El Guero : A True Adventure Story - Hardcover

Grade 4-7-- A fictional depiction of Mexican Judge Cayetano Trevino--an uncorruptible and highly respected jurist who was banished by Mexican dictator General Diaz in 1876 to the then unsettled, bandit-ridden territory in Northern Mexico known as Baja California. Narrated by the judge's son, El Guero, the story follows his family as they are uprooted from a comfortable life in Mexico City and forced into a frontier environment. In this back country, the judge establishes a modest shelter for his family and sets up a court, while El Guero (who is the author's father-in-law) makes friends with local Indian children. However, tragedy soon strikes: a younger sister dies of diphtheria, and outlaws eventually take control of the area (which is now Ensenada) and imprison the judge. The remainder of the story deals with El Guero and his friends' attempts to rescue his father and rid the area of bandits. The narrative lacks the elegant simplicity of I, Juan de Pareja (Farrar, 1965). Instead, it is stiff and emotionless, and inexplicably avoids dramatizing the inherently exciting parts of this story. In less than a page, for example, de Trevino dispenses with the defeat of the bandits and the freeing of Judge Trevino. The well-drawn charcoal art accompanying the story highlights the plot action, but it fails to overcome the lethargy and colorlessness of El Guero's disappointing narrative of this interesting slice of Mexican history. --Jack Forman, Mesa College Library, San Diego
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In Spanish, El Guero means "the Blond One," and it just happens to be the nickname of Newbery Medalist (for I, Juan de Pareja ) Trevino's father-in-law. From his eventful childhood she has drawn the material for this riveting adventure, a story that chronicles the life of the Trevino family during the stormy political years prior to the Mexican Revolution. In 1876, Guero's father, a judge loyal to the recently deposed president, is exiled by the new dictator to a place called Ensenada. During the treacherous journey north to this dismal spot, the family is beset by numerous hardships, but their resourcefulness sees them safely through. When the judge is wrongfully imprisoned in the outpost town, it is up to Guero to make the long and dangerous trek south to alert the Mexican army and save his father. Trevino writes with authority and dignity, and her prose is lucid and powerful. The time, the place and the people all become vivid under her sure hand. It's an outstanding piece of work by a master of historical fiction. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.