Tortuga: A NovelAmerican Book Award Winner: A novel of a New Mexico teenager’s journey of physical and spiritual recovery from the author of Bless Me, Ultima. When the story opens, the eponymous hero of Rudolfo Anaya’s novel is in an ambulance en route to a hospital for crippled children in the New Mexican desert. A poor boy from Albuquerque, sixteen-year-old Tortuga takes his name from the odd, turtle-shaped mountain that is rumored to possess miraculous curative powers. Tortuga is paralyzed, and not even his mother’s fervent prayers can heal him. But under the mountain’s watchful gaze, with the support of fellow patients, he begins the Herculean task of breaking out of his shell and becoming whole again. Drawn from personal experience and imbued with the phantasmagorical vision quests that distinguish Anaya’s work, Tortuga is a joyful, life-sustaining book about hope, faith, friendship, and love that celebrates the triumph of the human spirit in the physical world. “An extraordinary storyteller.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review |
Contents
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Section 23 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Albuquerque alive American Book Award Anaya answered arms asked bedsores breath Buck burned called cast chair Clepo closed my eyes cold crazy cried crippled cursed Damn dancing Danny dark dead desert doctor door dream earth enormous room everything face feel felt Filomón girls going hand head hear heard hell hospital iron lungs Ismelda Jalamanta Jemez Spring Jerry Josefa kids knew la Llorona laughed legs light listened live lizard looked Mexican American Mike shouted mountain moved Mudo never night nodded Nurse okay pain paralysis polio pulled pushed river Ronco Rudolfo Anaya Sadsack Salomón Salomón's ward Samson sang screamed shell shook sing smell smiled someone song spring Steel story swimming talk tell there's thought told Tony Hillerman Tortuga touch turned turtle vegetables waiting walk wanted warm watch whispered window woman Yeah