written by one of sandi’s professors at wvu, these stories are all set in guatemala. it’s a little weird reading stories about guatemala from the perspective of a white american, but he seems to bring light to the tense and sometimes tenuous relationships between the indigenous people, those of spanish decent, and less frequently the foreigners. the longer stories pack the sturdier punches, especially “A Detective’s Story” and “Bathwater.” the stories all seem to be pretty melancholy, and i wonder if that is really the message he intended.
not sure if i’ll look for the novel or not, but i will let you know if i do. thanks for the suggestion, ms.
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mark is rather melancholy himself, so i think that much of him is reflected in the stories. he writes almost exclusively about guatemala, i think; you’re right, it can be a little strange, but i think he does it with authority, and i don’t feel like he travelled there just to write about it – he’s really involved in the place itself, what goes on there. let me know if you read the novel; i believe it is more about americans in guatemala, but i guitily admit i haven’t gotten to it yet….
yours uncapitalizedly,
s.