Thirteen Senses : A Memoir

Consider, he continues in this memorable portrait of Latino family life, the case of his grandparents, who fled from civil-war-torn Mexico to the United States in 1910. As they traveled north, his father told Villasenor, "Cannons were blasting. People were screaming and dying. The creeks ran red with blood." But Villasenor's grandmother's stories about "the stars, the moon, the she-fox" kept the children's minds off the terrors around them, guiding them to their new homeland and shaping family history. That history provides the grist for Villasenor's exuberantly spinning mill, yielding a sprawling narrative shot through with touches of magical realism and homespun philosophy, and tinged occasionally with regret--as when, for instance, Villasenor's mother confesses, "I miss your father so much ... but I'm the one who could never bring myself to tell him that I loved him."

But sorrow is rare and humor plentiful as Villasenor affectionately recounts his relatives' travails and improbable dreams, some of which, like a grandfather's quest for gold in a hidden Mexican canyon, come true. As he writes, Villasenor underscores the importance of tradition, faith, forgiveness, and, yes, good stories in making life livable, and this good story will please many readers. --Gregory McNamee

Product Description

A daring memoir of love, magic, adventure, and miracles, Victor Villasenor's Thirteen Senses continues the exhilarating family saga that began in the widely acclaimed bestseller Rain of Gold, delivering a stunning story of passion, family, and the forgotten mystical senses that stir within us all.

Thirteen Senses begins with the fiftieth wedding anniversary of the aging former bootlegger Salvador and his elegant wife, Lupe. When asked by a young priest to repeat the sacred ceremonial phrase "to honor and obey," Lupe surprises herself and says. "No, I will not say 'obey'. How dare you! You don't talk to me like this after fifty years of marriage and I now knowing what I know!" After the hilarious shock of Lupe's rejection of the ceremony, the Villasenor family is forced to examine the love that Lupe and Salvador have shared for so many years -- a universal, gut-honest love that will eventually energize and inspire the couple into old age.

The weakness of this story is the overuse of the Almighty's powers and Salvador's mother's retelling her philosophy of life page after page after page. If 50 to 75 pages of this type dissertation was edited out, it would be a much better story. The religious nature of both primary familys' is very important to the story, however, it is overdone. While reading I was comparing the American Indian's religious beliefs (which I love) along with the Mexican Indian's outlook. Quite the same in many ways, particularly when actually changing from human to animal form and then back to human. Fascinating.

I read this book out loud to my wife and she also enjoyed it and would most certainly recommend this being a fine reading experience, however, she also agrees there is too much philosophy given by Dona Guadalupe, Salvador's mother. Her meanderings are important to the story, but you can pass by many paragraphs when she gets too wound up.


The Masterful Victor Villasenor does it again!   March 14, 2002
 3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I am an avid reader. There are few books that can lead me into a matrix of wisdom and forever change my world. Villasenor has a universe of wisdom to share through his captivating stories. I have read Rain of Gold which is superb and now Thirteen Senses which is every bit as marvelous. I just found out about Wild Steps of Heaven and
plan on partaking in yet another masterpiece. Everyone I have loaned one of his books to has become a true fan. I would highly reccommend Thirteen Senses! For that matter you can't go wrong with any of his books.