Contemporary Stories from Central America. - book reviews

Central American peoples have always had to resist the odds. To the adverse social, economical and political conditions they face must also be added long periods of conflict and repression. This anthology reflects such circumstances. The book is composed of an "Introduction," a collection of 51 stories written by as many authors, and biographical "Notes on the Authors" and "Notes on the Translators." The apportioning of stories per country is somewhat uneven. Guatemala, with the richest literary tradition within the isthmus, is represented by only five pieces; Honduras and Nicaragua each by seven, and El Salvador by eight. Costa Rica and Panama are very well represented by 11 and 13 stories, respectively. The translations, all coordinated by editor Leland H. Chambers, are good to excellent. Several translators of note participated, among whom are Clark M. Zlotchew and editor Chambers himself.

The ample vision of Central America gained from these 51 stories is due to the criteria the editors applied for selecting them. They endeavored to make their anthology "a showcase of literary and ideological tendencies, generational groups and national contributions to the world of fiction today." Specifically, "contemporary" encompasses writers active in the last quarter of the century. Some, such as Bertalicia Peralta (from Panama) and Costa Rican Carmen Naranjo, albeit quite young, have already earned wide reputations. Among the remaining authors appear Arturo Arias, veteran Pablo Antonio de la Cuadra (born in 1912) and Sergio Ramirez, a former vice-president of Nicaragua, to name but a few. Absent in this representative Central American anthology are the young Salvadoran revelation Mario Bencastro and the lyrical Guatemalan Mario Payera, known for his mythological stories.

Nearly all the stories are rich in content and style. Readers will attend a parade of customs and manners, of local types rooted to the land and of discontented individuals and masses in conflict. The stories display peoples seeking solutions to their personal or national problems; but the solutions decided upon seldom work. It may suffice to typify this anthology with a single story treating a well-known Central American theme: Honduran Pompeyo del Valle's two-page story "The Forbidden Street." It portrays the ubiquitous dictator, the "president-for-life of the republic" as a diabolical beast, no longer a human being but a mythical animal endowed with supernatural powers. However artistic the allegory, it makes all too evident a brutal reality, creating at the same time an atmosphere of horror and tacitly carrying an invitation to revolt. Like Del Valle, the other 50 authors are skilled writers with much to say. Their message is in most cases effective, even lyrical, but also harsh and grim.

EVELIO ECHEVARRIA Colorado State University

COPYRIGHT 1994 Studies in Short Fiction
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