While reading this book about the history of US border patrol I am reminded of the only book that I read cover to cover prior to college - Rain of Gold by Víctor E. Villaseñor. I dont know what it was about this book that made me want to read it cause I did not read any of the other books assigned throughout my years of schooling, but I really loved it. Maybe it was the story telling ability of Villasenor and some sense of connection I had with the characters strivings to be. Advertised as the Hispanic-American Roots , Rain of Gold is the story of three generations of the authors familys migration from revolutionary Mexico in the 20th century to California. But Rain of Gold is no Roots and Villasenor is not Alex Haley. His style is naive and disturbing--he ranges back and forth between his familys historical past and a more contemporary setting. Nevertheless, there is good material in this oral history. Villasenor blends family stories and tales handed down through generations into an uneven narrative but a text which is credible social history. The most visible persona is the authors mother Lupe, who grew up among soldiers and moved North from her native La Lluvia de Ora, the Mexican gold mine operated by omnipresent American economic colonial interests. The final episodes concern the familys transformation from rural Mexico to heavily Hispanic-populated California. The result is a narrative which reflects the true social fabric of Mexican Americans. Not all the publishers claim, but still recommended for most libraries. A six-hour Corporation for Public Broadcasting series is planned for 1993. - Boyd Childress, Auburn Univ. Lib., Ala. Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition. amazon/Rain-Gold-V%C3%ADctor-E-Villase%C3%B1or/dp/038531177X
Posted on: Wed, 19 Nov 2014 02:40:42 +0000
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