Despite A Sad Setup, 'House Of Broken Angels' Hums With Joy
Luis Alberto Urrea's latest, based loosely on his own brother's death, follows the members of a vibrant Mexican-American family as they deal with grief and impending death — but also celebrate life.
A few years ago, I heard Luis Alberto Urrea perform a story from his collection I say because he kept the book closed the whole time. He'd learned the story by heart, and listening to him deliver "The Southside Raza Image Federation Corps of Discovery," voices and all, felt like sticking my finger in a socket. The whole room was vibrating by the time he took a bow. So when I started reading Urrea's latest novel,, my expectations were through the roof. And yet, somehow, he exceeded them.
