The Bullet Swallower
The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James
Reviewed by L. Bennett
At Dorado, Mexico in 1895, Antonio Sonoro is disappointed and angry. His wealthy ancestors have left him with naught, his children are underfed, and his patient wife would like a house with a roof that does not leak. He heads to Texas where he has plans that will bring him the money he needs. It will be risky but he knows it will be worth the effort. The results are not what he anticipated.
In Mexico City in 1964, Jamie Sonoro is almost a movie star. His wife and children are well cared for and his father lives with them. One day a woman gives Jamie a smelly old book, a history of the Sonoro family going back several generations. His father wants him to dispose of the book immediately but Jamie believes it will answer questions that his father won't. The answers bring surprising results.
Author Elizabeth Gonzalez James has written a novel that is like a western but isn't, and is similar to family history, but falls short on details. Perhaps allegorical, maybe a bit mythology, the plot line parallels the stories of Antonio and Jamie by flip-flopping between 1895 and 1964. I found the story mildly entertaining and asked myself more than once why I kept reading. Not one of my favorites.
