Lengua Fresca: Latinos Writing on the Edge

Although one can certainly argue about what "the edge" is and who is qualified to determine it, there can be little argument that this anthology is a welcome sampling of contemporary Latino-American writing. Unlike all too many angst-ridden ethnically-based anthologies, the writers here generally don't pine for the past, dream about the mother country, or anguish over dual identities. Rather, they take the melting pot as a given and move on to say what is has to say without overthinking perspective. The two editors (one a professor at Amherst, the other the head of the National Book Foundation) have to be complimented on the range of kinds of material: novel excerpts and short stories are a given, but they also include poetry, music lyrics, political cartoons, a graphic novel excerpt, brief essays, excerpts from memoirs, a skit for the stage, and even a restaurant menu. It's quite a barrage of genres, and it's a little surprising they didn't include anything from a blog (although their introduction does take the form of an email dialogue). The 26 pieces are arranged in three sections: Voces (about "the intermingling of tongues in a linguistic or metaphoric way"), Fronteras (about "crossing and being crossed by borders") and Melodramas ("scenes in which the public and private meet"). Some fit into the sections clearly, but for the most part this division didn't add much to the reading experience and it might have been more effective to divide based on format. The fiction features excerpts from Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties by Felicia Luna Lemus, Loving Che: A Novel by Ana Menendez, The People of Paper by Salvador Plascencia, and Song of the Water Saints by Nelly Rosario -- none of whom I'd previously read. The samples from Loving Che and Song of the Water Saints were a little too traditional in tone and The People of Paper totally failed to resonate with me. However, I quite liked the attitude and style of the section of Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties, about a lesbian living in Los Angeles. The short stories tended to be much more to my taste, especially "Chango" from Oscar Casares' Texas-set collection Brownsville, and "Practice Tattoos" from Michael Jamie-Becerra's LA-set collection Every Night Is Ladies' Night. Both are books I've read, loved, and heartily recommend. Daniel Chacon's "Godoy Lives", from his collection Chicano Chicanery, had a nice style and tone (although it's built around an implausible coincidence). Manuel Munoz's "Good as Yesterday", from his collection Zigzagger, perfectly captures the vibe of small towns in the central valley of California, as a young woman narrates her teenage brother's love for another man. And Cristina Henriquez's Panamanian-set "Ashes", from her collection Come Together, Fall Apart, is a softly tragic story of a young woman coping with her mother's death. All of these whet my appetite to try more by their respective authors. I have to admit I'm not a poetry person, so I skipped the poet