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Rating: 
Summary: A look into Salvadorian life, from differing POV
Review: A serious study of the Cold War generally entails the bitter ideological struggle of two superpowers trying to exert their spheres of influence over nearby countries. In this geopolitical struggle we are rarely confronted with the idea of military confrontation, with the great exception being the Cuban missile crisis. More often than not Central America has played a marginal role in our understanding of Cold War tensions. Central America makes an interesting case study because it makes a strong case for the development of Latin America as a geopolitical reserve of the United States, in the same way that the Soviet Union had its satellite states. The conflict of democracy versus socialism took the center stage in the days following the 1959 Cuban Revolution. More importantly, the 1979 triumph of the Frente Sandinista de Liberacion Nacional [FSLN] in Nicaragua paved the way for a conflict in neighboring El Salvador which would be anything but ideological. In this context, Manlio Argueta, a renowned Salvadorian writer took upon himself the task of viewing the Salvadorian civil war from the eyes of those who lived it. In One Day of Life, Argueta paints a gruesome picture of the harsh realities of the Cold War beyond those painted by White House speech writers. Argueta attempts to place the cold war in real terms, in a way that is chillingly real and shocking.
Argueta's One Day of Life takes place in a reality which is often obscured behind the larger context of a Soviet/American ideological struggle. Argueta's work is crucial to understanding the conflict of a country which was prominent in the media during the 1980's and which at the time was feared to be the next Vietnam. Written in 1980, Argueta's work is fictional, much like One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, but imbued with vivid and often harrowing details of the conditions that afflicted the Salvadorian people for 12 years. For the outsider, the Salvadorian civil war was a vicious conflict which resulted in the deaths of approximately 61,000 civilians, while anywhere from 750,000 to over a million Salvadorians migrated to the United States. While the numbers are significant, Argueta takes us into the minds of the Salvadorian psyche by looking across the social strata to peasants, insurgents, national guardsmen, and all those caught by uncertainty.
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Summary: strong subject matter, weak book
Review: it's hard to criticize this book because the subject matter is so intense, so real, so awful. it presents about the worst side of human nature - the evil of cruel, authoritarian people systematically terrorizing all but helpless, innocent rural farmers who want nothing more than to be left alone... for these points, for its authenticity, this book has value.its weak points: this book was all over the map. one minute it was concrete and readable, the next it was in a dream world, vague and almost incomprehensible, and i know it could be argued that this parallels the characters' inner states, but i felt the writer didn't pull off the task. what i felt happened, in effect, was that the book became unreadable, not cohesive, and ended up being sort of artsy-fartsy, lacking the power it might have otherwise had. also, i felt that the translation was iffy... often i had to re-read lines to figure out their meaning due to the poor grammatical style of the translator...missing commas, etc. also, the author GREATLY overused the tool of switching points of view and time frame to tell the story. if it had been handled well it might have made a good artistic effect...instead it was just annoying and hard to follow. last gripe, and i suspect few will agree with me here, but so be it: i felt the story had little in it that was redemptive beyond just telling a (true) horror story. aside from "we must fight for our rights," and "life doesn't mean much unless we're willing to die for our rights," i didn't find much of a spiritual message within. that said, the book was chilling nonetheless...disturbing...a good book to provoke nightmares.
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Summary: Unflinchingly honest account of El Salvador's prelude to war
Review: Manlio Argueta's uncanny ability to portray both the inner and outer struggle of the peasant caught in the mire of El Salvador's corruption during its infamous civil war makes this book a memorable and haunting experience. The story is laced with a taste of the all-too-common physical and psychological terror to which rural Salvadorans were cruelly and commonly subjected by the government. But aside from its inherent darkness, the book contains an underlying theme of hope, courage, and strength. The main character's growing awareness that her every day struggles are not in vain, that indeed, the people's collective spirit must not be dampened by the National Guard's offences but suffused with fervor and knowledge, is inspirational. I was particularly impressed with Mr. Argueta's use of the vernacular in his narration. He successfully portrays Lupe, the main character, as a simple woman--albeit one full of hard earned wisdom and grit--in the middle of extraordinary circumstances. What is fascinating is her awareness that her small actions can directly affect the larger scheme of things. The end of the book is disturbing but on a deeper level, it is highly uplifting. One cannot help but be touched by the scope of Argueta's message. One Day of Life is certainly a must read for lovers of freedom and of the human spirit; a true source of enlightenment and courage for all.
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Summary: A good introduction to the Struggle of the poor in El Salvad
Review: This was my introduction to El Salvador and I am glad I choose this book. The writing was unique and kept me interested throughout. I am even more interested now about the struggles of the poor in El Salvador during the civil war and even today.
Rating:
Summary: A good introduction to the Struggle of the poor in El Salvad
Review: This was my introduction to El Salvador and I am glad I choose this book. The writing was unique and kept me interested throughout. I am even more interested now about the struggles of the poor in El Salvador during the civil war and even today.
Rating:
Summary: Review of the book "One Day of Life"
Review: To start off, "One Day of Life" is a marvelous book. A very shocking peice of truth in the history of El Salvador. The Book is peiced together by the stories of the people in a small town in El Salvador. Stories put as one to reveal the tradegies and poverty in Central American towns, where the people do not know their own rights as human beings. The time the story is set in, is 1936. A pre-war time where communism was being beaten and people were being beaten just as well for beliefs they might not have had. IF you wish to indulge yourself in a great book that shows the truth through the eyes of the poverty born world then this is the book for you. I highley reccomend you read this.
Rating:
Summary: Review of the book "One Day of Life"
Review: To start off, "One Day of Life" is a marvelous book. A very shocking peice of truth in the history of El Salvador. The Book is peiced together by the stories of the people in a small town in El Salvador. Stories put as one to reveal the tradegies and poverty in Central American towns, where the people do not know their own rights as human beings. The time the story is set in, is 1936. A pre-war time where communism was being beaten and people were being beaten just as well for beliefs they might not have had. IF you wish to indulge yourself in a great book that shows the truth through the eyes of the poverty born world then this is the book for you. I highley reccomend you read this.
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