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52nd out of 680 books
—
2,758 voters
Bless Me, Ultima
Antonio Marez is six years old when Ultima enters his life. She is a curandera, one who heals with herbs and magic. 'We cannot let her live her last days in loneliness,' says Antonio's mother. 'It is not the way of our people,' agrees his father. And so Ultima comes to live with Antonio's family in New Mexico. Soon Tony will journey to the threshold of manhood. Always, Ult...more
Paperback, 304 pages
Published
April 1st 1999
by Grand Central Publishing
(first published 1972)
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As posted in [http://www.amazon.com]:
As a Hispanic, I cannot believe that I hadn't read *Bless Me, Ultima* earlier. Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down. Anaya is a superb storyteller.
As it is in the Hispanic culture, elders are supposed to be taken care of whether or not they are family. So, in comes Ultima, an elderly curandera. A curandera is a faith healer, not a witch. However, some people may not see the difference between the two. The proper and respectful term to Ul...more
As a Hispanic, I cannot believe that I hadn't read *Bless Me, Ultima* earlier. Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down. Anaya is a superb storyteller.
As it is in the Hispanic culture, elders are supposed to be taken care of whether or not they are family. So, in comes Ultima, an elderly curandera. A curandera is a faith healer, not a witch. However, some people may not see the difference between the two. The proper and respectful term to Ul...more
This is a delightful story written by a Mexican-American who is widely read, Rudolfo Anaya. The book won the Premio Quinto Sol, national Chicano literary award. It is the story of six-year-old Antonio Marez who bonds with Ultima, a curandera, one who cures with herbs and magic. Under the guidance of this wise woman, Antonio examines family ties that bind him and tear him apart and discovers himself in the magical past.
Antonio is strongly influenced by the church, a curandera named Ultima, witch...more
Antonio is strongly influenced by the church, a curandera named Ultima, witch...more
5 likes · like · see review
Being a native of New Mexico, I always heard references to this book growing up. I saw it in libraries, on recommended reading lists but never picked it up. I finally decided to read it after being transplanted to CA and was a little homesick and wanted to read something that would bring me closer to home. This is one of the books I reread every now and then because it brings my own childhood closer to me and reminds me of the sense of self in a small community like the one in Bless Me Ultima.
I...more
I...more
5 likes · like · see review
This is a coming-of-age novel about a boy that is trying to blend the mysticism of his indigenous roots and his grandma with the catholic religion of his mother. Anaya successfully takes the reader into the mind of 9-10 year old Antonio and let's you feel his fears and challenges as he comes face-to-face with extremely harrowing events. Within the first 10 pages, he witnesses a man get shot to death. Philosophical, theological, splashed with incidents of magic and fantasy, and action packed, thi...more
Post listen review
If you like really poetic and flowery language to describe the most mundane of details then this is the book for you. This book has murder, revenge, redemption, witchcraft and school bullies in it yet it was able to pretty much bore me the entire time.
Now I know that some people really enjoy a poetic book and I think that in some stories it works very well but in my opinion this is not one of them.
The story centers around a boy named Antonio who is struggling with faith and fa...more
If you like really poetic and flowery language to describe the most mundane of details then this is the book for you. This book has murder, revenge, redemption, witchcraft and school bullies in it yet it was able to pretty much bore me the entire time.
Now I know that some people really enjoy a poetic book and I think that in some stories it works very well but in my opinion this is not one of them.
The story centers around a boy named Antonio who is struggling with faith and fa...more
3 likes · like · see review
Jul 25, 2008
LonewolfMX Luna
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Those who are interested in Raza Shamanism
Recommended to LonewolfMX by:
My brother Carlos
Another great Chicano story by Rodolfo Anaya.
It is about the life of Antonio Marez who lives in Nuevo Mexico who is divided between the wishes of his father who an adventurous spirit with broken hopes and dreams of traveling to California, while his mother coming from a conservative religious farming background hopes that Antonio becomes a priest.
But Antonio also has these hopes, but it would change when his mother's godmother Ultima moves in with them she is a curandera with spritual powers th...more
It is about the life of Antonio Marez who lives in Nuevo Mexico who is divided between the wishes of his father who an adventurous spirit with broken hopes and dreams of traveling to California, while his mother coming from a conservative religious farming background hopes that Antonio becomes a priest.
But Antonio also has these hopes, but it would change when his mother's godmother Ultima moves in with them she is a curandera with spritual powers th...more
"From my mother I had learned that man is of the earth, that his clay feet are part of the ground that nourishes him, and that this is the inextricable mixture that gives man his measure of safety and security. Because man plants in the earth he believes in the miracle of birth, and he provides a home for his family, and he builds a church to preserve his faith and the soul that is bound to his flesh, his clay. But from my father and Ultima I had learned that the greater immortality is in the fr...more
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4 likes · like · see review
Bless Me, Ultima is set in a small village on the edge of the plains (the llano) of New Mexico during the 1940s. It is a coming of age novel from the Hispanic perspective. Six year old Antonio must grapple with many conflicts as he strives to grow into a man in a multi-faith, multi-cultural setting.
Antonio has been born into a Catholic family and looks forward to his first Communion, but he has many questions about his natal faith. Paganism is native to this area of the Southwest and Antonio fin...more
Antonio has been born into a Catholic family and looks forward to his first Communion, but he has many questions about his natal faith. Paganism is native to this area of the Southwest and Antonio fin...more
Bless Me, Ultima is the story of a young boy’s coming-of-age within a cultural tapestry that includes Spanish, Mexican, and Native American influences, and in which many of the major cultural forces conflict with one another. The young boy, Antonio Márez, must navigate a number of conflicts—between farmers and cowboys, Spanish and indigenous peoples, and English-speaking and Spanish-speaking peoples—that collectively structured the cultural life in rural New Mexico during the 1940s. The novel is...more
This novel is the current One Book, One Boulder, so at first I thought I was reading it for class. Then, once I reminded myself for the fourth time that I did not have to read the book if I didn’t want to combined with a stimulating conversation I had with a co-worker, I was inspired to stick with it, and was rewarded for doing so in the end. One of those books that just kept getting better, plus Anaya is an excellent writer. This book was also banned by a high school in CO, prompting a sit-in o...more
Sep 10, 2007
Kecia
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
any one who has ever questioned their faith
Shelves:
big_read,
banned-books
Wow! What a stunningly beautiful book! I hope to reread this someday just for the descriptions of the natural world. Ultima may now be one of my most favorite fictional characters...oh and how I wish I knew more about her! In many ways she reminded me of my own grandmother. I love the way she listened to the earth and I loved her for her quiet strength.
Antonio reminded me so much of myself and the questions I began asking a young age, the questions I still ask. I loved Antonio for his awe in th...more
Antonio reminded me so much of myself and the questions I began asking a young age, the questions I still ask. I loved Antonio for his awe in th...more
Growing up, Antonio is cought between two worlds, the world of his mother's family, farmers, and that of his father, cowboys. He doesn't know which to become and feels the pressure from both sides. When Ultima, a curandera, or healer, moves in with his family, he is taught that the only way to go is to make his own path. His journey to adulthood, includes many treacherous experiences, but always there is Ultima, waiting to help and to bless. This is a magnificent book. The language is so beautif...more
This book, considered a classic in Chicano studies circles, is a little difficult to classify. Full of magical realism, it straddles the line between fantasy and realistic fiction. It follows a young boy and his experiences with a curandera (something of a hex-breaker or shaman in latin american culture) and with 1940's America in the Southwest. The boy is torn between two very different societies, one where the land and magic are a living, breathing thing, and one where the modern world seeks t...more
This story takes place in New Mexico. It follows a young boy by the name of Antonio, also known as Tony, it tells the of is coming-of-age with the help of the 'curandera' Ultima. While growing up he is faced with picking what his mother or father want him to be. His father wants him to be a cowboy on El LLano, while his mother wants him to be a priest. Tony also has to witness a lot of harsh things like the death of Lupito and the traumatization of his brothers after coming home from war, the de...more
Bless Me, Ultima is about young Antonio (Tony) and his experiences growing up on the llano. When he was still very young, Tony's family brought Ultima, an aged curandera to live with them in their home. Nueva Mexico is going through a difficult transition, and this backdrop serves as a setting for a lot of political and family struggles for Tony. Ultima helps Tony navigate through all this while mentoring him in her ways as a curandara. It is through Ultima that Tony learns to love the llano, an...more
This book is very interesting it is a story during the times when curanderas (faith healers) were the only doctors around that could help with simple health ailments to the worst a human can wish upon another. The story follows to different families the mares and the llanos which the father belonged to the mares that worked in the sea who were wild vaqueros and the lunas who worked the land. His family wanted Antonio to take part in one of the family ways but when Ultima came to stay withhis fam...more
Nov 20, 2012
Irene Perez
added it
Title: Bless Me Ultima
Grades:7-9
Reading level: Z Lexile 840
Genre: Realistic Fiction/ Mystery, suspense/ multicultural
Main Characters: Antonio, Ultima
Setting: Guadalupe, New Mexico
POV: Antonio
Bless Me Ultima, is the story that takes place during World War II. Antonio lives in a small town in Guadalupe Mexico called el Llano. Antonio Lives with his mother Maria Luna, father Gabriel, and his two sisters Deborah and Teresa. His three older brothers are serving in war. Antonio’s mother hopes with all...more
Grades:7-9
Reading level: Z Lexile 840
Genre: Realistic Fiction/ Mystery, suspense/ multicultural
Main Characters: Antonio, Ultima
Setting: Guadalupe, New Mexico
POV: Antonio
Bless Me Ultima, is the story that takes place during World War II. Antonio lives in a small town in Guadalupe Mexico called el Llano. Antonio Lives with his mother Maria Luna, father Gabriel, and his two sisters Deborah and Teresa. His three older brothers are serving in war. Antonio’s mother hopes with all...more
Grade/interest level: 7-9
Reading level: Z Lexile 840
Genre: Realistic Fiction/ Mystery, suspense/ multicultural
Main Characters: Antonio, Ultima
Setting: Guadalupe, New Mexico
POV: from Antonio
Bless Me Ultima, is the story that takes place during World War II. Antonio lives in a small town in Guadalupe Mexico called el Llano. Antonio Lives with his mother Maria Luna, father Gabriel, and his two sisters Deborah and Teresa. His three older brothers are serving in war. Antonio’s mother throughout the s...more
Reading level: Z Lexile 840
Genre: Realistic Fiction/ Mystery, suspense/ multicultural
Main Characters: Antonio, Ultima
Setting: Guadalupe, New Mexico
POV: from Antonio
Bless Me Ultima, is the story that takes place during World War II. Antonio lives in a small town in Guadalupe Mexico called el Llano. Antonio Lives with his mother Maria Luna, father Gabriel, and his two sisters Deborah and Teresa. His three older brothers are serving in war. Antonio’s mother throughout the s...more
Nov 17, 2012
Bianca
added it
Title: Bless Me Ultima
Grade/interest level: 7-9
Reading level: Z Lexile 840
Genre: Realistic Fiction/ Mystery, suspense/ multicultural
Main Characters: Antonio, Ultima
Setting: Guadalupe, New Mexico
POV: from Antonio
Bless Me Ultima, is the story that takes place during World War II. Antonio lives in a small town in Guadalupe Mexico called el Llano. Antonio Lives with his mother Maria Luna, father Gabriel, and his two sisters Deborah and Teresa. His three older brothers are serving in war. Antonio’s m...more
Grade/interest level: 7-9
Reading level: Z Lexile 840
Genre: Realistic Fiction/ Mystery, suspense/ multicultural
Main Characters: Antonio, Ultima
Setting: Guadalupe, New Mexico
POV: from Antonio
Bless Me Ultima, is the story that takes place during World War II. Antonio lives in a small town in Guadalupe Mexico called el Llano. Antonio Lives with his mother Maria Luna, father Gabriel, and his two sisters Deborah and Teresa. His three older brothers are serving in war. Antonio’s m...more
Winner of the Premio Quinto Sol, National Chicano Literary Award.
I loved this book, partly because it addresses a lot of the culture of my home state. It's about a young boy growing up in a little town in New Mexico, and his experiences with a curandera, an old woman that uses herbs and magic to heal, named Ultima. Because of her he begins to compare the pagan traditions and Catholicism. He has so many doubts and questions, but with the help of his family and Ultima he comes to realize that the...more
I loved this book, partly because it addresses a lot of the culture of my home state. It's about a young boy growing up in a little town in New Mexico, and his experiences with a curandera, an old woman that uses herbs and magic to heal, named Ultima. Because of her he begins to compare the pagan traditions and Catholicism. He has so many doubts and questions, but with the help of his family and Ultima he comes to realize that the...more
I will start this review off by saying that I am a lover of poetic narrative. If you are not a fan of poetic narrative, this book likely would not be up your alley.
Bless Me, Ultima is a coming-of-age tale that chronicles the familial and spiritual struggles of a young Hispanic boy trying to come to terms with the demands of his family, community, and culture. Set in New Mexico, frequently deemed the Land of Enchantment, the boy is assisted in his journey of the spirit by Ultima, an old woman r...more
Bless Me, Ultima is a coming-of-age tale that chronicles the familial and spiritual struggles of a young Hispanic boy trying to come to terms with the demands of his family, community, and culture. Set in New Mexico, frequently deemed the Land of Enchantment, the boy is assisted in his journey of the spirit by Ultima, an old woman r...more
This novel concerns the growing-up process of Antonio Marez, a Mexican-American boy living in small-town New Mexico shortly after WWII. The story starts when Ultima, an old friend of the family, comes to live with them. She is a curandera - a sort of hedge-witch and healer. The plot is shaped by several supernatural events involving Ultima, as well as Antonio's initiation into Catholicism, the beginnings of his formal education, and his growing awarenes of and relationship to the emotional and s...more
May 06, 2012
Jason
added it
Rudolpho Anaya’s, Bless Me, Ultima, is considered a classic of Chicano literature. The book is set in New Mexico in the 1940’s during World War II. The story is told from the point of view of a six-year-old boy. The book is a coming of age story of Antonio, as he struggles with identity issues, direction for the future, and tragedies in his life. Tony is torn between two worlds – the world of his mother and the world of his father. His mother wants him to grow up and be an educated priest – some...more
In the inspirational bildungs roman novel, Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolpho Anaya, the protagonist, Antonio takes a journey. Antonio is a very young boy who is the last child in his family, his parents wish that he pursues their dreams for him. Although he has two ways which he can choose, Antonio is not sure of either of them. Soon after, Antonio's wise mentor, Ultima, comes along. Ultima is an extremely wise and kind soul, she is a curendera, a curer of the sick. She helps to guide him through the...more
In this bildungsroman novel, a young boy who is about six years old named Antonio has to decide what journey he must take. He either has to follow his mother which is a to become a Lunas or follow his fathers path which is being a Marez. Ultima is a wise old lady who now lives with Antonio's family and she guides Antonio to pick the right path. Ultima is also a cuandera which means she uses herbs as medication and she is similar to a witch. Antonio's uncle was sick and he prayed to his god for s...more
A very ambitious book, touching on matters of belief, identity, and growing up. The book has been frequently challenged by censors, perhaps because the young boys depicted use crude language, there are references to black magic and prostitution, and there is much irreverence directed at Roman Catholicism. The abortive Christmas Nativity play put on at the school is a masterpiece of juvenile pratfalls and slapstick (while also being utterly credible). There is quite a bit of suspense (a trigger-h...more
An encounter with a good book is occasionally as mystical as the story within it. As I prepared to move to New Mexico, several people told me I had to read Bless Me, Ultima. I had never heard of it.
Then, during the Great Yard Sale, it happened. I spread my books out over several tables and crates, saying goodbye to hundreds of comrades who had been with me for so long. And there, on the top of a box that I could have sworn were all cookbooks I was letting go of, I saw Rudolfo Anaya's novel.
What...more
Then, during the Great Yard Sale, it happened. I spread my books out over several tables and crates, saying goodbye to hundreds of comrades who had been with me for so long. And there, on the top of a box that I could have sworn were all cookbooks I was letting go of, I saw Rudolfo Anaya's novel.
What...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I read this book because it was part of my daughter's summer assignment. I had heard a lot about it since it's almost required reading in the schools here. I wonder how it reads to a teenager.
The story of Antonio, a young boy who is torn between his mother and father's heritage. His mother is a luna, a farmer. His father is a marez, a cowboy of the llano. Each one wants him to follow his/her heritage. With three older brothers off in WWII, two vapid sisters, and the tug-of-war between his parent...more
The story of Antonio, a young boy who is torn between his mother and father's heritage. His mother is a luna, a farmer. His father is a marez, a cowboy of the llano. Each one wants him to follow his/her heritage. With three older brothers off in WWII, two vapid sisters, and the tug-of-war between his parent...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Don't read it!!! | 8 | 68 | Nov 25, 2012 11:25am | |
| I'm reading it in class...is it good? | 9 | 18 | Nov 04, 2012 02:40pm |
Rudolfo Anaya lives and breathes the landscape of the Southwest. It is a powerful force, full of magic and myth, integral to his writings. Anaya, however, is a native Hispanic fascinated by cultural crossings unique to the Southwest, a combination of oldSpain and New Spain, of Mexico with Mesoamerica and the anglicizing forces of the twentieth century. Rudolfo Anaya is widely acclaimed as the foun...more
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“It is because good is always stronger than evil. Always remember that, Antonio. The smallest bit of good can stand against all the powers of evil in the world and it will emerge triumphant.”
—
18 people liked it
“I made strength from everything that had happened to me, so that in the end even the final tragedy could not defeat me. And that is what Ultima tried to teach me, that the tragic consequences of life can be overcome by the magical strength that resides in the human heart. --Antonio”
—
13 people liked it
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Mar 26, 2008 04:09pm