Book Overview
Set mainly in California's Central Valley, Manuel Mu?oz's first collection of stories goes beyond the traditional family myths and narratives of Chicano literature and explores, instead, the constant struggle of characters against their physical and personal surroundings. Usually depicted as the lush and green world of rural quiet and tranquility, the Valley becomes the backdrop for the difficulties these characters confront as they try to maintain hope and independence in the face of isolation. In the title story, a teenage boy learns the consequences of succumbing to the lure of a town outsider; in "Campo," a young farm worker frantically attempts to hide his supervision of a huddle of children from the town police, only to have another young man come to his unexpected rescue; in "The Unimportant Lila Parr," a father must expose his own secrets after his son is found murdered in a highway motel. From conflicts of family and sexuality to the pain of loss and memory, the characters in Zigzagger seek to reconcile themselves with the rural towns of their upbringing--a place that, by nature, is bordered by loneliness.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0810120992
ISBN13:9780810120990
Release Date:October 2003
Publisher:Northwestern University Press
Length:184 Pages
Weight:0.70 lbs.
Dimensions:0.6" x 6.1" x 9.2"
Customer Reviews
5 ratings
wow..... much better than I expected!
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 14 years ago
I could not put this book down! Before I found Zigzagger, I read Muñoz's second short story collection, The Faith Healer of Olive Avenue. As with his other book, as soon as I was finished, I had to read it again. His stories are lyrical yet gritty, emotional without melodrama, timeless. A writer like this only comes around once in a generation. I can't wait for his next book.
Zigzagger: Stories (Latino Voices)
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 16 years ago
This book was shipped the same day I ordered it, received promptly, and it better condition than I expected it to be in.
A powerful, yet damaged, voice
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 19 years ago
Manuel Munoz writes with such a powerful voice and a keen attention for details. The short stories in "Zigzagger" are not autobiographical, but obviously not completely detached from Munoz' personal experiences. I went to a reading of "Zigzagger" by Munoz prior to reading the book. His personal notes about the book and its amazing stories shed light on the damaged, vulnerable feeling in his written and spoken voices. The stories touch upon the curiosity, danger, shame and excitement of growing up gay as a Latino boy in Central California. The emotion and strength of Munoz' words defied me to put the book down, but I happily devoured it all. I wholeheartedly recommend this book.
Taking Chicano/Latino Literature to New Heights
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 20 years ago
Manuel Munoz's ZIGZAGGER is phenomenal! Each story in this collection has the ability to touch its reader in the most profound ways, teasing out the hidden and repressed emotions one could not have previously imagined the subject of literature. Not only is Munoz's writing stunningly elegant, it is consciously located at the intersection of history, personal experience, and culture. This book has taken Chicano/Latino literature to where it needed to go: the next level.
Not your average Chicano literature..more like Human Lit
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 21 years ago
This book is classified as a Chicano Literature. But it's much more than that. The stories in the book trascend any ethnic label and geography. Any reader can identify with the pain, love, suffering, happiness, loss and gain the characters in the book feel. This is not a book about Chicanos in the Central Valley, California. Heck, I have never been (nor plan to) go there. This is a book about you. Be brave. Pick up the book and read about yourself.
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