titobailoteos

This story was written in 1970 in Mexico by Ecuadorian Malta. It is written in authentic `magical-realism' style a la `100 Years of Solitude'. It is based in a fictional Latin-American town Santoronton, on the banks of a river and small island `Bahumba'; it's not clear when or which country this really is, though Zinc roofs suggest it is at least mid-1900s. Santoronton is ostensively a normal rural town well populated by the usual suspects of such places: Colonel Candelerion (crocodile) the villainous rapist/murderer leader, witch doctor Bulu-Bulu (monkey) with daughter Dominga, Catholic Father Candido (with personal live wooden Jesus), families including the Quindales with daughters Chepa (a ghost) and Clotilde (bat), Dr Juvenico, secondary baddy bandit Chalena (toad). The town however has the story but also the magic to overlap events and personal animal similes (as indicated in brackets). The `real' animals appear to participate in the story. The basic arc of the story is that the Colonel lusts after Chepa, he murders the family and rapes both daughters: Chepa (marries quickly but dies soon after) comes back to haunt him, what can he do?. The town is the centre of devil (`X-tail') activity with Chalena, who sold his soul?, controlling the water supply and ends up owning the town and people. The town rely on their religion Candido loses his church in a fire and the burned Crucifix comes alive; another Father comes to build a concrete church and falls in with the baddies. Candelerion is Candido's godson (if not son?). Clotide starts to entice men and castrate them, what can doctor Juvenico do to help her? Dominga needs a man to protect her from the tin-tins. You might have been looking for another `100 Years' style of book - this is that book. The story is engaging and enthralling; add in the author's clear magical style which works very well because it's always there but not in an overpowering way - one can simply read the story as magical or preferably (form my point of view) clever analogy that expands events i.e. does the Colonel really turn into a crocodile and kill people so easily? . Assuming you're into Latin American books you will not regret finding and reading this book.

2022-10-21 05:32