Anaya1

=All About Rudolfo Anaya=

A Short Informational Piece
By: Dianna Jim

**[[image:anaya1.jpg width="220" height="277" caption="Rudolfo Anaya"]] Vital Statistics**:
Birth date: October 30, 1937 (72 years old) Born in Pastura, New Mexico

Anaya is a Native New Mexican who was born and raised in Pastura, NM. He grew up as the fifth of seven children in his hometown, before his family moved out to Albuquerque, NM. Much like his pseudo-character Antonio Marez in //Bless Me, Ultima//, Anaya did not speak English until he started school. After graduating high school in Albuquerque, Anaya continued his education at the University of New Mexico, where he received his English degree.

During this time, Anaya began working on his book, //Bless Me, Ultima//. After seven years of working on the book, and rejection after rejection from publishing companies, his work was finally accepted. It was after his work was finally published that it gained popularity among young readers. //Ultima// was such a good read, that it received the " Premio Quinto Sol" award shortly afterwards. After the success of //Ultima//, Anaya went on to write numerous other books, with //Tortuga// and //Heart of Aztlan// creating a trilogy series with //Ultima//.

This book is one that I would recommend others read. While staying true to his roots, Anaya is able to blend together his version of what I call, realistic fiction. He includes elements of magical realism in a sense that some of the things he describes sound "too good to be true." However, Anaya also refers to some of the other Native American tribes in the area, the Pueblo people, and how their traditional beliefs coincide perfectly with some of his. //Ultima// is a very easy read, as the target audience happens to be young adults, that'll trigger your imagination. I felt totally engulfed in the book, and wouldn't mind reading it again.



Works Cited:

"//Bless Me, Ultima; Heart of Aztlan; Tortuga//". Amazon.com. 10 Dec. 2009. Web. JPEG files.

Anaya, Rudolfo. //Bless Me, Ultima //. New York: Warner Books Edition. 1999. Print.