Luis Montez is nursing a drink and licking his wounds in the Dark Knight Lounge after a bruising case. The jury took less than an hour to decide his efforts defending a client were worthless. He’s on the verge of a mid-life crisis and ready to give up his law business. But the night brightens when an old friend from the Chicano student civil rights movement turns up with a beautiful woman on his arm. Teresa Fuentes, a new attorney about to start at a prestigious Denver firm, is much younger, but that doesn’t keep Luis’ imagination from running wild. As the weary attorney dreams about the mysterious woman and deals with his faltering law firm and an ethics investigation, he’s shocked to learn another friend from the activist days is getting threats about “the old business,” the murder of their friend Rocky Ruiz twenty years ago by men in white robes. And when compadres get beaten up, murdered or go into hiding, Luis can’t ignore that history may be repeating itself. Are the crazy racists back to finish what they started so long ago? Is it just bad luck that Teresa’s arrival in town coincides with the violence? Or is there a deeper connection? Originally published in 1993 by St. Martin’s Press and reissued by Northwestern University Press in 2004, this gripping first installment in the Luis Montez Mystery series introduces readers to the Denver attorney and activist who appears in four subsequent novels.
Attorney Luis Montez and Felix “Gato” Guerrero, childhood friends who have survived numerous obstacles, are finally prospering. Luis is making more money in his chosen profession than he ever has and is excited about his work. Felix has gotten his life back in order after his time in Vietnam and the tragic deaths of his wife and daughter. He has even found love again. But Felix has always had a knack for getting into trouble—and this time he’s dragging Luis along with him! Felix’s new beloved is a girl from their past who worked her way out of Denver’s Northside barrio by marrying into the city’s most notorious crime family. Her husband runs the business and people who mess with him—or his things—end up with their brains splattered all over the county. As Luis juggles his caseload, including one against the local police for beating up a Mexican-American woman, and helping her hoodlum son, he gets caught up in the lovebirds’ attempt to escape her dangerous husband. But he’s not the only one looking for El Gato, and all too soon bodies start piling up around them! Originally published in 1994 by St. Martin’s Press and reissued by Northwestern University Press in 2004, this riveting second installment in the Luis Montez Mystery series of five novels takes readers on a wild ride through Denver’s mean streets and deadly encounters with young gangbangers, established gangsters and even those tasked with protecting residents—cops who continue to harass brown people with impunity.
In his 1985 novel Partners in Crime, writer Rolando Hinojosa introduced homicide investigator Rafe Buenrostro, the first Chicano protagonist in one of the most enduring genres of modern literature. Since that time, Chicano writers have embraced the detective novel, successfully diversifying and refining a traditional Anglo American and British genre. The 21 whodunits of Hinojosa, Rudolfo Anaya, Lucha Corpi, Michael Nava and Manuel Ramos are closely studied in this groundbreaking work. The models, both contemporary and Romantic, of this relatively new Chicano genre are first discussed. Next come detailed analysis and reviews of such novels as Shaman Winter, Partners in Crime, Cactus Blood and 18 others, focusing on how each writer departs from contemporary detective genre formula, uniquely rendering a particular regional or cultural variation of what it means to be Chicano. It is this departure from the norm that defines these writings and distinguishes them from the Anglo American and British whodunit. Interviews with the writers conclude the work.
U.S. Latino Literature is defined as Latino literature within the United States that embraces the heterogeneous inter-groupings of Latinos. For too long U.S. Latino literature has not been thought of as an integral part of the overall shared American literary landscape, but that is slowly changing. This dictionary aims to rectify some of those misconceptions by proving that Latinos do fundamentally express American issues, concerns and perspectives with a flair in linguistic cadences, familial themes, distinct world views, and cross-cultural voices. The Historical Dictionary of U.S. Latino Literature contains a chronology, an introduction, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has cross-referenced entries on U.S. Latino/a authors, and terms relevant to the nature of U.S. Latino literature in order to illustrate and corroborate its foundational bearings within the overall American literary experience. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about this subject.
A celebration of people and pride! Explore the achievements and contributions of Latinos in the United States with this illuminating history. Latinos in the United States are a vibrant mix of people and multiple identities, each unique, varied, and accomplished. Beginning with the Spanish explorers in the sixteenth century, Latinos have been an important part of American society. They’ve fought the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and all wars in between and since, and in the last decade, their businesses have grown at twice the pace of the overall U.S. economy. The most complete and affordable single-volume reference on Latino history available today, Latino Almanac: From Columbus to Corporate America honors the history and the impact of Latinos on the United States. This hefty tome is a fascinating mix of biographies, little-known or misunderstood historical facts, and enlightening essays on significant legislation, movements, current issues, and achievements across a variety of fields, including business, labor, politics, the military, music, sports, law, media, religion, art, literature, theater, film, science, technology, and medicine. A large collection of 650 biographies includes both celebrated and lesser-known Latino stars, such as Dolores Fernández Huerta, labor leader Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court justice Juan Felipe Herrera, U.S. poet laureate Roberto C. Goizueta, businessperson, former CEO of Coca-Cola Selena Gómez, actor, singer, producer Rebecca Lobo, basketball player, sports analyst Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, U.S. congressperson Ellen Ochoa, astronaut, engineer Anthony R. Jiménez, entrepreneur María Hinojosa, journalist Dennis Chávez, U.S. senator Oscar Muñoz, businessperson, CEO United Airlines Antonia Novello, surgeon general of the United States Geraldo Miguel Rivera, journalist Lin-Manuel Miranda, playwright, actor, director Alex Rodríguez, baseball player Rodolfo Anaya, novelist Desi Arnaz, television producer, actor, singer Jessica Mendoza, sportscaster, softball player Nydia Velásquez, U.S. congressperson Edward James Olmos, actor Marco Rubio, U.S. senator Rita Moreno, actor, dancer César Chávez, labor leader Marcelo Claure, businessperson, former Sprint CEO Ariel Dorfman, playwright, novelist Miriam Colón, actress, theater owner, producer Joaquín Castro, chair of the Hispanic Congressional Caucus And many, many more! While Latinos are among both the original and newest immigrants, today the majority of U.S. Latinos were born here and most speak English—although most are bilingual to one degree or another. Their influence on the economy and culture continues to increase. Their impact on the United States has been wide-ranging. Salsa has even overtaken ketchup to become the most popular condiment in the United States! Devoted to illustrating the moving and often lost history of Latinos in America, Latino Almanac is a unique and valuable resource. Numerous photographs and illustrations, a helpful bibliography, a timeline, and an extensive index add to its usefulness. Commemorating and honoring Latino achievements, honors, and influence, this important book brings to light all there is to admire and discover about Latino Americans!
This three-volume encyclopedia describes and explains the variety and commonalities in Latina/o culture, providing comprehensive coverage of a variety of Latina/o cultural forms—popular culture, folk culture, rites of passages, and many other forms of shared expression. In the last decade, the Latina/o population has established itself as the fastest growing ethnic group within the United States, and constitutes one of the largest minority groups in the nation. While the different Latina/o groups do have cultural commonalities, there are also many differences among them. This important work examines the historical, regional, and ethnic/racial diversity within specific traditions in rich detail, providing an accurate and comprehensive treatment of what constitutes "the Latino experience" in America. The entries in this three-volume set provide accessible, in-depth information on a wide range of topics, covering cultural traditions including food; art, film, music, and literature; secular and religious celebrations; and religious beliefs and practices. Readers will gain an appreciation for the historical, regional, and ethnic/racial diversity within specific Latina/o traditions. Accompanying sidebars and "spotlight" biographies serve to highlight specific cultural differences and key individuals.
"An updated and expanded edition of Tatum's Chicano Popular Culture (2001), touching upon major developments in popular culture since the book's original publication"--Provided by publisher.
Winner, Modern Language Association Prize in United States Latina and Latino and Chicana and Chicano Literary and Cultural Studies, 2006 Popular fiction, with its capacity for diversion, can mask important cultural observations within a framework that is often overlooked in the academic world. Works thought to be merely "escapist" can often be more seriously mined for revelations regarding the worlds they portray, especially those of the disenfranchised. As detective fiction has slowly earned critical respect, more authors from minority groups have chosen it as their medium. Chicana/o authors, previously reluctant to write in an underestimated genre that might further marginalize them, have only entered the world of detective fiction in the past two decades. In this book, the first comprehensive study of Chicano/a detective fiction, Ralph E. Rodriguez examines the recent contributions to the genre by writers such as Rudolfo Anaya, Lucha Corpi, Rolando Hinojosa, Michael Nava, and Manuel Ramos. Their works reveal the struggles of Chicanas/os with feminism, homosexuality, familia, masculinity, mysticism, the nationalist subject, and U.S.-Mexico border relations. He maintains that their novels register crucial new discourses of identity, politics, and cultural citizenship that cannot be understood apart from the historical instability following the demise of the nationalist politics of the Chicana/o movement of the 1960s and 1970s. In contrast to that time, when Chicanas/os sought a unified Chicano identity in order to effect social change, the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s have seen a disengagement from these nationalist politics and a new trend toward a heterogeneous sense of self. The detective novel and its traditional focus on questions of knowledge and identity turned out to be the perfect medium in which to examine this new self.
Felon turned private eye Gus Corral isn’t doing too well after getting whacked in the head with a baseball bat following his last big case. He was unconscious for a couple of days and still can’t see right. Plagued by headaches, there are days he can’t think straight. Tired, sore and disoriented, he takes his sister’s advice to get out of Denver and help their cousins in Eastern Colorado. George Montoya’s son, Matias or Mat, has run off again. The seventeen-year-old has run away before, but he always came back. This time, his dad and Aunt Essie know there’s something wrong. As Gus begins to talk to the boy’s family and friends, a picture emerges of a smart kid with strong opinions who fought a lot with his dad. Did he run away because of his father? Or did he leave because his girlfriend broke up with him? Her father, the town doctor, definitely didn’t want his daughter dating a Mexican American. But when Gus tracks the missing boy to a shelter for runaways in Pueblo, the ailing investigator discovers something much more sinister. The boy was helping victims of human trafficking. Could the criminals have caught on to him? All too soon, men with guns are threatening Gus, warning him to get out of town, or else! Acclaimed writer Manuel Ramos’ fourth novel featuring Gus Corral’s unique and weary voice once again combines a complex and moody mystery with issues of identity, family and responsibility, to oneself and others.
Ex-con Gus Corral is fresh out of jail and intent on keeping his nose clean. He’s living in his sister’s basement, which he shares with a cat or two, Corrine’s CDs and their father’s record collection. The blues music in particular strikes a chord, matching the way he feels about his current state. Things start to look up when Gus gets a job working as an investigator for his attorney, Luis Montez. An activist in the Chicano Movement of the 1960s and 1970s, Montez is slowing down and getting close to retirement, and he figures the felon can do the legwork on his cases. When María Contreras comes to see the lawyer about her dead husband’s “business partner”—someone she has never heard of who’s demanding his share of the profits of a business she knew nothing about—Montez has Gus look into the situation. Narrating the story in alternating chapters, Gus and Luis recount their run-ins with suspicious characters as they learn that there’s more to the case than meets the eye. The widow’s husband owned and operated a local bar, not Aztlán Treasures, a Mexican folk art import company. And word on the street is that he was murdered on his boat in the Sea of Cortez. Soon, the dead bodies are piling up and the pair is surrounded by shadowy figures that point to money laundering, drug smuggling and even Mexican crime cartels. The follow-up to Desperado, Ramos’ first novel featuring Gus Corral, My Bad races to a walloping conclusion in a Rocky Mountain blizzard, leaving fans of crime novels—and Chicano literature—eagerly awaiting the next installment in his mile-high noir
