Latino USA, Revised Edition: A Cartoon History

By Ilan Stavans

Book Overview

Latino USA represents the culmination of Ilan Stavans's lifelong determination to meet the challenges of capturing the joys, nuances, and multiple dimensions of Latino culture within the context of the English language. In this cartoon history of Latinos, Stavans seeks to combine the solemnity of so-called "serious literature" and history with the inherently theatrical and humorous nature of the comics. The range of topics includes Columbus, Manifest Destiny, the Alamo, William Carlos Williams, Desi Arnaz, West Side Story, Castro, Guevera, the Bay of Pigs, the Cuban Missile Crisis, Neruda, Garc?-M?uez, the Mariel Boatlift, and Selena. Stavans represents Hispanic civilization as a fiesta of types, archetypes, and stereotypes. These "clich?(c)igurines" include a toucan (displayed regularly in books by Garc?-M?uez, Allende, and others), the beloved Latino comedian Cantinflas (known as "the Hispanic Charlie Chaplin"), a masked wrestler, and Captain America. These multiple, at times contradictory voices, each narrating various episodes of Latino history from a unique perspective, combine to create a carnivalesque rhythm, democratic and impartial. For, as Stavans states, "History, of course, is a kaleidoscope where nothing is absolute." Latino USA, like the history it so entertainingly relates, is a dazzling kaleidoscope of irreverence, wit, subversion, anarchy, politics, humanism, celebration, and serious and responsible history.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0465082505
• ISBN13: 9780465082506
• Release Date: April 2012
• Publisher: Basic Books
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.94 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 0.6" x 7.4"
• Age Range: 13 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 8 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Clever and Creative

The mezcla of the cartoons of Lalo Alcaraz (of the comic strip La Cucaracha) and the scholarship of Ilan Stavans creates a lively and informative overview of the history of US Latinos, cleverly incorporating traditional Latino theatrical characters and symbols as the storytellers. The book is great fun to read; its format makes it accessible to readers of all ages, and anyone fuzzy about the role Latinos have played in US history and culture during the past 500 years or so should RUSH to buy it.

El Profe Y La Cucaracha

Ilan Stavans studies and teaches Latino and Latin American culture and most recently authored Spanglish: The Making Of A New American Language. Lalo Alcaraz reaches the public on a daily basis through his most excellent comic strip La Cucaracha. Together they have joined to take the reader on a trip through Latino USA: A Cartoon History. Biting and sweet, biased and fair, incomplete but thorough, Latino USA is a good way to introduce yourself to the history of the majority minority in the United States. The scholarship is tight and Alcaraz's art makes it go down easy. I can't wait to get my copy into the school library, where I hope some of my not very cosmopolitan anglo students and not as self-aware as they could be latino students get pulled in by the drawings and learn a little history. I highly recommend this book!

I really recommend it!

I heard about this book on the radio in Washington, DC. I went and bought it. It is very funny, thought-provoking, and really worth the time. I highly recommend it.

Me divirtio mucho!

Este libro esta bien bueno. Es pa' toda nuestra gente. I highly recommend it.

Incredible fun!

This book made me laugh a lot. It is very witty! I loved the cartoons and the text and the way they are connected.