Music of the Mill

by Luis J. Rodríguez

In a stunning literary achievement -- with a power and scope in the tradition of John Steinbeck and Theodore Dreiser -- Luis J. Rodriguez captures the soul of a community and a little-known era in America's history in his epic novel about love, family, workers' rights, industrial strife, and cultural dislocation.

When the Salcido family departs for the United States, their flight is hardly different from the journeys of the indigenous tribes who roamed America for tens of thousands of years, or immigrants who sailed across entire oceans, or countless others who have left their native lands behind for the promise of a better life.

Traveling mostly on foot, Procopio Salcido and his future wife, Eladia, leave Mexico for the United States to escape the bleak realities of their homeland.

Finally settling in Los Angeles, the young couple discover that the hopes they have for their children must now be weighed against the backdrop of the mighty Nazareth steel mill, their engine for survival, which will eventually become the lifeblood of their own American dream.

Spanning sixty years and three generations, Music of the Mill is set in the industrial boom of post–World War II Southern California, where jobs seemed plentiful, communities thrived, and racial harmony prevailed. However, while postwar prosperity seemed to supply jobs to many migrant African American, Mexican, and poor white workers, in reality there was great struggle and racial discord -- low-paying, backbreaking labor and the cruel manipulation by manufacturers who pitted groups of workers against one another.

For the Salcidos -- especially for Procopio's idealistic son, Johnny, and his young family -- the hard knocks of life often resound louder than their own sense of hope. When their aspirations have long since lost their luster, retaining their dignity and sense of worth becomes the family's greatest challenge.

Destined to be a classic of American literature, Music of the Mill, the long-awaited first novel by Luis J. Rodriguez, portrays the journey of one family caught in a web of politics, racial polarization, and corrupt unions' power struggles, revealing the drama, pain, joy, and humor of working-class life.

Genres: Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2005

About the author

Luis J. Rodríguez (b. 1954) is a poet, journalist, memoirist, and author of children’s books, short stories, and novels. His documentation of urban and Mexican immigrant life has made him one of the most prominent Chicano literary voices in the United States. Born in El Paso, Texas, to Mexican immigrant parents, Rodríguez grew up in Los Angeles, where in his teen years he joined a gang, lived on the streets, and became addicted to heroin. In his twenties, after turning his back on gang violence and drugs, Rodríguez began his career as a journalist and then award-winning poet, writing such books as the memoir Always Running (1993), and the poetry collections The Concrete River (1991), Poems Across the Pavement (1989), and Trochemoche (1998). He has also written the short story collection The Republic of East L.A. (2002). Rodríguez maintains an arts center, bookstore, and poetry press in L.A., where he continues writing and working to mediate gang violence.

Reviews

[Kenji · Rating 2 out of 5]

His prose is pretty flat--a little too much telling instead of showing for me. At times it gets didactic and pulls me away from the story. Yet at other times it's pretty effective for conveying a story about steel mill workers. What I like is that it's a story about several generations of working-class people of color, and how shifts in industry (post-war production highs, corporate flight overseas) impacts them as individuals and as family. It also looks at the divisive racialization of labor unions, and how old guard white bosses and white labor protected white privilege over all else, even when white labor had more in common with people of color.

I'll have to check out his other books to see if he has other writing voices.

[Colleen Stinchcombe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had to read it, so I did, but the prose was really sparse and offered little insight into the characters feelings, frustrations, etc. It felt in many ways like a summary of characters rather than real depth of humanity. It also spent the entire novel in present tense which was really strange to me and didn’t seem to serve a purpose, and the last section felt severely out of place. Discusses some interesting topics but does so in a way that it felt like I was being told how to feel rather than experiencing someone else’s pain, frustration, hardship and drawing me to similar conclusions. I mean, I agreed with most of the messages. I just didn’t enjoy the way they were shared.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I learned about Mexican Americans in steel mills and labor movement in L.A. but think Rodriguez is a better poet than novelist.

[Blane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was hoping for something more along the lines of Richard Vasquez's 'Chicano'; still the steel mill-life narrative resonated with my blue collar roots.

[Riki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I never would have picked up this book if it weren't required
for a class I'm taking at the university, I am deeply moved by it.
It's beautifully written and has amazing central characters.

Rodriguez's novel follows the Salcido family for six decades,
beginning with Procopio and his bride Eladia who flee a life that
holds no future. Procopio finds himself working for Nazareth, a steel
mill that would provide a life for him. Rodriguez goes on to chronicle
the life of one of Procopio's sons, Johnny and his life with his
feisty wife Aracely. Together they build a life and family while
Johnny works at Nazareth like his father. The final part of the book
follows Johnny's daughter Azucena and reveals the impact of mill life
on later generations.

Throughout the book I am reminded of the importance of family and
community and am in awe of the resilience of these working-class
people. Never do I doubt their strength of heritage and love of
family. I found myself connected to these characters and got lost in
their world. I would recommend this wonderful book to anyone who
values a solid story.

[Patti · Rating 1 out of 5]

For some reason I really wanted to like this book, but it was so poorly written that I lost interest early on. Still, I slogged through until I'd read half the book - then I quit, because there are so many good books still to read, right?

[Gina Ruiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

http://ginasblogging.blogspot.com/200...

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was very easy to read and got across its point but I thought the last section ("Azucena's Finale," I believe) was superfluous and went on too long.

[Shelleyd]

i tried to get into it, but the narration is so detached.