Mexican Ghost Tales of the Southwest : Stories and Illustrations

by Alfred Avila, Americo Paredes, Kat Avila (Editor)

Overview

SPECTERS that haunt the rivers and woods, hidden treasure, headless goblins, a wild phantasmagoria of gore and grizzle...all here for the first time in English to delight audiences of all ages, but particularly young adult readers. Alfred Avila's collection of deliciously gory tales is founded in oral lore and the Hispanic tradition native to the American Southwest. He has salvaged these stories from disappearing forever for future generations to enjoy in the darkness, where the devils, demons and spirits of the night become living, breathing entities to entertain, frighten and teach.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781558851078
Publisher:	Arte Publico Press
Publication date:	01/28/1994
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	172
Product dimensions:	5.44(w) x 8.47(h) x 0.52(d)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

Editorial Reviews

Gr 4-8-Hacked and badly translated from Mexican legends, these stories do not hold up when compared with classics in the genre. They are ridiculously flat and predictable. In ``La Llorona,'' a woman drowns her children because they annoy her by crying for food. She is condemned to wander for eternity searching for their bones. In ``Devil Dog,'' a drunk walks across railroad tracks and sees two red eyes following him and then disappears, never to be seen again. How many times have we heard that one? Better choices for nighttime campfires and slumber parties would be Alvin Schwartz's ``Scary Stories'' books (HarperCollins) or Gretchen Mayo's Star Tales (Walker, 1987). Those well-told tales will continue to entertain young readers.-Julie Halverstadt, Douglas Public Library District, Castle Rock, CO

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