Literature+Book+Group

= Rattling Chains = = and Other Stories for Children = = By Nasario Garcia =



Image Source: http://img.infibeam.com/img/67ff5d14/441/5/9781558855441.jpg

= = Present: Emilie Buske, Brandi Rosales, Ashley Wallace Our meeting consisted of lively conversation about the book and wonderful dialogue about life. We each shared our thoughts about the book, and discussed the tales together. We then assigned two sections of the story (one we loved, and one we didn’t like as much) to summarize and analyze. Below is a transcript of our discussion and notes.
 * Literature Book Group**
 * //“Rattling Chains”//** by Nasario Garcia June 23, 2010 Fuzzy’s Tacos, Denton, Texas

NOTES: In the preface, Nasario Garcia, PhD. informs the readers that New Mexico is considered the Land of Enchantment and is the setting for the collection of stories. They can be enjoyed by all ages. Garcia recounts his childhood which was filled with fabulous storytellers telling tales about the region in which he grew up, Ojo del Padre. While rooted in authentic New Mexican folktale, the stories are fiction and a creation of the author.
 * //Preface//** – (Emilie)

My favorite short story was The Magical Nicho. I can't help but be reminded of the the nicho that was in the movie Born in East L.A! It's crazy how things that you haven't seen in years will show up in your mind when the time is right. Anyhow, I kept envisioning the house in this movie as the house that Junie lived in even though I know that they were completely different!
 * //The Magical Nicho//** – (Ashley)

This story took place when Junie was a boy at his home in the Rio Puerco Valley. His family had a nicho, or small cut out, in his house where there is a shelf where a saint had made his home. One day his mother and father are trying to figure out where to put their savings. They decided to put it in a jar and cover the nicho with cloth and mud. They were sure that no one would ever find the money there.

Junie starts hearing voices and having dreams where the saint is talking to him. The Holy Child is telling him that he belongs in the nicho. Junie tells his mom and gets a “don't be silly” kind of reaction. Several nights go by with Junie hearing noises, having dreams, and seeing lights. Finally, the jar comes jumping out of the nicho but doesn't bust and the money is still in there. Mom realizes that The Holy Child of Atocha was speaking to her through Junie and returns it to the nicho.

//“The Coquimbo Owl”// could be a story told to encourage children to not go outside at night alone. Junie is spending the summer with his grandmother in La Vega. A strange noise prompts Grandma Cinda to tell the story of the Coquimbo owl which is a bird suspected to be a witch in disguise. Junie wants to go play with his cousins across the river, but Grandma Cinda says no. Faking a stomachache, Junie sneaks out of the house and runs across the river to play with his cousins. It was dark and lightening when Junie finally started back. A flash flood threatened to sweep him away, but he narrowly escapes. Then, a woman’s voice wails, “I am looking for little boys who walk the dark nights alone.” Racing home, Junie is attacked by an owl, but is able to escape after hitting it with a piece of driftwood. Grandma Cinda is not happy with Junie, but takes care of his wounds and puts him to bed. The next day after Mass, a strange-looking woman arrived to have her injured eye cared for. After she left, Granda Cinda informed Junie that it was the witch who had attacked him the night before because he had disobeyed his grandmother. “Witches just know.” While I was reading, especially the description of the creek, I was reminded of my favorite book, “//Bridge to Terabithia//.” The details and descriptions were vivid and full of great adjectives. The pace of the story was exciting, climactic, and great for storytelling. There were several inconsistencies and typos within the story, however. For instance, it states, “I felt into a stupor thinking about my cousins” when it should be “I feel into…” The source of the sound goes from the stovepipe to the roof. I feel that these stories are exaggerated recollections of stories told to the author in his childhood. It could prompt lessons in writing about experiences with grandparents or reenacting the story of the Coquimbo owl. There are also great vocabulary words such as stovepipe, daydream, gruel, remedy, wit, driftwood, stubborn, injury, and many more.
 * //The Coquimbo Owl//** – (Emilie)

This particular piece I believe lighten the mood of the overall book. As the tale starts you feel a slightly different tone in writing. Junie (the narrator) puts a playful spin on how he and his brother feel about the bogeyman that his parents claim to come after children who don't go to sleep when they are suppose to. While Junie still fully believes in the stories that are being passed down in his family he takes a moment to double check when something doesn't feel exactly right. What he finds is that even the bogeyman can be scared away and never return, but only when you have courage to investigate. This particular tale had me enjoying the fact that storytelling does not always have to be serious, or taken down a road that leads you to a whoa moment...but yet takes you to a ha ha ha moment. The moment when you learn something might not be as real as you think, but yet you will not acknowledge that it is not real.
 * //No More Bogeyman!//** – (Brandi)

This namesake of the book was rather a let down. This tale comes from Junie's grandfather and actually turns into two tales shaped as one. The first tale is explaining the details of where the legend comes from of a tiny town between the two other towns that Junie spends most of his time with family. This first part of the tale is the one that seems to have the great embellishments and in air of mystery. The second half of the tale which comes only after the grandfather sends Junie away to run between his home and the home of his parents, needs work. The hero in the story is said to be special due to his name but you are never given how or why that name is special or how someone is choose to be the receiver of the name. The illustration for this story made it seem as if one of the ones that was going to be very suspenseful but ended with a thud!
 * //Rattling Chains//** – (Brandi)

My least favorite story was Rattling Chains. This story seemed to not have a real purpose or climax. Also, this was harder to write a summary about because I just didn't get it. There was nothing for me to compare this story to which made it lessen in value also. The best thing about this story is the witch's name.
 * //Rattling Chains//** – (Ashley)

Junie wanted to know about the sound and what the story was behind them. Grandpa Lolo told him to grab a bizcochito and listen to the story. There were a few houses that were in El Coruco and there were two that were further from the street that supposedly Bruja Maruja meets with her other witches at night. Outside of this house were some trees that had pink blossoms during the summer. Natividad wanted to see if witches really met in this house. He and his horse, Bole, went to the house. On this journey the horse started acting weird and Natividad started hearing the voice of Bruja Maruja along with a light that starts getting brighter and moving quicker. The light was a ball of fire and it was catching up to Natividad and Bole. They went into the water and the witch followed and the water drowned the witch. Junie listened carefully but he never did hear anything about the rattling chains. Grandpa told him to run home to tell his mom he'd be there a little longer and he'd tell him the story of Juan Algodones.

Juan is a special name because the names Juan and Juana are the only people that can catch witches. Juan had known the story of Natividad and El Coruco and was curious about it. Juan saw a light moving and he decided to catch it. Juan was hearing something that sounded like rattling chains as he was approaching El Coruco. Juan got off of Achaque, his horse, and walked to the street. There he drew a circle and threw his shirt in the middle of it. He and Achaque walked to the nearest house and watched as a witch appeared in the circle. The witch was dressed in black with a chain around her waist that looked like a rosary. She begged to be set free. Juan with his right foot signifying a victory broke the circle and the witch went away.

Ashley—I would have never picked this book just by the picture on the cover. However, it ended up being a great read. I liked how the stories grew longer and a little more detailed as they went along. All stories seemed to build up towards Grandpa’s story like he was the “lead” storyteller in the family. Something I learned from the stories are things aren’t always as they seem to be. Some people from other cultures might not understand these stories and it might cause them to get a little scared. Junio loved to hear his grandparents tell stories and I did too when they were alive. I was lucky enough to get them telling stories on a cassette tape and be able to share them with others in our family as a Christmas present one year. Also, I could see my dad doing the whole “Bogeyman” routine. The storytelling language that was used in the book made you feel like it was a real story time. Emilie – I chose this book because my new job will be at a bilingual elementary school, and I felt I could gather ideas from which to build lessons. I felt the description for Junie’s home was absolutely perfect and established the setting well for the reader. The stories were witty, exciting and had a sense of adventure. Garcia is a masterful storyteller! There were some discrepancies in consistency a few times – In “The Coquimbo Owl,” the sound was coming from the stovepipe, then later was referenced to the roof. The voice placement when Junie was coming back home was inconsistent. “No More Bogeyman!” confused me in the section about the scratching. Garcia says “but this time” when it happened before. The last two stories left filling disappointed. They did not wrap up like the others and felt unfinished. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading these stories based in New Mexican folktales. Brandi – I was drawn to the book because I am connected with the folktales of New Mexico having grown up there. In my school, third graders study folk tales, fairytales, legends, and fables. These characters are very much a part of that culture. I enjoyed reading all the stories and could relate to stories that were told to me when I was a child from my Dad’s side of the family. In the first story I could actually see the “Nicho” that was in my grandparents home that actually cared for her statue of the Virgin Mary. Group Discussion – We really liked this book! We felt the stories were easy and fast to read. Each tale was manageable and could be pulled out separate from the others. The cover art did not adequately depict how wonderful this book is. None of us “got” that the horse and the ball of fire relates to “Rattling Chains.” All of us adamantly agreed that our favorite story was “The Magical Nicho.” The last two stories were anticlimactic and not as powerful. They would need to be embellished in a storytelling setting. All of the tales lend themselves to vocabulary lessons, science connections, and cultural awareness. Also, with the stories, not being from New Mexico, Garcia has consistent repeating elements such as owls, witches, and Wailing Women, and clearly explained meanings of words and terms. Most of the stories dealt with “witchcraft, superstitions and spooky things” just like Grandma Lucinda told Junie. We also spent a lot of time talking about religion, graduate school, professors, marriage, education, and sharing pictures from Emilie’s wedding and honeymoon. J
 * Overall Thoughts & Comments** –