Ballad of a Slopsucker
A young widower visits Chichén Itzá to honor his wife; family dynamics unravel at a child’s birthday party; the lead singer of a high school metal band faces his dreaded tenth reunion; a serial killer believes he’s been blessed by God to murder bicycle thieves—Alvarado Valdivia’s debut collection of short stories ranges from dark to light and is written with a storyteller’s skill and compassion. Based in Northern California and examining a variety of themes, including love, family, and masculinity, these stories offer an important new perspective on the experiences of Latinos and Latinas in the United States and complicate ideas of nationhood, identity, and the definition of home.
Muscular stories about male pain, unanswerable questions, and resilient hope.
What binds the pieces together are the Latino protagonists, illuminating various aspects of the Latino experience in the United States.
This book should have its place on the shelves of any Latino literature collection.
Juan Alvarado Valdivia was born to Peruvian parents and raised in Fremont, California. He is the author of ¡Cancerlandia!: A Memoir (UNM Press).
Justo
A Pedestrian Question
El Cenote
Paint It Chantrea
Disaster at a Wake
My Afternoon with Jesús
Just Another Day
The Right Candidate
We All Fall
Indomesticado
Ballad of a Slopsucker
Hear My Train a Comin'
Acknowledgments
