Uncivil Rights, and Other Stories - Softcover

Nash Candelaria

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0927534835 ISBN 13: 9780927534833

Publisher: Bilingual Pr (Bilrp), 1998

Synopsis

Short Fiction. Nash Candelaria, a native of New Mexico, is the author of an acclaimed series of historical novels about the Southwest. His 1982 novel, NOT BY THE SWORD, received an American Book Award in 1983. This latest book of seven short stories, also set primarily in the Southwest, explores border culture, social issues, relationships, and the experience of living in an unwilling hybrid culture such as that in the U.S., in prose which is as delightful as it is precise. "Alfonso Pea was a wrinkle of a man," begins the title story. "Not just the creases around his eyes, the corners of his mouth, or his neck. Not just his clothes. But everything about him. His life was an unneat series of furrows and rumples that were chaotic and irretrievably fixed. No iron was hot enough, no steam press powerful enough to smooth them out." Without "smoothing out" the fictional realities of the lives he creates, Candelaria takes his readers with him on a journey into the "series of furrows and rumples" that make up our "unneat" existence.

About this title

From the Author:

Uncivil Rights & Other Stories portrays a range of modern Hispanic life, from south of the border to small rural villages in the Southwest U.S. to the urban turf of lowriders and lawyers. The attempt is to show Mexican- Americans and their concerns in the broader context of American life. Many stories are dealt with humorously and all, I hope, honestly.

One of the most frequently asked questions when I do readings of my fiction is: Where do the ideas for your stories come from? I'd like to share the background for some of the stories in this collection with you.

The Dancing School was suggested by an anecdote of my wife's about the time she was a girl attending school in Florida. It's her favorite story in the collection. The Dancing School was one of three finalists for Best Western Short Fiction in the Western Writers of America's awards the year it appeared in a magazine.

Radio Waves was triggered by an article in the Wall Street Journal about a small boy who thought he was controlled by radio waves.

The Border resulted from thinking about what it meant to be an American. Our ancestors, even Native Americans, came from somewhere else. They had the courage to leave home for the unknown, seeking a better life as well as political and religious freedom. The Border addresses that issue through the story of a teen-age boy who goes back to the old country, Mexico, to seek his father and learns that he is really an American.

The idea for Dear Rosita came from a newspaper article about a brilliant young Mexican-American girl who received a scholarship to a prestigious Eastern university while she and her migrant worker family were living in an abandoned automobile in a field. I couldn't help but wonder what effect going away to college---to a new world---would have on her and her family.

As for the novella, Uncivil Rights, which has caused the most stir among readers, I have met many people (not all Hispanics) like the fictional character, Alfonso Pena, a self-righteous activist who protests a local court case and creates more problems than he solves. The character is not based on any one person, but the situation was suggested by a court trial that occurred in Albuquerque a few years ago. My goal was to approach such an emotionally loaded story with humor.

Of course an idea for a story is only that. True events, including what you read in a newspaper, seldom translate directly into fiction. They are but the seeds which, nurtured by imagination and hard work, hopefully result in an entertaining story.

If you're interested in the American Southwest, Mexican- American culture, or the changing demographics of America, these stories should appeal to you. As the El Paso Times reviewer wrote: 'Uncivil Rights' is a funny and absolutely candid snapshot of Hispanics in the Southwest. . . . a little cultural gem, the kind of literature that you still find enchanting even after a second read. If you decide to take a first read, I hope you find the stories entertaining, enlightening, and some of them funny as the dickens. If so, you've made my day, my week, my month, and my year. Gracias!

About the Author:

Nash Candelaria has been described as the historical novelist of the Hispanic people of New Mexico. His four novels, hailed as landmarks in Hispanic literature, include MEMORIES OF THE ALHAMBRA (1977), a seminal novel in Chicano literature, and NOT BY THE SWORD (1982), an American Book Award winner. His short stories have appeared in a number of literary magazines and anthologies. His two published collections of short stories are THE DAY THE CISCO KID SHOT JOHN WAYNE (1988) and Uncivil Rights and Other Stories (1998). He and his wife live in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

About this edition

• Publisher: Bilingual Pr (Bilrp)
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0927534835
• ISBN 13: 9780927534833
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 128