'Bless Me, Ultima' by Rudolfo Anaya

Bless Me, Ultima, Rudolfo Anaya (4.0)

This 1970’s book, the story of a young boy growing up in New Mexico in the shadow of WWII, wooed me with its characters, symbolism and quiet beauty. It examines the choices Antonio faces between his family, his career and most importantly his spirituality.  His mother and father come from very different families: the Lunas are farmers who quietly cherish the earth, the Marez are cowboys who are filled with the spirit of adventure. Both families try to claim Antonio as their own. While he questions where he ultimately fits, he looks for guidance from his mother’s religion, Catholicism. But he ends up getting more answers and comfort from Ultima, the family friend who is also a curandera, or spiritual healer. Living in a small, poor, rural, multilingual town, Antonio witnesses several tragedies that push him on his journey to find his soul. The book is filled with symbolism, usually in groups of 3. It also has a bit more ‘magic’ than I tend to like, but given the narrator (a boy of 7) and the mixture of beliefs, it made sense. The ending is quite predictable, but I found the enjoyment of this book is in the journey, not the destination.

'Pirate Cinema' by Cory Doctorow

Pirate Cinema, Cory Doctorow (3.5)

Once again Cory Doctorow has written a funny book that matches current issues with modern technology – throw in a strong dose of teenage angst -and set it all in the fringe dominated by the outliers of society. He has a way of merging interesting technical possibilities with the social issues that emerge. In this case, the young protagonist is obsessed with an old actor and has edited many of his movies into new, clever shorts. Due to his illegal piracy, the Internet is taken from his family. In his despair (both from losing the Internet and what it’s done to his family who relied on it for work and health), he runs away to London and melds into the company of other teenage runaways. The majority of the story consists of his fight to change the laws to allow for the creativity that comes from using someone’s IP in a new way. The fight is worthwhile and timely. My one concern with many of Mr. Doctorow’s books is how they will hold up over time. He puts the spotlight on issues that emerge due to today’s technology, presumably those issues will be solved or be different 10 to 20 years from now. I would recommend reading this now, but can’t assure you that it will be as relevant in the future.