There’s no question of the mastery of writing by Sylvia Sellers-Garcia in “When the Ground Turns in its Sleep.” Her writing is rich, deep, sparse and involved. It’s the story that’s too much for me.
I loved the premise. Nitidio Aman, a Guatemalan born – American raised English teacher returns to Guatemala following his father’s death to try and uncover the mystery and past of his family. Once he arrives in the small town of Rio Roto, he is mistaken for the new minister. Rather than owning up and saying “hey guys, I’m not a priest, just a lost, confused American searching for my family”, he starts leading services and taking confessions. Slowly he delves into the rich, complicated history of the town as he tries, discreetly, to learn about his parents’ past.

He quickly learns the universal truth of small towns: Things are never as they seem. After improperly marrying a couple without their parental permission, he flees to the town of Naranjo with Xinia, the woman who keeps the parish’s books and trying to solve her own mysteries.
I won’t say anymore except that it involves soldiers, guerillas, betrayal, kidnapping, torture and fish hooks. (Okay, side complaint: is extreme violence always necessary? There were pages of this book I skipped because I don’t like exposing myself to bad stuff!)
This story is so complicated and ambiguous that I’ve finished it and still don’t really understand how it ended. The memories from the townsfolk can’t be trusted and Sellers-Garcia never comes out fully to explain the truth. Honestly, I didn’t really understand what she meant the universal truth to be. And I didn’t understand the ending either.
It’s such a big, deep book and story idea that I was lost trying to keep up. It made me sad, because it was pretty interesting and then I felt gypped by not getting the final meaning.
Through much of the book, Nitido talks directly to his dead father, addressing the reader as “you” when he means his papa. The book quotes huge passages from Nitido’s father’s journals, long sweeping passages describing places or landscapes. I thought this technique was employed too often and went on too long. And while her writing is perfect, I do not want to read three pages describing the desert. Sorry but I’m a busy girl with a short attention span.
Final thoughts? Beautiful writing, great idea and too involved for the non-grad student.