Maybe it is just the right book at the right time, but I think there is something pretty special about the narrative of Tobar's "Tattooed Soldier" this is definitely the best fiction I read this year.Following the lives of two opposing and intertwined Guatemalans in Los Angeles, this story was woven in such a way that characters (who are well-developed) still manage to get in line with a really engaging telling of the shared drama in the main characters' lives.It's as much an insight into the lives of marginalized immigrant communities in Los Angeles, as it is about the smaller interpersonal issues of integrity, pride, and belonging. Foregrounding the unseen lives of those who inhabited LA in the Rodney King Riots era and right-wing nationalist cleansing of indigenous populations in Guatemala in the preceding decade.Really well crafted.
This novel, admittedly, draws on a lot of the political issues I am most interested in. You can clearly see Tobar's journalistic background throughout the novel, and it was very clever to frame the story around a tale of revenge. The writing style was wonderful, the dual timelines were pulled off beautifully, in my opinion. I can't wait to read the rest of his books.I don't think the characters were as simplistic as some people are writing them off to be, and I thought the play between the PTSD of both the protagonist and antagonist was very interesting. I thought Tobar explored that well. I think it's a very poignant comment on race and immigration in Los Angeles. I really don't think the tale of revenge is quite as simplistic as critics call it, but that may have been from the benefit of reading it in a literature course.
What do You think about The Tattooed Soldier (2000)?
The Guatemalan protagonist, Antonio, tells his story non-linearly about the revolution in his home country and the death of his wife and child. He resides in Los Angeles and miraculously comes across the soldier who killed his family and seeks revenge -- all while he and his new best friend from Mexico are evicted from the room they share and become homeless. The text is interspersed with Spanish. This is a compelling story and quite satisfying. How some people can live through such hardship and function in society is beyond me.
—Jean
