Bloga (posted by Daniel Olivas):

"We at La Bloga discovered that Poets & Writers magazine made note of our little venture in P&W's most recent Focus on California e-newsletter. This is what P&W said under its Link of the Month column:

La Bloga: Readers can get a real feel for the Chicano/a literary landscape by visiting La Bloga, a blog that combines the knowledge, talents, and footwork of a number of different contributors. The combination of loose self-reflection, news, opinions, book reviews, spotlights on writers, event reminders, and interesting tidbits is what makes La Bloga a fairly quick, interesting, and informative read."

Gracias to Poets & Writers.

El Sol Que Tu Eres

2005-09-30T00:01:00.000-06:00

October 1 is opening night for El Sol Que Tu Eres, the much-anticipated new play from Anthony Garcia and Daniel Valdez. Garcia is the writer and director of the play and also one of the founders and current head of Denver's Su Teatro theater company. Valdez wrote the music for the play. He, of course, has his roots in El Teatro Campesino and is all over the Rolas de Aztlán CD (several selections from El Teatro Campesino as well as his América de los indios), which I plugged in my previous post on this blog. You can find out more about the venue, tickets, and the play at El Centro Su Teatro's website. There also is a good story in the current Westword. According to the Westword story, the title of the play comes from a duet that Valdez did with Linda Ronstadt on the 1987 album, Canciones de Mi Padre. The play reworks Marcel Camus's 1959 film Black Orpheus, which was an adaptation of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Garcia notes that even though the plot follows the story line of the ancient myth, it is a "very contemporary story. ... It's the story of the role of art and the ability to transcend all the restrictions of the mortal world. ... It's asking, 'Can progress, love and compassion triumph in a world with the encroachment of fascism? Can these ideas last?'" Híjole.

Rolas de Aztlán: Songs of the Chicano Movement

2005-09-20T09:53:00.000-06:00

Songs of struggle, hope, and vision fueled the Chicano Movement's quest for civil rights, economic justice, and cultural respect. Rolas de Aztlán (songs from the Chicano ancestral homeland) spotlights 19 milestone recordings made between 1966 and 1999 by key Chicano artist/activists--Daniel Valdez, Los Lobos del Este de Los Angeles (later Los Lobos), Agustín Lira and Teatro Campesino, Los Alacranes Mojados, Conjunto Aztlan, and many more. Forty page booklet with extensive liner notes and photos, 19 tracks, and 67 minutes of music.

The CD’s release date was September 13 and it should be available at all major music outlets as well as on the Folkways website at http://www.folkways.si.edu/. For more information about Hispanic Heritage Month and the many events throughout the Smithsonian Institution, go to www.SmithsonianEducation.org/Heritage_Month .

Nothing New

2005-09-12T11:14:00.000-06:00

I won't be posting anything new on this blog until at least after September 20. In the meantime, check out La Bloga - the folks over there try to keep up to date with reviews, announcements, author spotlights, short fiction. It's cool.

Manuel

Katrina Relief Resources

2005-09-07T13:18:00.000-06:00

Click on this page for links to both general relief resources as well as legal resources and information on nonprofit legal services providers in states affected by Hurricane Katrina.

Also, recognizing that many of the victims of Hurricane Katrina have lost documents establishing their identity and employment authorization, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced that it will not sanction employers for hiring victims of Hurricane Katrina who are otherwise eligible for employment but are unable to provide the necessary documentation. Employers still need to complete the Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9) to the extent possible, but should note at this time that the documentation normally required is not available due to the events involving Hurricane Katrina. This policy will be in place for 45 days. At the end of 45 days, DHS will review the policy and make further recommendations. DHS has issued a press release.

Poets in Town - Updated Website

2005-09-07T00:01:00.000-06:00

From the Tattered Cover website:

Sheryl Luna reads from Pity The Drowned Horses, winner of the Andres Montoya Poetry Prize, on Monday, September 12, 7:30 PM, at the LoDo Tattered Cover. This collection is about "place and family and home, and many of the poems in it are set in the desert southwest border town of El Paso, Texas." Scroll down this page on La Bloga for a review of Luna's collection.

Lucia Blinn also will read from her first collection of poems and stories, Lucia, Passing For Normal. Blinn's poems are described as "wry, truth-telling, hilarious and, occasionally, rueful, and her stories are a rich stew of characters and images that stir the reader's own reminiscences."

I've updated my website a bit - some news, a couple of events, and a new photo. Find it here.

Katrina Relief

2005-09-01T20:37:00.000-06:00

Do what you can.

Red Cross – 1-800-HELP NOW or online at RedCross.org
Salvation Army – 1-800-Sal-Army or online at SalvationArmy.org
Bonfils – 303-363-2300 or online at bonfils.org
Other Organizations:
America’s Second Harvest – 800-771-2303
AmeriCares – 800-486-4357
Catholic Charities USA – 303-742-0828
Feed the Children – 800-627-4556
Humane Society of the United States – 202-452-1100 or 303-781-4418
United Jewish Communities – 303-322-8328
United Methodist Committee on Relief – 800-554-8583

New Titles For The Fall

2005-09-01T07:11:00.000-06:00

Almost time for the new books for fall - it's good news when the new books start rolling from the presses. Here are a few, many more to come:

Ana Castillo has two new works, both published by small presses. Here’s what the Wings Press website says about the play, Psst...I Have Something to Tell You, Mi Amor:
"Sister Dianna Ortiz traveled as a missionary in the early 1980s to the highlands of Guatemala, where she taught Mayan children to read and write. On November 2, 1989, Sister Dianna was sitting in the garden of her convent when she heard a man behind her say, in Spanish, Hello, my love. We have some things to discuss. She was abducted by this man, who together with others transported her to a jail where she was brutally tortured. One of her torturers ––their boss, in fact –– was a North American, probably associated with the US government in some capacity. Miraculously, Sister Dianna escaped by leaping from a car in which she was being transported.
...
Ana Castillo, moved beyond grief and anger, wrote these plays to document Sister Dianna's story."

Her second book comes from Curbstone Press. The book is a verse novel, Watercolor Women, O paque Men. The press blurb for this book says, "With a remarkable combination of tenderness, lyricism, wicked humor, and biting satire, Ana Castillo dramatizes her heroine’s struggle through poverty. Urged on by the gods of the ancients, the heroine, known only as Ella or She, narrates stories that illustrate what it means to be a marginalized brown woman or man at the threshold of the 21st Century."

Wings Press also is publishing a book of new poetry (after fourteen years) from Lorna Dee Cervantes, Drive: The First Quartet. The book is set for shipping in October, 2005.

Martin Limón returns after several years’ with a new book about his Chicano military cops in Korea, George Sueno and Ernie Bascom, entitled The Door to Bitterness. Limon has created a unique and exciting series (this is the fourth book about George and Ernie.) So it’s real encouraging to hear about this new one. "What lingers longest in George and Ernie’s odyssey is the grinding poverty, pride and moral compromise they find in1974 Korea ... [and] acrid insights on the dehumanizing force of the lasting American presence in Korea." (Kirkus)

Ricardo Falcon

2005-08-25T07:45:00.000-06:00

Tribute and Commemoration Of Ricardo Falcon
1972 ~ 2005

Ricardo Falcon was an activist, student leader and organzing force in Colorado in the late 60s and early 70s. On August 30, 1972, he was killed on his way to the 1st National La Raza Unida Convention by a racist member of the Right-Wing American Independent Party. The killer was acquitted by an all-white jury and never spent a day in jail.

Saturday August 27, 2005
10:00 A.M. ~ Prayer at Hillside Cemetery (Ft. Lupton)
Caravan Procession ~ Brighton Recreation Center
(Shelters by the pond)
555 North 11th Avenue Brighton, Colorado
12:00 p.m. Open Ceremony Blessing ~ Grupo Tlaloc
1:00 p.m. Meal - Cost Donation

Speakers: Dr. Priscilla Falcon, Ricardo Romero, Dr. Rudy Chavez, Kiko Martinez, Louie Sandoval
Open Microphone
Entertainment: Grupo Tlaloc, Ballet De La Tierra, Latin Touch, DJ: Larry Moreno

CHAC

2005-08-24T07:30:00.000-06:00

The Chicano Humanities and Arts Council is celebrating twenty-five years of presenting the art and culture of the vibrant Chicano/Latino community of Denver and the surrounding areas. Stop by the gallery and immerse yourself in the most unique and popular Cultural Gallery in Denver
772 Santa Fe Drive Denver, CO 80204
Wednesday & Thursday 10:00 AM to 4:00 P.M.
Fridays 6:00 -10:00 P.M.
Saturdays 12:00-4:00 P.M.

Here's a lineup of current events and shows at CHAC:

Yolteotl
Yolteotl - The Artist's Heart which merges with oneness
Featuring CHAC Artists: Meggan DeAnza, Teresa Duran, Landau, Arlette Lucero, Stevon Lucero
The opening reception is September 2, 2005 5-10pm
Show runs through September 10, 2005

2005 Chile Harvest Festival
Denver Botanic Gardens and the Chicano Humanities and Arts Council (CHAC) invite you to add a burst of flavor to your Fall at the 2005 Chile Harvest Festival.
Sept. 10 & 11 from 11am - 5pm. The Festival honors and celebrates Spanish - speaking cultures that have incorporated chile peppers into their lifestyles. Get the details!

Piojos y Cucarachas
Los Animales presents: Piojos y Cucarachas
Exhibiting Artists: Carlos Fresquez, Veronica Herrera, Josiah Lopez, Merlin Madrid, Alfredo Ortiz, Francisco Zamora
Exhibition runs: August 17th - 27th
Los Animales is the name of our grupo. We define ourselves as an art collective of contemporary Chicano artists addressing current issues and opening dialogue with the public through the arts. Our personal experiences and collaborations with one another inspire our work. Our goals are to define Chicano Art today and nurture its future.

We note the recent passing of Carlos Martinez, CHAC's own longtime member and former Director, and cultural activist. Contact CHAC 303-571-0440 for any scheduled memorials and information.

Olmos Directs "Walkout"

2005-08-17T16:45:00.000-06:00

On a recent hot Sunday afternoon, a thousand people swarmed the steps of Los Angeles City Hall, chanting "Chicano power!" and carrying hand-lettered signs reading "Viva la raza" and "Viva la causa." Among them were militant Black Panthers and Brown Berets.

They were re-enacting a piece of Los Angeles history - one that, at the time, news accounts underreported and now school texts barely acknowledge - for director Edward James Olmos' HBO film Walkout.

The film, airing next year, aims to capture the frustration, the anger and, ultimately, the burst of brown power that gave rise to and followed the 1968 Chicano student walkouts. And while it looks at the past, it may draw attention to the present and future regarding the continuing high dropout rate and other problems plaguing Latino students today.

Read the entire article at DailyNews.com.

Southwest Book Awards - Virginia Kirkus Literary Award

2005-08-16T22:36:00.000-06:00

Southwest Book Awards

The Border Regional Library Association is soliciting nominations for its 35th annual Southwest Book Awards competition.To be eligible for an award, materials submitted must:
Be about the Southwest (West Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and northern Mexico).
Appear in book or non-print format for the first time.
Have been published between Aug. 1, 2004, and July 31, 2005.
Be of high quality.

The association considers books, scholarly works, original video and audio materials.The deadline to submit nominations, which must include the official publication date, is Sept. 30.

Mail materials to:
BRLA Southwest Book Awards, c/o Lisa Weber, 500 University, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX 79968-0582.
Information: Claudia Rivers, crivers@libr.utep.edu; or Lisa Weber, lisa@libr.utep.edu

Virginia Kirkus Literary Award
The winner of the first Virginia Kirkus Literary Award will be awarded a standard publishing contract with Back Bay, the trade paperback imprint of Time Warner's Little, Brown. The book will be published in the 2006 season.Unpublished fiction authors may submit their manuscripts of 150 pages or more to The Virginia Kirkus Literary Award, 770 Broadway, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10003.The deadline is Nov. 1. A $150 submission fee and completed registration form are required.

Information: www.kirkusawards.com

One More New Mexican Award Winner

2005-08-13T21:50:00.000-06:00

Denise Chávez recognized: Las Cruces writer and educator Denise Chávez will receive this year's Luis Leal Award for Distinction in Chicano/Latino Literature. Chávez is the author of a collection of short stories, The Last of the Menu Girls, and two novels, Loving Pedro Infante and Face of an Angel, which won the American Book Award in 1995. Her work focuses on border issues, Chicano culture and women in contemporary society.The award will be presented at the Santa Barbara Book & Author Festival on Sept. 24. Previous winners were Oscar Hijuelos and Rudolfo Anaya.

So Many Books ...

2005-08-13T09:49:00.000-06:00

The Rocky Mountain News (August 13, 2005) reports that Amazon.com reports that there are 83,000 U.S. publishers with at least one book in circulation, and that in 2004, 195,000 new titles were published in the U.S., up from 114,000 a decade earlier. Sheesh. Who says books are a thing of the past?

New Mexico and Literary Awards

2005-08-08T17:03:00.000-06:00

Premio Aztlán

Patricia and Rudolfo Anaya
The Premio Aztlán Literary Prize is a national literary award, established to encourage and reward
emerging Chicana and Chicano authors. Renowned author, Rudolfo Anaya and his wife, Patricia,
founded Premio Aztlan in 1993, and the prize was reestablished in their honor in 2004 by the
University of New Mexico Libraries.

A prize of $1,000 will be given to a Chicana or Chicano writer for a work of fiction published in the 2005 calendar year. Authors who have published no more than two books are eligible for the prize.

Recipients are required to be present at the award ceremony and give a public lecture at the University of New Mexico in April 2006. Five copies of the book must be submitted by December 31, 2005. For more detail, go to the premio website.

Critica Nueva Award

Yet another award established by Rudolfo and Patricia Anaya. This one recognizes the foremost scholars in Chicano literary theory and criticism. The award, which carries a monetary stipend, is administered by the University of New Mexico libraries.

The following is taken from Campus News and Events (June 6, 2005) on the Texas A&M University-Kingsville site:

Dr. Felipe de Ortego y Gasca, language and literature lecturer at Texas A&M University-Kingsville, has been selected to receive the 2005 Critica Nueva Award. He was chosen to receive the award for his influential contributions to Chicano literature and critical theory.

In addition to teaching English at A&M-Kingsville, Ortego is professor emeritus of English at Texas State University System-Sul Ross State. He teaches an upper division course in Chicano Literature at A&M Kingsville.

Ortego was the first Mexican American to earn a doctorate in English from the University of New Mexico. While he was a teaching fellow completing his dissertation, he taught the first course in Mexican American literature. In 1971, he completed his dissertation on Backgrounds in Mexican American Literature, the first study in the field, and has since earned a reputation as founder of Chicano literary history.

He retired in 1999 after 35 years in academia, but at 79, still maintains an interest in Chicano literature. Ortego recently completed an entry on “Chicano Poetry” for the Greenwood Encyclopedia of American Poetry. His piece on “Mexicans and Mexican Americans: Prolegomenon to Literary Perspective,” appears in the spring 2005 issue of The Journal of South Texas.

His paper on “Hispanic Heritage Month” appears in the 2005 Oxford Encyclopedia on Latinos and Latinas in the United States and he is working on “Origins and Development of Tejano Literature” for a Texas anthology.

American Book Award/Before Columbus Foundation

The following is from the New Mexico Business Weekly (July 21, 2005):

Albuquerque-area author Ralph Flores has won an award from an organization that focuses attention on multicultural diversity in American writing.

Flores' The Horse in the Kitchen: Stories of a Mexican-American Family was picked as one of the winners of the 2005 American Book Award by the Oakland, Calif.-based Before Columbus Foundation, according to a release from the University of New Mexico Press, which published the book.

Flores lives in Tomé, located south of Albuquerque. He teaches at Albuquerque's Technical Vocational Institute.

The American Book Awards, in its 26th year, honors outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors.

The Horse in the Kitchen chronicles the life of Rafael and his family in the village of San Cristóbal in northern Sonora, Mexico, UNM Press says. "His father, the village comisario, owns a bar, a pool hall, and a grocery store. Rafael's interaction with the vaqueros and engagement in local customs provide adventures and life lessons, and some of the boy's earliest memories include the commandeering of horses for Pancho Villa's army," the release says. "When Rafael's family loses their life savings in the revolution, they immigrate to Arizona, where life north of the border is a challenge."

The Horse in the Kitchen book was a finalist for the Premio Aztlán Literary Prize for excellence in Chicano literature and was named a Southwest Book of the Year by the Tucson-Pima Public Library.

Ed Bryant Celebrates 60 Years

2005-08-03T17:48:00.000-06:00

Westside Books announces that on August 17 at 7:00 PM it will host a Stories For All Seasons with prolific and celebrated author Edward Bryant, as he celebrates his 60th birthday. As is only right for an author, Ed will read new fiction. Admission and refreshments are free.

Ed is a multiple winner of the Nebula Award, has published more than a dozen books, including Cinnabar, Wyoming Sun, and (written in collaboration with Harlan Ellison) Phoenix Without Ashes. He has written hundreds of short stories and articles, as well as reviewing extensively for Locus Magazine and Talebones. His stories have been adapted for CBS's The Twilight Zone and Lifetime's The Empty Room.

Ed is an entertaining and knowledgeable speaker and can spark up any conversation.

Westside Books is located at 3434 W 32nd Ave, Denver - 303-480-0220

Park to be renamed for César Chávez

2005-08-01T08:02:00.000-06:00

The Denver Post, July 26, 2005, by Annette Espinoza

Cesar Chavez's birthday became an official city holiday in 2002.

Since then, a federal building in the Auraria neighborhood has been named for the late civil-rights activist and farm-labor leader. And next month (August 13), a small park in north Denver will be dedicated in his honor.

"It couldn't go to a more deserving person in the country. He was a wonderful man," said Paul Sandoval, whose homemade-tamale business, La Casita, is a block north of the park.

A chain-link fence surrounds the 2.9-acre park at 41st Avenue and Tennyson Street, often referred to as Alcott Park by neighborhood residents. It is on the grounds of the former Alcott School, which sat empty after 84 years of use before being destroyed by fire in 1976.

Read the rest of the article here.

Steven Torres

2005-07-31T21:30:00.000-06:00

Wanted to say thanks to Steven Torres, who has run a few posts about my books over on his blog, the Crime Time Cafe. He says some nice things and I get the idea that he liked the books.

I've got his first published novel, Precinct Puerto Rico: Book One, on my leaning tower of books to read, and the little bit I've skimmed tells me that I will like this book. Muchisimas gracias, Steven.

Latinas Honoring Latinas

2005-07-26T17:27:00.000-06:00

Friday, July 29, 2005
5:30pm - 8:00pm
Denver Botanic Gardens
1005 York Street

The Latina Safehouse Initiative is proud to announce the Latinas Honoring Latinas 2005 event to honor Josefina Lopez, author of Real Women Have Curves. Award winning actress, screenwriter, filmmaker, playwright, activist and poet, Josefina Lopez has devoted her life to empowering women. She co-wrote the screenplay for the critically-acclaimed film Real Women Have Curves, based on her play, which won the Audience Award and a Special Jury Award for Acting at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. One of the country's preeminent Latina artists, she also teaches playwriting and screenwriting to local youth and Latino adults. The event will also honor local survivors of violence.

Tickets are $50.00 per person and include entrance to the Botanic Gardens for the day, buffet, and beverage. There will be a cash bar and opportunities to win fabulous prizes. All proceeds from this event will benefit the Latina Safehouse Initiative.

Contact Ana Soler at 720-913-9260 if you would like to receive more information or to purchase your tickets.

Chicano Music Festival

2005-07-22T14:06:00.000-06:00

August 3 - 7, 2005.

Summer Pachanga. Dr. Loco And The Rockin' Jalapeño Band. Mariachi Tardeada. Art Auction. Food.

Inductions Into the Chicano Music Hall of Fame including the posthumous honoring of our friend Chico Martinez.

Go to El Centro Su Teatro for complete schedule.

Denver Accepting Applications for Poet Laureate

2005-07-20T21:40:00.000-06:00

The following is from Denver's official website -

Honorary post promotes an awareness and appreciation of poetry and literature.

Related Links
Denver Poet Laureate Web Site
Denver Office of Cultural Affairs
News Archive: Mayor Names Denver's Poet Laureate

JULY 07, 2005 -- The Denver Office of Cultural Affairs is currently seeking applicants for the honorary post of Denver Poet Laureate. This post was established in September 2004 with Mayor John Hickenlooper’s posthumous appointment of Abelardo "Lalo" Delgado as Denver’s first Poet Laureate. Delgado’s special appointment was made for a period of one year with a new Poet Laureate to be named in the fall of 2005.

Abelardo Lalo Delgado

The honorary post of Denver Poet Laureate is meant to increase the general awareness and appreciation of poetry in Denver and to provide support to the fields of poetry and literature. In addition to other activities that the Poet Laureate may choose to undertake, he or she may occasionally be called upon to read from his or her body of work at official city functions.

To be eligible, applicants must (1) be a legal resident of Colorado and have lived in the Denver metropolitan area for at least seven of the last ten years, (2) have authored at least one published volume of poetry of 48 pages or more (non self- or vanity-publication), or published at least three poetry volumes of 16 pages or more (non self- or vanity-publications) in the last ten years and (3) be recognized by peers in the literary community as having made a significant contribution to that community.

The basic term of the Denver Poet Laureate is two years, renewable for a maximum of eight years in the post. The Poet Laureate serves at the pleasure of the current mayor.

A Poet Laureate Selection Committee has been set up to review all applications and will submit up to three candidates to the mayor for consideration. The Selection Committee is composed of representatives from Denver’s literary community, poetry organizations, related businesses, local colleges and universities and other individuals interested in the field of poetry, and is chaired by a member of the Denver Commission on Cultural Affairs.

The complete guidelines and application form may be obtained from the Denver Poet Laureate website at http://www.denvergov.org/poetlaureate/default.asp, or by calling 303-640-6952.

The deadline for applications is August 31, 2005.

Posted by Betsy Kimak, Internet Site Administrator, Customer Information Services. Source: Denver Office of Cultural Affairs

¡Qué Calor!

2005-07-19T17:00:00.000-06:00

Wishful Thinking

Coalition to Address Anti-Immigrant Sentiment

2005-07-15T08:10:00.000-06:00

I'm reprinting an invitation to an upcoming meeting here in Denver that is planned to address the issue of anti-immigrant hate-mongering.

"Dear Friend,

I am writing to you because I know that you, like me, have had enough of the anti-immigrant bashing that has beset this city. I know that many in our community feel the same but don't know how to show support. I think it is absolutely necessary that we take a stand to recognize that immigrants are here and are a part of our communities. They are people and deserve to be treated with dignity, respect and in a humane manner.

On behalf of Latinos Finding Common Ground, I would like to invite you to an organizing meeting to form a broad based coalition effort based on this simple principle.

Come to our coalition kick-off meeting
Thursday, July 21 at 6 p.m.
at the Escuela Tlatelolco, 2949 Federal.

Let’s raise our voices!
We need a community response--a just response--a unified response
to current attacks on immigrants

I hope you can join us. Please feel free to share this invitation with other groups or individuals.
Thank You,
Adrienne Benavidez for
Latinos Finding Common Ground"

Crime Time Cafe

2005-07-12T17:05:00.000-06:00

Steven Torres writes police procedurals. He's published three novels plus several short stories, and he also does interviews, articles, etc. His Luis Gonzalo series includes Precinct Puerto Rico, Death in Precinct Puerto Rico, and Burning Precinct Puerto Rico. Folks who attended this year's Left Coast Crime Conference were able to catch Steven as the moderator of at least one panel. You can find out a lot more about Steven and his books over on his website.

Kirkus, well-known for tough reviews, said this about Precinct Puerto Rico:
"A top-notch police procedural whose engrossing details create an authentic feel. Terse, deadpan prose, believable characters, and an offbeat setting add up to a promising series kickoff." --Kirkus Reviews (starred)

Steven also recently started up his own blog - the Crime Time Cafe. In the cafe he reviews books and short stories, provides news from the world of crime fiction, and also offers his stories for sale on what he calls the Menu of Doom. Roll on over there and check out what he's doing. In the last couple of days he posted an article asking why Manuel Ramos isn't at the top of the best seller lists. Good question. I like his reason #5, but the Dr. Seuss book would have to be If I Ran The Zoo.

Verano, 2005

2005-07-07T08:00:00.000-06:00

Ephemeral summer markers.
Chicks and Hens in bloom.
Yucca, too.

Denver's KUVO Named Major Market Jazz Station Of The Year

2005-07-03T22:37:00.000-06:00

Press Release from KUVO, 89.3 FM -

DENVER--The radio industry is jazzed about Denver's jazz89 KUVO, Celebrating 20 Years of Public Radio.

The station was voted the Major Market Jazz Station of the Year by radio industry peers during the Jazz Week Summit, held last weekend in Syracuse, NY. In winning the prestigious award, the station bested outlets in sizable markets, including stations in New York, San Francisco, Boston and Long Beach.

jazz89's Arturo Gómez, who has been at the station for two years, also was named the Major Market Music Director of the Year for the second straight year. Formerly the music director of WDNA in Miami, Florida, Gómez brought an encyclopedic knowledge of music to the station, surpassed only by his passion for its performance.

"This recognition is long overdue," said Florence Hernández Ramos, jazz89 President and CEO for twenty-two years. "The awards are a tribute to the professionalism of our on-air personnel and our engineers. The ability of our development and administrative staff and volunteers to raise the funds for us to operate at such a high level, and the members and program sponsors whose support sustains our unique multicultural format make this possible."

Celebrating its 20th Anniversary this year, jazz89 KUVO is the only public radio station in Colorado with a 24-hour program format of jazz, Latin jazz, blues. On the weekends, the station expands the format to include culturally diverse musical programming.

jazz89 broadcasts at 25,000 watts serving Colorado's Front Range. Community organizations maintain translators in Breckenridge and Laramie, Wyoming because they want to receive KUVO. The station's current operating budget is $1.3 million and is supported by approximately 9,500 members and over 350 volunteers.

Throughout its history, jazz89 KUVO has become known for community involvement and innovation. Locally, the station has forged partnerships with numerous non-profit organizations, high schools, universities and local artists.

Nationally, the station has been lauded for its state of the art Performance Studio and has earned kudos for becoming the first FM station in Colorado to begin broadcasting in high-definition.

"It's great to get this national recognition as we celebrate our 20th Anniversary," said Program Director of eighteen years, Carlos Lando. "To be recognized by one's peers is a humbling gift and a rewarding experience in a long journey that has been simultaneously exciting and challenging."

Chávez Ravine

2005-06-30T08:11:00.000-06:00

"A" for effort to Ry Cooder for his latest CD, Chávez Ravine. Not a perfect album but the concept was noble, his heart was in the right place and most of the songs are right on.

UFOs to the Red Scare to Cool Cats and Cool Chicks, all against the backdrop of the demolition of the barrio in the name of progress (which turned out to be the Dodgers). It's a tragedy so many of us know, from Barrio Viejo in Tucson to Auraria in Denver. The CD features Chicano music legends Little Willie G., Lalo Guerrero, and Ersi Arvizu, the vocalist on El Chicano's classic Sabor A Mi. She sings on the last track of Chávez Ravine, Soy Luz y Sombra, and if that song doesn't tear you up, you have no soul, brother.

A Jazzy 4th of July

2005-06-29T13:02:00.000-06:00

Heres an event worth supporting:

A Jazzy 4th of July is an outdoor block party on 24th & Washington in the historic Five Points neighborhood. There are about 9 nonprofits selling tickets, such as the African-American Leadership Institute, who share in the proceeds from this event. For adults 21 and over. Great music, a good time, and a meaningful way to celebrate the 4th.

Monday, July 4, 2005
Washington St. Business District
East 24th Avenue and Washington St. ¼ Mile North of Downtown Denver

Hugh Masekela
Manuel Molina’s Latin Jazz Combo
The Sheryl Renee Band
Gates open at 1 PM --

Entertainment from 2 to 7 PM
General Admission Tickets: $20

For tickets or to make a reservation, call 303.299.9035

Live Free and Soar

2005-06-29T12:08:00.000-06:00

Patty Limerick's article in the June 29 New York Times deals with the apparent contradiction of Native American patriotism. Patty is a gem, as anyone who knows her will verify. Another one of the fine professors from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She's doing a short stint with the Times as a sub for Maureen Dowd. Here's a paragraph from her article. To read the entire essay on the web you have to log in to the Times' website, which requires registration (free).

"Much of what we have taken to calling 'the lessons of Vietnam' - perhaps especially the difficulty of sequestering noncombatants from violence, as well as the complex moral choices raised by confronting guerrilla war - could just as easily have been learned as 'the lessons of the Indian wars.' If Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld ever hints at even the slightest interest in exploring the historical meanings of the Indian wars, I will be on the next plane to D.C."

La Historia Premieres June 27

2005-06-27T12:41:00.000-06:00

June 27, 9:00 PM, Rocky Mountain PBS (Channel 6 in Denver)

Tonight is the premiere of the first half of the documentary La Raza de Colorado. This half is entitled La Historia and gives a broad but inclusive summary of Chicanos in Colorado, from way before Coronado to the beginning of the Chicano Movement, which will be covered in depth in the second half of the documentary. I've seen the first half and thought it was very good. Some articulate folks give expert accounts of this history - people like Polly Baca, Lalo Delgado, Eddie Montour, Charlene Garcia Simms, Luis Torres, and my favorite, Florence Hernandez-Ramos, who describes how her father came to this country as part of the Bracero program at the end of World War II.

Mexico's Jaguares

2005-06-23T22:09:00.000-06:00

This from the San Francisco Chronicle:

One of Mexico's most popular rock bands, Jaguares plays before crowds of 100,000 people there. With a following that spills into the United States (reflected by its appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with Conan O'Brien), Jaguares has reached a point where every new song is eagerly awaited (and scrutinized) by fans and critics.
The group's latest album, Cronicas de un Laberinto (Chronicles of a Labyrinth), is a statement about how Mexico is still searching for the right mix of social justice and economic prosperity. On the bittersweet tune Madera (Wood), lead singer Saul Hernández envisions a wood that "is resistant to all weeping" and "resurrects in Ciudad Juarez" -- a reference to the unsolved killings of hundreds of women in the cities of Juarez and Chihuahua. To bring attention to the tragedy, Jaguares released its new record in Juarez. When the group begins its U.S. tour in San Francisco, it will spotlight the work of Amnesty International, which is pressuring the Mexican government to solve the murders. Jaguares has worked previously with Amnesty to raise money and gather signatures.

Read the complete article by jumping here.

And over on LatinoHeat Online and on the Jaguares website you can get the complete tour schedule. Locally: Aug. 3- Denver, CO / Gothic Theater

Keeping Up With the Bloggers

2005-06-21T07:04:00.000-06:00

Over on La Bloga, Michael Sedano reviews Alicia Gaspar de Alba's tough novel, Desert Blood. It's a comprehensive and insightful review, which means that the book gave Michael plenty to think about. As Sedano points out, here's a crime novel in the fashion of Sinclair Lewis. High praise, indeed. Too bad Alicia did not have any Denver appearances during her current book tour - the closest she got was an event on the C.U. campus in Boulder. What's up with that?

Daniel Olivas's post on La Bloga for June 20 has the usual wealth of information about writers, books, literary events, and even some stuff about Daniel's own writing life. He will be signing his first children’s book, Benjamin and the Word / Benjamin y La Palabra (Arte Público Press), on June 25, at B. Dalton's Booksellers, Topanga Plaza, 6600 Topanga Canyon Blvd., Canoga Park, CA, noon to 4:00 p.m., (818) 883-8095. Those of you in that neck of the woods - go out and give Daniel your support. He's doing some good things with his talent and energy.

One of the authors Daniel writes about is Sheryl Luna, poet and professor at Metropolitan State College of Denver. Daniel recently reviewed her debut poetry collection, Pity the Drowned Horses (University of Notre Dame Press)on the Elegant Variation. I have to say that the sample of Luna's poetry that I've read has me intrigued - yet another book for the TBR stack.

La Raza de Colorado

2005-06-13T20:32:00.000-06:00

This info from Raymundo Eli Rojas, Editor of Pluma Fronteriza - gracias, Ray.

Special sneak previews of Rocky Mountain PBS’ newest production – an original documentary about the history of Latinos in Colorado titled La Raza de Colorado (The People of Colorado) – have been scheduled for June 18 at 3 p.m., ahead of when the first episode airs on Rocky Mountain PBS. The sneak previews offer a shortened version of the two-hour, two-part documentary.

June 18 – Boulder. Sponsored by Boulder Public Library, Sun Microsystems and the Society of Latinos@Sun, El Centro Amistad and Boulder County Latina Women's League. 3 p.m., Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd.

La Raza de Colorado consists of two episodes. The first is La Historia (The History), and the second half of the series is El Movimiento (The Movement). La Historia covers the period from the 1500s to 1940, while El Movimiento covers the 1960s and ‘70s. Rocky Mountain PBS will air La Historia on Monday, June 27, at 9 p.m. El Movimiento is under production, scheduled for a winter, 2005, release.

In creating the documentary, Rocky Mountain PBS producer Lisa Olken conducted more than 30 hours of interviews with 20 different subjects, filling up 54 videotapes. Olken and the Rocky Mountain PBS production staff also traveled throughout the state to shoot video – from the San Luis Valley to Greeley to La Junta.

The little guy in the photo up above is José de Jesús Hernández, mi suegro, and his parents.

Luis Urrea in Denver

2005-06-13T07:45:00.000-06:00

From The Tattered Cover Newsletter -

Luis Alberto Urrea, the multiple-award winning author of Devil's Highway, Across the Wire and By the Lake of Sleeping Children, will read from and sign his new novel The Hummingbird's Daughter. A spectacular novel as grand as a western sunset and full of cowboys and outlaws, Indian warriors and cantina beauties, silly men who drink too much and desert women who in their dreams travel to the seashore, The Hummingbird's Daughter is Urrea's majestic masterpiece, the story of one girl's life and the swollen heart of all Mexico.

The Tattered Cover (Cherry Creek), June 23, 2005, 7:30 PM

Request a signed copy: books@tatteredcover.com

Hinojosa on Writing

2005-06-11T13:16:00.000-06:00

Words of wisdom from El Maestro, Rolando Hinojosa-Smith, taken from his interview in Chicano Detective Fiction by Susan Baker Sotelo:

"Without reading, no writer gets anywhere. Imagination is helpful but it will flag without reading .... At present I go to bed with Cervantes, whom I've read a great number of times, and with Montaigne. If one plans to write, one must be like a shark, which, by the way is what defines a writer: you read everything, and like a shark, you have no natural enemies. When Mexican American students tell me they do not relate to Shakespeare, I tell them they're in trouble, and that their language will be deficient as will be their thinking. Someone may think I'm being hard nosed, but that's what writing is ... tough. It's not for people whose feelings are hurt easily.

Living, observing, listening, undergoing a varied number of experiences, knowing the language, and the language used by the different social classes of this country and any other where one's characters appear and so on is not only important, it is also essential. ... One does not need to take classes in creative writing to be a writer [but one does need models and] Graham Greene would be someone who would be a model for any writer of any type of fiction."

Tenth Anniversary of Latina Letters

2005-06-09T12:09:00.000-06:00

A schedule for the 10-Year Anniversary of Latina Letters has been posted on the Campus News site of St. Mary's University. Here it is:

PLACE: All events in San Antonio at St. Mary's University Center, Conference Room A, except a Saturday evening event which is at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center.

COST: Professional educators, $60; students and public, $20.

SCHEDULE:

* Thursday, July 14, 1 to 6 p.m. Conference registration and housing check-in.
* Thursday, 7 p.m., Opening banquet. Reading by Sandra Cisneros. $25, Tickets: Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center Book Store at (210) 351-7787. (Must be purchased by Friday, July 8).
* Friday, July 15, 7 p.m. Readings by Pat Mora and Ana Menéndez (Loving Che).
* Saturday, July 16, 7 p.m. Readings by Lorna Dee Cervantes and Alicia Gaspar de Alba. Screening of Lourdes Portillo's documentary film about the murders young women in Juárez, Señoritas Extraviada / Missing Young Women, at the Guadalupe Theater, 1300 Guadalupe Street. Free and open to the public.

FROM THE DIRECTOR: In 2005 we celebrate 10 years of what critics have called "one of the nation's most important gatherings about literature by Hispanic women." This year, we will discuss and celebrate three decades of Latina Literature in the U.S. The "crossing over" of U.S. Latino/a literature into the awareness of the general American reader began in the 1980s with the publication of Sandra Cisneros' "The House on Mango Street" by Arte Público. The widespread popularity of "The House on Mango Street," led to its eventual publication by Random House, to the awarding of a MacArthur "Genius" fellowship to a Latina writer, and eventually to the acceptance of the significant Latina literary market by the mainstream publishing houses of New York.

On its 10-year anniversary, Latina Letters applauds Sandra Cisneros for helping to open the gates of the mainstream for many Latina writers to follow. Also participating in Latina Letters is a voice of the '80s, poet Lorna Dee Cervantes who will read from her new work. For the decade of the '90s we celebrate Pat Mora, Chicana poet extraordinaire, who opened the mainstream doors to Latina children's literature. Representing the first decade of the 21st century are Alicia Gaspar de Alba and Cuban-American Ana Menéndez, two writers whose works explore both political and social issues in the form of fiction.

Latina Letters will be a forum for issues of literature, art, identity, ethnicity and gender, continuing as it has from the beginning to focus awareness on these important issues.

Gwendolyn Díaz, Ph.D. Director, Latina Letters

The Fifth Sun - Mary Helen Lagasse

2005-06-07T19:02:00.000-06:00

I mentioned a few months ago (March 11) that The Fifth Sun by Mary Helen Lagasse won the 2004 Patricia and Rudolfo Anaya Premio Atzlán. I had included her book in a post about some of the best books of 2004. She recently sent a message that is in the archives of this blog, but I wanted to make sure that her information got heard. Mary Helen says that the subject of her lecture when she received the Premio Atzlán was Breaking Barrio Images: A Voice From The Deep South. She commented that "Señor Anaya thought this a very good topic since, as he said, there are no other prize-winning Chicana writers from the Deep South--certainly not from New Orleans!" Her publisher, Curbstone Press, is a small house, publicity is scarce and Mary Helen worries that her book will fall between the cracks. To date The Fifth Sun has won three literary awards: The Miguel Marmol Latina First Fiction Award; the Rudolfo & Patricia Anaya Premio Atzlán for Best Debut Novel Written in English by a Latina, and most recently at the Book Expo, the Independent Publishers 2005 IPPY Award for Best Multicultural Fiction. Moreover, the book was cited as a Best Debut Novel of 2004 by the New Orleans Times Picayune (12/04), and has garnered a number of excellent reviews. The Fifth Sun appears destined to become a classic Chicano novel and Mary Helen Lagasse definitely a writer to watch. Now, if we can just help out the sales.

The Fifth Sun is the story of Mercedes, a young Mexican woman who leaves her village to work as a housemaid in New Orleans. This novel takes her through her adventures in New Orleans, her marriage, her struggle to raise her children, her deportation, and her attempt to re-cross the river and be reunited with her children. And the novel takes place during the Roaring Twenties and the Depression, unique time periods for stories about Mexicans and Mexican-Americans.

International Conference on Chicano Literature

2005-06-06T21:32:00.000-06:00

Here's something to plan for:

The Research Institute for North American Studies (IUIEN) of the University of Alcala has announced that the Fifth International Conference on Chicano Literature is scheduled for April 19, 20 and 21, 2006, in Madrid. At least those are the dates on the Institute's website. Teresa Márquez of the University of New Mexico, a regular attendee at the conference, tells me that the conference will take place on May 22-25, 2006. If you are interested in receiving information about this conference or the previous conferences (Granada 1998, Vitoria 2000, Malaga 2002, Seville 2004), you can ask for it at the following address: congreso.chicanos@iuien-uah.net.

Can't Quite Make It To The End

2005-06-03T07:12:00.000-06:00

Books that surprised me because I wanted to like them but, so far, haven't been able to finish:

The Plot Against America - Philip Roth
Strangers On A Train - Patricia Highsmith
Voluntary Madness - Vicki Hendricks
Kill Whitey - Ken Harvill

It's just me, right? These are good books, I know they are. Sometimes the stars or planets or biorhythms or something aren't right and I have to put down a book and come back to it later. Happens with music, too.

On the other hand, a recent book I whipped through and didn't want to end:

Little Scarlet - Walter Mosley

Excellent, fine writing. Mosley's voice is true, his craftmanship is unobtrusive, and the story kills.

The Hummingbird's Daughter

2005-06-02T07:56:00.000-06:00

Luis Urrea talks about his great new novel, The Hummingbird's Daughter, in an interview posted on The Elegant Variation. The interviewer is our friend Daniel Olivas. Urrea makes the following point in the interview when asked whether he has created a new genre of writing that mixes magical realism with historical fact: "As far as the 'new genre' goes, I refer to Eudora Welty. She said that there is nothing new under the sun, the only thing we have to offer is point of view. So my text, which a reporter told me was baroque, is really an attempt to reproduce those fine semi-addled Mexican voices as they spin out tall tales to their children." Cool.

Writing is Sacred

2005-06-01T22:21:00.000-06:00

I attended the Deborah Santana reading and signing of her memoir, Space Between the Stars: My Journey to an Open Heart. Nice, sincere, strong woman dedicated to peace. Her book should make a good read, especially because her experiences resonate with me as someone who also came of age in the late 1960s, matured through the 1970s, and still is looking for peace. The bookmarks she prepared for her tour carry the following message about writing:

Writing is SACRED
S - Set goals. If you want to write, choose your highest goal and write it down.
A - Apply butt to chair. At the end of the day, if you want to write, you have to sit down and write.
C - Create a structure. Find your best working style and stick to it.
R - Read. Read many authors to see how they create.
E - Edit last; create fearlessly first.
D - Dream! If you can dream it, you can achieve it.

There's a good chance that Deborah Santana will be interviewed by Pocho Joe on La Raza Rocks, the Sunday afternoon Chicano music program on KUVO, 89.3 FM in Denver. The show airs every Sunday at 1:00 P.M. (Denver) - listen for it on your radio or the KUVO website.

Reading Now

2005-06-01T22:05:00.000-06:00

Here's what I currently pick up to appease my reading jones:

Excursion to Tindari by Andrea Camilleri: This series about Sicilian cop Inspector Montalbano has become a favorite of mine. Just don't be hungry when you read one of these books - man this guy can eat, and eat well. This one's about the "New Mafia."

Like A Rolling Stone: Bob Dylan at the Crossroads by Greil Marcus: I can't escape my 1960s socialization. Wouldn't you want to know everything there is to know about "the greatest rock and roll song ever recorded"?

The Collected Stories of John O'Hara and The Complete Short Stories Of Ernest Hemingway : The Finca Vigía Edition: Never hurts to go back to those who knew how to get it done.

Chicano Detective Fiction by Susan Baker Sotelo: Well, of course. I didn't know, I didn't know --Luis Móntez is a feminist!

Riding high on my grandson's hit parade is Thomas Helps Out. Fix that broken whistle, Thomas. Next up for the kid and me is - Benjamin and the Word by Daniel Olivas.

Albuquerque Finds

2005-05-28T23:06:00.000-06:00

Santiago Pérez
National Latino Writers Conference
Chiva

Santiago Pérez
In a recent post I talked about a train trip to Albuquerque. While spending a few days in a town that my wife and I appreciate more each time we visit, we came across an artist I immediately liked: Santiago Pérez. I saw his work in an exhibit at the National Hispanic Cultural Center and I was duly impressed. Pérez works in different genres and styles. Here's a detail from one of his gothic fantasies or his "magical paintings" as he calls them.

The stories that the paintings portray are weird, wacky and wonderful, and apparently were written by the artist. If you are unfamiliar with the artist, as I was, you can see some of his work on his website here and also on this site. Two of my favorite pieces are Aztec Pilots Search for Quetzalcoatl and First Aztec on the Moon.

National Latino Writers Conference
Speaking of the National Hispanic Cultural Center - it was the site for the third National Latino Writers Conference, a conference I confess I didn't know anything about but that this year featured Rudolfo Anaya, Lucha Corpi and John Nichols, and many other poets, screenwriters, and fiction writers. Information on the NHCC site says that "nationally recognized authors, agents and editors will conduct workshops and participate in panel discussions on fiction, poetry, screenwriting, playwriting and memoir. All those who attend will have the opportunity to have three individual appointments with agents, authors and editors." The conference was held May 19 -21.

Chiva
In New Mexico my wife picked up Chiva by Chellis Glendinning (New Society Publishers). This book is about the heroin epidemic in Chimayó, N.M., and the community's struggle to clean up. I haven't read the book so can't comment on it but the facts behind the book's topic are disturbing. The legend of the holy dirt at the Chimayó mission is well known here in Colorado and New Mexico and the area was famous for its healing and spiritual nature long before the church was built. Here's a bit of the town's history from the Chimayó website -

"Believed to be built on sacred earth with miraculous healing powers, the legendary shrine El Santuario de Chimayó is probably the most visited church in New Mexico. The crucifix which began the original shrine still resides on the chapel alter, but for some reason its curative powers have been overshadowed by El Posito, the 'sacred sand pit' from which it sprang. Each year during Holy Week thousands of people make a pilgrimage to Chimayó to visit the Santuario and take away a bit of the sacred dirt. Pilgrims walk a few yards or a hundred miles. Many claim to have been cured there of diseases, infirmities and unhappiness. The walls of the sacristy are hung with discarded crutches and before-and-after photographs as evidence of the healing."

More recently, Chimayó has had the highest per capita rate for deaths from overdoses in a state that leads the country in this category.

Glendinning is a Chimayó resident who has written four previous books including Off the Map: An Expedition Deep into Empire and the Global Economy, which won a National Federation of Press Women 2000 Book Award. Her 1977 Honda Civic won 3rd place in Chimayó's Santiago/Santa Ana Fiesta low-rider car show in 2001.

Olivas Joins La Bloga

2005-05-27T07:41:00.000-06:00

Over on La Bloga, where the boys hang out, Daniel Olivas has signed up for a tour of duty and already has started posting, changing the color of the drapes and moving around the furniture. The blogeros welcomed him with open keyboards and I think La Bloga is on to something with the "community approach" to blogging. A little bit of this, a little bit of that, a little bit more of this, a little bit more of that. . .

La Bloga focuses on Chicano Lit, which is good, but really there is no limit to the topics, as long as they relate to la cultura (music, films, art, food, etc.) News, reviews, some short fiction, announcements, calls for submissions - it's all on La Bloga.

Now I've got to figure out what to do with this blog.

Deborah Santana - Space Between the Stars

2005-05-26T17:00:00.000-06:00

From the Tattered Cover (Denver) website:

Time: Wednesday, June 1, 2005 7:30 PM
Location: Cherry Creek
Title of Event: Deborah Santana - Space Between the Stars: My Journey to an Open Heart
Deborah Santana, best known for her thirty-year marriage to music icon Carlos Santana, will discuss and sign her memoir Space Between the Stars: My Journey to an Open Heart ($24.95 One World). In this beautiful, haunting memoir, Santana shares for the first time her early experiences with racial intolerance, her romantic involvement with musician Sly Stone, her adventures in the freewheeling 1960s, and her spiritual awakening founded in the Civil Rights movement. This book is also available as an abridged audio CD ($29.95 RH Audio), which contains original music from Carlos Santana, and classic songs from Deborah’s father - the legendary blues guitarist Saunders King.
Request a signed copy: books@tatteredcover.com

Gil's All Fright Diner - A. Lee Martinez

2005-05-22T22:11:00.000-06:00

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review.
"Something Evil (that's with a capital E) is stalking Gil's All Night Diner in Martinez's terrific debut, a comic horror-fantasy novel. Heading the delightfully eccentric cast are buddies Earl (aka the Earl of Vampires) and Duke (aka the Duke of Werewolves), who are looking for a place to eat as they drive through Rockwood, a small desert community besieged by cosmically weird stuff. Soon after stopping at Gil's Diner, the pair help Loretta, the formidable owner-operator, fend off a zombie attack. Determined to do the right thing, the two supernatural misfits take on further challenges, such as trying to prevent Tammy (aka Mistress Lilith, Queen of the Night) and her loyal but dumb boyfriend, Chad, from ending the world. The fast-paced plot is full of memorable incidents (e.g., a ghost and a vampire fall in love; a Magic 8-Ball becomes a message vehicle for trapped spirits) and such wonderful observations as 'this whole undead stuff sounds good on paper, but it ain't all it's cracked up to be.' Fans of Douglas Adams and Joe R. Lansdale, who supplies a blurb, will happily sink their teeth into this combo platter of raunchy laughs and ectoplasmic ecstasy. (May 11) "
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Latino Crime Spree

2005-05-18T07:55:00.000-06:00

Hate-mongers and racists have come out in force recently here in Denver. Their vitriol is directed at undocumented immigrants, the Spanish language and Latinos in general. There are days I get depressed as hell. It's reached a point so low that a big problem for some folks is that a high school yearbook has some Spanish (and English) - in a school that is 87% Hispanic.

I was going to write an essay entitled "What's Really Changed?" but decided that was a step backward.

I'd rather note that Crime Spree Magazine #6 is about ready to hit the streets and, under the guidance of Jon Jordan, the magazine pays tribute to Latino Books Month (May) by having an article on Latino detectives written by Steven Torres in Spanish (the English version is on the web). Jon Jordan is a very cool fella - knows crime literature in depth, has an unabashed love for books and respect for writers, and supports writers and their works in tangible ways - Crime Spree being one of the most prominent. Muchisimas gracias, Jon.

Steven's article, El Detective Latino - Vida en el borde, The Latino Detective - Life on the Border, had its genesis in a panel that took place at Left Coast Crime in El Paso earlier this year, and he does a very good job of connecting the dots among the books of Michele Martinez, Alicia Gaspar de Alba, his own novels, and a couple of mine. I think it is a great follow-up to an essay I wrote a few years ago (The Postman and the Mex: From Hard-Boiled to Huevos Rancheros in Detective Fiction) and that you can still find on my website.

Nightmare Alley

2005-05-15T13:11:00.000-06:00

How about this for a summer read? Nightmare Alley by William Lindsay Gresham was published in 1946. It was controversial, shocking, and unforgettable. The dark tale of carnival life in the United States was boosted to even more notoriety when the movie appeared in 1947 starring, in a role strictly against type, Tyrone Power, fresh off his huge success in The Razor's Edge. The novel became a cult classic and when The Library of America collected books for its Crime Novels series, Nightmare Alley appeared in the volume American Noir of the 1930s and 1940s, right along such quintessential American Literature as The Postman Always Rings Twice (James M. Cain), They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (Horace McCoy), and I Married a Dead Man (Cornell Woolrich).

The book tells the story of Stan Carlisle, a man who rises to the pinnacle of con man success as the Great Stanton, magician and mentalist, and then falls to the depths of depravity, degradation and "geekdom." What more could you ask for in the good ole summertime? Those traveling carny shows come around every summer and this is a great way to celebrate the side show life.

The version of the book for the summer is the 2003 graphic novel adaptation by Manuel "Spain" Rodriguez. The renowned underground comics artist is probably best-known for his Trashman comics, but his adapatation of Gresham's novel is right on the mark. Gresham's sordid and doomed portrayal of the "American dream" finds a fitting home in Rodriguez's detailed and crisp artwork, almost too much for the reader to soak in all at once. I found out on this website that Rodriguez was born in 1940 in Mexico, grew up in Buffalo, NY, and in the 1960s hung out with R. Crumb and other underground comic artists in San Francisco. According to the Introduction to the graphic novel, Rodriguez spent seven years working on the adaptation, on and off. The book was published by Fantagraphics Books, which also publishes Los Bros Hernandez.

Summer Reading

2005-05-13T09:54:00.000-06:00

I've been asked by a local newspaper for a recommendation for summer reading. I have a couple of ideas but would be interested in others. What book would you suggest to someone who says, "I need a good book for the summer"? Read into that phrase whatever conditions you want. Thanks for any suggestions.

Cocaine Chronicles

2005-05-12T07:56:00.000-06:00

This may be news to some of you - I have a story in the recently published anthology The Cocaine Chronicles, edited by Jervey Tervalon and Gary Phillips. This collection kicks and, as you might guess, the topic lends itself to stories that just won't let go of the reader. Phillips and Tervalon have brought together some excellent writers and I don't hesitate to recommend it, even if you pass on my story. The piece by Detrice Jones, Just Surviving Another Day, will blow you away (no pun intended), more so because this is the author's first published story, it was written while Ms. Jones was a student in Tervalon's class at UCLA, and it's based on her own life experiences.

The publisher is Akashic Books, an adventurous outfit doing some unique publishing projects under the guidance of Johnny Temple. For example, Akashic published Adios Muchachos by Daniel Chavarría, which won an Edgar Award. Here's some of the publishing blurb for Adios Muchachos:

"The first suspense novel in English-translation by internationally acclaimed Uruguayan mystery writer Daniel Chavarría, Adios Muchachos is a dark, erotic, brutally funny romp through the sexual underworld and black-market boardrooms of post-Cold War Cuba."

You can find several good reviews of the Cocaine Chronicles on the web and I suggest you also listen to the NPR interview of Tervalon and Phillips, which is archived at this link. And visit Gary Phillips' website.

The Southwest Chief

2005-05-10T08:00:00.000-06:00

Last week I rode the Southwest Chief, the Amtrak line that connects Chicago and Los Angeles, although I only rode from Lamar, CO to Albuquerque, NM, and back. Here's a photo of the Chief climbing Raton Pass (courtesy of the Crewten web page):

On the way south, the train announcer gave us details about the Santa Fe Trail, the Dick Wooten Ranch, Glorieta Pass, and so on. He directed our attention to a gravemarker near the Wooten Ranch - the Cruz Torres gravesite. His story was that the tombstone simply said, "He stole the payroll." I don't think that's right - here's a link to a picture of the tombstone. This epitaph says, "Murdered" and something about the 1st N.M. Cav.

On the return trip, a couple from Farmington, NM who were riding the train from Albuquerque to somewhere in North Carolina told the story of how Raton Pass got its name. According to them, travelers along the old Santa Fe trail were overwhelmed? disgusted? amazed? by the numerous marmots along the trail. Somehow, the marmot population transposed into generic rodents (in the minds of the pioneers), and eventually the area was known as Raton Pass.

On the way back our fellow passengers included an Amish family, a group of tough-looking young men with buzzed hair and tattoos who seemed bored more than anything else, and a large group of African-American youth and older women, going up north to Chicago.

The trip in both directions was a quiet, peaceful journey that included gray overcast, a snowstorm, rain, clear sunny skies and the beginning blooms of mountain wild flowers and cactus blossoms. In terms of wildlife, I didn't see all that much from the train except for a small herd of antelope north of Santa Fe and in Southeast Colorado a group of buffalo. My only complaint was that I couldn't read in the swaying train - can't read in cars or busses either.

Olivas on Aldama on Islas

2005-05-07T08:38:00.000-06:00

The Elegant Variation has posted Daniel Olivas's review of Dancing With Ghosts by Frederic Luis Aldama. The review's conclusion certainly speaks highly of the book and the job done by Aldama: "Islas was plagued with self-hate and was often moody, manipulative, narcissistic and unpredictable. Yet he could be brilliant, gentle, soft-spoken and, above all, generous. Aldama succeeds in synthesizing the disparate elements of Arturo Islas to produce what doubtless will become a seminal biographical study."

Lorna Dee on Luis Cervantes

2005-05-06T08:57:00.000-06:00

Lorna Dee Cervantes pays tribute to her father Luis Cervantes over on her blog. You should read it - she does a much better job than I ever could. Here's the beginning of one of her blog posts on the admired and beloved artist who passed away April 27:

"Luis Cervantes: 'All I Know Is That I'm an Artist & I'm an Indian'
Lorna dice: Don't believe everything you read in the newspapers. He would not want to be remembered as a muralist, although he painted murals, and though he was the other eye in the co-founding of Precita Eyes Muralists, he considered Susan to be the Master Muralist. He was a fine arts artist, and probably one of the first postmodern artists, having come to it under siege in Antwerp, and in the sense that his art by it's very nature resists classifications, hierarchies & hegemonies. He would have spoken up, right away, interrupted the speaker had she or he called him a 'Chicano' artist. 'Call it what it is,' as he put it the last time I spoke with him, 'I'm Mexican and I'm an American (a certified WWII war hero) so I guess that makes me a "Mexican American", and that other guy over there, well, you'll just have to ask him where he comes from and where he's at.' (hearty laughter)."

Lorna Dee has posted several different pieces about the artist. It's quite a tribute. And, you can read more about Cervantes in the San Francisco Chronicle obituary.

Luis J.Rodriguez in Denver

2005-05-01T08:42:00.000-06:00

The Tattered Cover Book Store gushes about the upcoming appearance of Luis J. Rodriguez at its Cherry Creek store. Here's the blurb from the Tattered's website:

"Luis J. Rodriguez, the author of several critically acclaimed books, including Always Running, The Republic of East L.A., and Hearts and Hands, will read from and sign his new novel Music of the Mill (Rayo). In this stunning literary achievement - with a power and scope in the tradition of John Steinbeck and Theodore Dreiser - Rodriguez has captured the soul of a community and a little-known era in America's history in an epic novel about love, family, workers' rights, industrial strife, and cultural dislocation."

May 9, 2005 7:30 PM

Sounds like an event that should not be missed.

All In The Family

2005-04-27T08:13:00.000-06:00

Film producer, director, screenwriter Severo Perez (...and the earth did not swallow him; Rudy Perez, Countdown, Reflections on a Life in Dance) reports that his son is doing the artist thing in NYC. Here's a website for Rafael Perez that showcases some of his alluring art.

Laura Canales

2005-04-24T14:56:00.000-06:00

A short note on the recent passing of one of the great Tejano singers. Here's the lead from a story in the Washington Post:

"Laura Canales, 50, a soulful Tejano singer who stormed the stage at a time when men tended to hog the Tejano limelight, died April 16 of complications from bladder surgery at Christus Spohn Hospital in Corpus Christi, Tex.

Known in the 1980s as La reina de la onda tejana (Queen of the Tejano Wave), she blazed a trail for other female musicians, including Selena, the Tejano superstar who was shot to death a decade ago. "

Other stories in the N.Y. Times, the Houston Chronicle (which comments, "Although she was predated by pioneers Chelo Silva and Lydia Mendoza, Laura Canales was the first widely popular female singer in the macho world of Tejano music"), and the Brownsville (TX) Herald.

Descanse en paz.

Primavera

2005-04-22T22:14:00.000-06:00

Spring, 2004
Transplanted cactus along the side of our house.

May Is Latino Books Month

2005-04-22T16:06:00.000-06:00

In its ongoing efforts to promote books by and for Latinos, the Association of American Publishers (AAP) has designated May 2005 as the second annual Latino Books Month. During the month-long celebration, booksellers, librarians, and others in the book industry will encourage people in their communities to read books by and for Latinos, in both English and Spanish. More information on the AAP website, including specifics about the Latino Books Month Resource Kit.

New Book - Chicano Detective Fiction

2005-04-18T21:04:00.000-06:00

The following is from the Spring catalog of McFarland publishing.

Chicano Detective Fiction: A Critical Study of Five Novelists
Susan Baker Sotelo
$32 softcover

ISBN 0-7864-2¡85-¡
Notes, bibliography, index

June, 2005

In his 1985 novel Partners in Crime, writer Rolando Hinojosa introduced homicide investigator Rafe Buenrostro, the first Chicano protagonist in one of the most enduring genres of modern literature. Since that time, Chicano writers have embraced the detective novel, successfully diversifying and refining a traditional Anglo American and British genre.The 21 whodunits of Hinojosa, Rudolfo Anaya, Lucha Corpi, Michael Nava and Manuel Ramos are closely studied in this groundbreaking work. The models, both contemporary and Romantic, of this relatively new Chicano genre are first discussed. Next come detailed analysis and reviews of such novels as Shaman Winter, Partners in Crime, Cactus Blood and 18 others, focusing on how each writer departs from contemporary detective genre formula, uniquely rendering a particular regional or cultural variation of what it means to be Chicano. It is this departure from the norm that defines their writings and distinguishes them from the Anglo American and British whodunit. Interviews with the writers conclude the work.

About the Author
Currently working on a novel, Susan Baker Sotelo is a Spanish teacher in Tucson, Arizona.

More info about this upcoming book on this page.

Garden of Hope

2005-04-18T17:19:00.000-06:00

2005 CARNAVAL
April 30th
A Denver Latin tradition for the past twelve years, this year, Latin jazz artist and event organizer, Manuel Molina, along with his 15-piece international orchestra, play for the benefit of Garden of Hope. For one night, the finest Latin jazz musicians gather from all around the world to play the hottest Latin sounds from Central and South American and the Caribbean.

Where: Convention Center, Holiday Inn D.I.A., I-70 and Chambers.

Time: VIP Reception Begins 5:30 p.m.; Dancing begins 8:00 p.m.

Ticket Prices: $30 for Reserved Seating; $20 for General Admission

Garden of Hope is a national non-profit organization headquartered in Denver whose mission is to advocate on behalf of low-income individuals in need of life-saving medical treatment. Specifically, the mission of Garden of Hope is to develop a national network of professionals willing to donate services either at a reduced cost or at no cost at all. The professional services include those of doctors, lawyers, social workers and physical therapists, among others. The organization was created in response to the growing number of individuals in the United States who have been denied health care treatment due to their lack of health insurance or their legal status. Garden of Hope is the first organization of its kind to address the medical, financial and legal needs of a family in crisis.

Memorial Celebration for Corky Gonzales

2005-04-15T07:08:00.000-06:00

Escuela Tlatelolco has posted the details for the Rodolfo Corky Gonzales Memorial Marcha and Celebration. April 17, 11:00 A.M., the march begins at the Escuela (29th and Federal, Denver) and ends up at Mestizo/Curtis Park (32nd and Champa). The celebration starts at 1:00 P.M. at the park. Info: 303/964-8993.

Benjamin and The Word

2005-04-12T21:17:00.000-06:00

Danny Olivas sends word that crabby, hard-to-please Kirkus has given his children's book a pretty good review. The book is Benjamin and The Word/Benjamin y la palabra (Piñata Books/Arte Público; pub. date 4/30/05). Here's the review:

"When Benjamin defeats his friend James in a game at school, James calls him a name, the 'word' of the title. While the name itself is never mentioned, Benjamin's talk with his father about his hurt feelings makes it clear that James has insulted Benjamin because his heritage is mixed: half-Russian Jew, half-Mexican. The father-son relationship and their discussions - coming only as Benjamin is ready to talk - are warm and open, and Benjamin's conclusion that he still wants James to be his friend is encouraging and believable. Dyen's illustrations feature background washes, small and large, overlain with penciled details and outlines, creating an expressive realism. A quiet look at prejudice, forgiveness and friendship. (Picture book. 6-8)"

Congrats to Mr. Olivas. He's doing some good things with his talent and passion for writing - this children's book sounds like a great project. I've already written about his call for submissions (March 14, 2005) for short stories for a planned anthology using Los Angeles as the theme and over on La Bloga you can find his essay Cuentos de Fantasma as well as a review of Daniel's current short story collection Devil Talk. ¡Ajua!

Nymphos of Rocky Flats

2005-04-05T09:17:00.000-06:00

A shout out to Mario Acevedo and his recent contract with Rayo. Always great to hear about another Latino, especially from the neighborhood, who cracks the publishing puzzle. And this book sounds like something that just might catch on. ¡Felicidades!

Here's the press release.

PMA ANNOUNCES SALE OF THE NYMPHOS OF ROCKY FLATS TO HARPER COLLINS RAYO IMPRINT

Scott Hoffman of PMA Literary & Film Management, Inc. is pleased to announce the sale of world rights to Mario Acevedo's debut novel, The Nymphos of Rocky Flats, and two other novels to Diana Gill for Harper Collins' Rayo imprint.

Felix Gomez doesn't like what war has done to him. He went to Iraq a soldier, and came back a vampire. Now he's a private detective, hired by a trusted friend to penetrate the murderous conspiracy cloaking an outbreak of nymphomania at the U.S. Department of Energy's Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant.

As he unravels the mystery surrounding one of the darkest secrets of modern times, Felix realizes that he must resolve issues from his human past if he is to defeat government assassins and fanatical vampire hunters from Transylvania. Sexual myths, conspiracy fables, and bureaucratic paranoia are skewered in this novel about American pop culture.

The Nymphos of Rocky Flats deconstructs vampire lore and presents the bizarre world of the undead with a humorous slant and a fresh Latino twist.

A 66,000-word fantasy-thriller set in present day Denver, Nymphos is the first (and only) vampire novel reviewed and declassified by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Mario Acevedo is a community activist currently living in Denver, Colorado. His resume includes military helicopter pilot, engineer, and art teacher to prisoners. This is his first book.

He is currently working on the next Felix Gomez book, X-Rated Bloodsuckers.For more information, contact Scott Hoffman, PMA Literary & Film Management, Inc. at 212.929.1222.

Esteban's Blog

2005-04-05T09:07:00.000-06:00

Esteban Martinez is gettin' it on over on his blog. He set up at www.estebansblog.blogspot.com, where he's posting poetry, stories, "whatever else we want to call writing." This guy can be dark as hell, but then he writes some clever love poems that invoke Neruda. Check him out.

Stories On Stage

2005-04-05T09:00:00.000-06:00

The upcoming program at Stories on Stage:

People Who Live In Imaginary Houses Shouldn't Go Home

Sunday, April 17th at 2:00 and 7:00 PM
Stage Theatre
Denver Center for the Performing Arts

Tosca by Isabel Allende read by Elizabeth Pena
City of Clowns by Daniel Alarcon read by Tony Plana
A Shocking Accident by Graham Greene read by David Ivers
The Hat of My Mother by Max Steele read by Jamie Horton

Tickets: $20. Call 303-494-0523.

Chicano Messengers of the Spoken Word

2005-03-31T22:22:00.000-07:00

The Chicano Messengers of the Spoken Word appear in Fear of a Brown Planet at El Centro Su Teatro on April 3, 2005, 2:oo PM, $5, 4725 High Street, Denver. FMI: 303-296-0219.

And while you are at El Centro or browsing the website look for info on the 7th XicanIndie Film Festival, April 7-10.

Bobby Seale Speaks

2005-03-31T20:52:00.000-07:00

Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale will appear at the University of Denver on Wednesday, April 6, 2005 at 7:00 p.m. for an evening lecture. He will speak at Sturm Auditorium, 2000 E. Asbury Street in Denver. The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. and the event is free. Donations will be accepted for a Speakers Fund.

This event is sponsored by the Multicultural Social Justice Organization of the Graduate School of Social Work in collaboration with the Center for Multicultural Excellence, GSA of GSSW, Graduate Studies Iliff Social Action Committee, Partners in Learning, National Association of Pan African Students, Social Justice Living and Learning Community, and Students for Africa.

Additional information, please e-mail Jaime at JRALL@DU.EDU.

Poetry, Books, Flowers

2005-03-31T10:24:00.000-07:00

Speaking of poems and poets - April is National Poetry Month.

From the Tattered Cover Newsletter I picked up the following:

"Book & Lover's Day is a Spanish tradition begun in Barcelona, Spain in 1714. The celebration takes place in the Palacio de la Disputacion and throughout the city on Saint George's Day, which is also the anniversary of the death of Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes (and the nearly simultaneous death of William Shakespeare). On this day in Spain, roses and books are exchanged as a gesture of "a rose for love and a book forever!"

The Tattered Cover is delighted to honor this lovely tradition. Complimentary roses and commemorative bookmarks will be available at all three stores on April 23, beginning at 9:00 am, with the purchase of any book; while supplies last."

Old Addicts

2005-03-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

Esteban A. Martinez is a lawyer, teaches law students, and writes. (Man, where have I heard that before?) He has written a tough, unsentimental but very moving novel entitled In Memory Of Gods and Heroes, and you can learn more about that book at his website: www.ofgodsandheroes.com. I recently found out that Esteban also is a poet. One of his poems was published in the latest edition of The Colorado Lawyer, the "official publication of the Colorado Bar Association." And what a poem it turned out to be - ask a lawyer/writer to get poetic about the practice of law and no telling what might happen. In Esteban's case it's a gut-wrenching spotlight on the truth. He graciously has allowed me to reprint his poem.

Old Addicts

on the other side
of the plastic window
an old addict - late fifties, yellowed
says "yeah, yeah - I told them it was mine"
he didn't know it was stolen
the .380 in a shoebox under his bed

I actually believe, maybe
it will get him 32 years
regardless of my lawyering
if the judge has no discretion
and ATF and JUSTICE use theirs
to hide him from our hopes and dreams
for the third and last time.

Good Friday Art

2005-03-25T11:31:00.000-07:00

The Denver Post highlights Spanish Colonial Art, Santos and Santeros in an article that begins:
"New York had the Hudson River School. Illinois spawned the Chicago Imagists. And California was home to Bay Area Figuration. But Colorado and New Mexico can lay claim to something that few other states can match - not just a movement but a distinctive, indigenous style with more than a 300-year history. Known today as contemporary Spanish colonial art, this predominantly religious work traces its roots to Spanish-controlled Mexico but took on its own distinctive look after the country received its independence in 1821."

Santeros y Santeras: Expanding Traditions
THROUGH MAY 8 Show of contemporary Spanish colonial art
Foothills Art Center, 809 15th St., Golden
FREE 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays (303-279-3922) or www.foothillsartcenter.org

Curious New Voices

2005-03-23T17:30:00.000-07:00

An announcement from the Curious Theatre Company (Denver) -

This year, one of our guest instructors for Curious New Voices (the youth playwriting program) will be Pulitzer winner Suzan-Lori Parks. If you know folks between the ages of 15-21 who would be a good match for the 3 week intensive workshop, encourage them to talk to Dee here at the theatre for more details. She's at 303-623-2349 or dee@curioustheatre.org. Somehow it's really tough to get kids to apply and it's a phenomenal program.

Plus, tuition is fully underwritten this year- i.e. FREE (thanks to a matching grant from the Olsen-Vander Heyden Foundation and many individuals who have stepped up to help)

They'll need to apply by submitting a short play by June 1st.

I also have a great 5 minute DVD that explains the program. If I can send one to you for your consideration to present to a class, drop me a line.

For information on Suzan-Lori Parks go here.

She was the screenwriter of the recent TV adaptation of Their Eyes Were Watching God. Her Pulitzer-prize winning play Topdog/Underdog opened on Broadway with Jeffrey Wright and Mos Def in the leading roles. The Shadow Theatre will have the regional premiere of this play in June-July 2005.

Mare Trevathan
Marketing Director
Curious Theatre Company
www.CURIOUStheatre.org
303-623-2349

Playing through April 23rd:
PARIS ON THE PLATTE: The Remarkable Reign of Robert Speer

One Book, One Boulder, One Denver

2005-03-22T12:00:00.000-07:00

I've already written about the selection of Sandra Cisneros's book Caramelo for the One Book, One Denver event. (Pedacitos y Pedazos, Friday, March 4, 2005.) So it's double cool that Rudolfo Anaya's Bless Me, Ultima was selected by Boulder for its One Book, One Boulder festivities, especially in light of the flap created by the high school principal in rural Colorado who banned the book. (Life In Colorado 2005, Thursday, February 3, 2005.) What a mistake that turned out to be and what a public relations nightmare for that school.

Boulder has an interesting series of events scheduled for Anaya including An Evening With Rudolfo Anaya, April 22, 7:30 PM, St. Julien Hotel Ballroom. Tickets are free (limit 2 per person; personal pick-up only; no reservations) and until they are gone can be picked up at the main entrance desk of the south wing of the Boulder Public Library (11th and Arapahoe) starting April 12.

Rudy Anaya is another treasure of Chicano culture we should support and acknowledge while he is still with us and, apparently, writing wonderful books. I haven't read his latest yet, Jemez Spring, but it is racking up super reviews. For example, the LA Times, the Albuquerque Journal, the San Antonio Express-News.

Meanwhile, Denver moves on with its One Book celebration. I am scheduled to be on a panel that will discuss Caramelo at the University of Colorado at Denver on April 4 from noon to 1:30 PM at the Auraria Campus Student Center. Other panel participants include Angel Vigil, educator and storyteller who specializes in the traditional stories of the Hispanic Southwest and Mexico; John-Michael Rivera, author and Assistant Professor of English at the University of Colorado, Boulder; Cate Wiley, poet and Associate Professor of English, University of Colorado at Denver; and Margarita Barceló, Professor of English and Chicana/o Studies at Metropolitan State College of Denver. Should be a good time.

And Yet More Best Books Of 2004

2005-03-21T14:30:00.000-07:00

These books are from Publishers Weekly's list of The Best Books of 2004. There are dozens of books listed by PW; below are the Latino-themed. The comments are from PW.

Locas: The Maggie and Hopey Stories, Jaime Hernandez (Fantagraphics)
Masterful stories about the lovers Maggie, girl mechanic, and Hopey, punk chick troublemaker, in the midst of the 1980s Southern California Chicano-youth and punk rock scene.

Traveling with Che Guevara: The Making of a Revolutionary, Alberto Grando, trans. from the Spanish by Luciá Álvarez de Toledo (Newmarket)
A moving, perceptive memoir recounting an eight-month-long South American tour that Granado, then a 29-year-old doctor, and Ernesto "Che" Guevara took in 1952.

Infinitas Gracias: Contemporary Mexican Votive Painting, Alfred Vilchis Roque; text by Pierre Schwartz (Chronicle)
Intensely moving work from Mexico City retablo master Roque and his sons; a deep introduction to a vital art of prayer.

Parenting with Pride——Latino Style: How to Help Your Child Cherish Your Cultural Values and Succeed in Today’s World, Carmen Inoa Vazquez (Rayo)
For Latino parents, a primer on how to raise children biculturally, from an expert in the field.

Well, Not Really A Cannon, Dude

2005-03-19T08:29:00.000-07:00

Turns out that Hunter Thompson, Oscar "Zeta" Acosta's protegé, didn't actually say that he wanted his remains shot from a cannon. As reported in the Rocky Mountain News, he wanted his cremated remains to be shot out of an upside-down, sculpted mushroom perched on a 150-foot-high, double-thumbed fist. Much better. Some folks are trying to get this done. Ralph Steadman said, "Why not do that if you can?" I know I'd drive up to Aspen to see it.

Lalo Guerrero - Father of Chicano Music Dies

2005-03-18T22:06:00.000-07:00

As reported in The Desert Sun, Eduardo "Lalo" Guerrero, known as the Father of Chicano Music, died on March 17 at the Vista Cove assisted living facility in Rancho Mirage after suffering gradual declining health. He was 88. The Sun article is detailed, respectful and filled with good information about the man who gave us Canción Mexicana, Chicas Patas Boogie, Marihuana Boogie, I Love Tortillas (The Tortilla Song), No Chicanos On TV, and so many more that his complete discography numbers more than 700 songs and millions of records sold in Spanish and English. The Chicago Tribune also has a good article about Lalo. There isn't much I can add except that the man truly was a legend and an icon, and deservedly so. His music covered the spectrum from pachuco boogie to sentimental ballads to spoofs and satire. His fans included Cesar Chavez, Los Lobos, Cheech Marin, Luis Valdez, and a lot of us common folk. The Desert Sun has a site where people can post their memories or tributes - it's here at this link.