Reviewed by Rodrigo Ribera d’Ebre
Review Source: Huffington Post
Book Author: Héctor Tobar
Recently I was invited by the California Writers Club to attend a talk at their Long Beach location. This club was founded in 1909, is one of the oldest clubs in the nation, and some of its honorary members include: Jack London, John Muir, and Joaquin Miller. The scheduled speaker was Hector Tobar, who would be presenting and signing his most recent work, The Barbarian Nurseries, a book about class and conflict in contemporary Southern California. His previous works include: Translation-Nation and The Tattooed Soldier, and he is currently a book critic for the Los Angeles Times.
I first came across his work in 2005 at Libros Revolucion/Revolutionary Books in Downtown Los Angeles around the time renovation construction began in the area. The bookstore focuses on scientific and poetic radical literature that revolves around building a grassroots movement that challenges the current political agenda. At the heart of the bookstore is Bob Avakian’s work, Chairman of the Communist Party USA since 1975, and whose Marxist work has been defined as a “new synthesis,” which is a new theoretical framework for carrying forward a communist revolution.
I used to frequent the bookstore regularly during those days. It was something about the propagandist element of anarchist Spanish Civil War posters, Russian militant imagery and literature, and Latin American heroes of the left that always seemed romantic and that have always influenced my work. The bookstore has since relocated to Hollywood.
That being said, I stumbled upon Hector’s The Tattooed Soldier one afternoon because the cover and title grabbed my attention. Like I’ve mentioned previously. . . do judge a book by its cover, since it is the first impression and often it’s the only opportunity you get. I liked everything about the book when I first saw it. It was a Penguin edition, it had Americana-style tattoo images, the size, and it was written by someone whose name sounded like mine. I found out he was the son of immigrant parents, like me, and was a Los Angeles native, like me. So when I got on the metro that evening and began reading the story, I connected to it at once for several reasons. One of the main character’s had my mother’s surname, the lyrical poetry of the way Los Angeles was described, the Spanish-speaking immigrants and their relationship with the city and above all, the ’92 Los Angeles Riots. Continue reading on Huffington Post.
Find more recommended books about Central America.
The Tattooed Soldier by Héctor Tobar
Published by Macmillan on October 7, 2014
Genres: Central America
Pages: 312
Reading Level: High School, Teachers and Parents
ISBN: 9781250055859
Review Source: Huffington Post
Publisher's Synopsis:
Antonio Bernal is a Guatemalan refugee in Los Angeles haunted by memories of his wife and child, who were murdered at the hands of a man marked with yellow ink. In a park near Antonio's apartment, Guillermo Longoria extends his arm and reveals a sinister tattoo — yellow pelt, black spots, red mouth. It is the sign of the death squad, the Jaguar Battalion of the Guatemalan army.
This chance encounter between Antonio and his family's killer ignites a psychological showdown between these two men. Each will discover that the war in Central America has migrated with them as they are engulfed by the quemazones — "the great burning" of the Los Angeles riots. A tragic tale of loss and destiny in the underbelly of an American city, The Tattooed Soldier is Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter Héctor Tobar's mesmerizing exploration of violence and the marks it leaves upon us.
Leave a Reply