It makes sense that Rudolfo Anaya has been called the godfather of Chicano literature.
In the 29 years he's been an author, Anaya has written and published 26 books.
His latest work is a murder mystery titled Jemez Spring. Anaya seems incapable of writing about something that is not in, about or concerned with New Mexico and the Southwest.
Jemez Spring is the fourth novel in Anaya's mystery series and features a slick, quick-thinking, cultured Chicano - much like Anaya himself - named Sonny Baca. After the governor of New Mexico is found dead in Jemez Springs, Baca follows a trail of esoteric events and clues that could point him to the killer.
In the meantime, he encounters ghosts, sorcerers, environmental activists and, most blood-chilling of all, politicians. Not surprisingly, the issue of water, New Mexico's most precious resource, arises and somehow finds a place among the fast-paced, twisting and supernatural events.
Just in case water allocation, undead characters and the death of a governor aren't enough to keep Baca busy, it just so happens a bomb planted near Los Alamos National Laboratory is set to detonate in just a few hours.
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Add a few clever acquaintances, a beautiful woman and a lot of New Mexican dialect, and the result is a novel that despite its shortcomings, definitely keeps the reader turning the pages.
In a story that embodies interesting characters, smooth writing style and a suspenseful plot, what could possibly tarnish its readability? The hot, dry setting of New Mexico.
Authors generally draw inspiration from their surroundings, but there is no need to relentlessly force reference after excessive reference to local tradition, people and places into a book. A story should take its reader to remote, curious landscapes of the world and the mind. Anaya takes New Mexican readers to a place they can see by simply looking out the window.
It's confusing that Anaya chose to give his character the deadly dream catcher with a juniper handle as his weapon of choice to fight evil. Perhaps he did so because it is another quintessentially Chicano talisman, one of many Anaya relies on to inspire more of the same.
Of course, this is coming from a critic who is a lifelong resident of Albuquerque, and it is possible someone from the East Coast would find descriptions of the beautiful New Mexican sunsets riveting.
But probably not.
If nothing else, Anaya's reverence for New Mexico, the place he and many of his readers call home, makes the place seem a little less dry.
Jemez Spring
Rudolfo Anaya
UNM Press
