The Old Gringo
by Carlos Fuentes
translated by Margaret Sayers Peden, Carlos Fuentes

HarperCollins (New York): 1985. Trade paperback: viii, 199 pages. ISBN-10: 0-374-52522-6 Suggested retail price: $11.00 (US) Tags: Historical; Mainstream Tactical strength: [8/10]

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My first comment: I need to read this again. As I read the text, I got a feeling of power, depth, and meaning that is rare in a text, but I know that I hadn't caught the full depth of meaning available.

The Old Gringo makes an historical extrapolation about the disappearance of the American writer Ambrose Bierce. Fuentes presents Bierce as a man who is afraid of becoming an invalid as he ages so he searches for death in the Mexican revolution. This is an interesting story, but much more seems to be questioned: the Mexican and American societies and their relationships to each other, the effect of Protestant and Catholic religions on their respective societies, and the constant search for revolution in Latin American mentality.

Slow reading and frequent rereading is what I recommend. But the power is there. Often if an author obscures meaning, I won't like the work, but in this case there is a power evident in the text, and the search for the meaning is part of the enjoyment.