Six Kinds of Sky: A Collection of Short Fiction

by Luis Alberto Urrea

"Home isn't just a place, it is also a language." Born in Tijuana, the son of an Anglo woman and a Mexican father, Urrea says that "Home isn't just a place, it is also a language." In these six stories—each wandering beneath different kinds of sky, from the thick Mazatlan starry night to the wide open spaces of the Sioux Nation in South Dakota—Urrea maps the spiritual geography of what he calls "home." "I always thought Luis Urrea was six skies rolled into one (I mean that in a good way), and this book proves that he speaks with a multitude of passionate, powerful and hilarious voices. This book is a beautiful kind of crazy."—Sherman Alexie "With this new collection of stories, Luis Urrea makes the short list of essential American writers. His glittering landscapes, which warp and ennoble the human spirit, bring to mind the work of Salman Rushdie. I found myself going back and rereading whole passages; Urrea's got a way with words that raises the bar for the rest of us. What a marvel of a book!"—Demetria Martínez "Urrea goes in for the big picture, and there seems to be no world he cannot capture. He writes with wit and ingenuity, and the stories possess a powerful sense of acceleration. With each story I was transported to an intense and fully imagined world."—Robert Boswell Luis Urrea is a novelist, essayist and poet. His books have received The American Book Award for non-fiction, 1998, and The Western States Book Award for Poetry, 1994, and The New York Times named his non-fiction Across the Wire a Notable Book of the Year, 1993. Luis lives in Chicago.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Magical Realism, United States

148 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2002

About the author

Luis Alberto Urrea is the award-winning author of 13 books, including The Hummingbird's Daughter, The Devil's Highway and Into the Beautiful North (May 2009). Born in Tijuana to a Mexican father and American mother, Luis has used the theme of borders, immigration and search for love and belonging throughout his work. A Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2005 (nonfiction), he's won the Kiriyama Prize (2006), the Lannan Award (2002), an American Book Award (1999) and was named to the Latino Literary Hall of Fame. He is a creative writing professor at the University of Illinois-Chicago and lives with his family in the 'burbs (dreaming of returning West soon!).

Reviews

[Kalen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never thought a volume of short stories could move me as much as this did. Brilliant through-and-through. A Day in the Life and Father Returns from the Mountain are particularly powerful. Urrea's The Hummingbird's Daughter is big and epic but he's proven he can handle the short form just as deftly. I've got a library book right now and will be ordering this one because it needs to be on my bookshelf.

[Jim Cantu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each new book I read from Luis reminds me of what a gifted storyteller he is.

[Meesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved these stories, all of them. This is the third Urrea work I’ve read, the first: House of Broken Angels was wonderful, a multi-layered family story with great heart and humor, the second: The Devils Highway told the harrowing true story of 26 men who attempt to cross the desert from Mexico to the US. His writing is singularly powerful and riveting. This compilation of six short stories is no less compelling- I found myself deeply moved and dragging my feet, not wanting the stories to end.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were glimpses of these stories that felt like home.
All of the stories seemed to have a combination of beauty and reality all mixed in one.
I will be reading more from Luis Alberto Urrea very soon.

[julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of short stories is charming. I did feel the longer stories were more full fledged and I was more attached to the characters in them. My favorite was “First Light,” but “A Day in the Life,” and “Mr. Mendoza’s Paintbrush,” are my other top stories. I’m so excited to revisit them soon.

[Zach Dankert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was amazed at the way this book drew me in, and this was partly due I think to the way Urrea's language is so compellingly layered. The voice is unassuming, and doesn't demand attention for any advertised sort of significance. But as I got further in I was in awe of the intensity and emotion of the implicit, interior stories. Also, this book is genuinely hilarious

[Irene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Urrea's vast, interesting life experiences make for rich material. I thoroughly enjoyed his short stories. And am now eager to read his poetry and novels.

[Christy Roman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Each short story stood in its own but they come together beautifully. A commentary of learning to understand one’s own identity through the mutlitude of “skies” we live under.

[elderfoil...the whatever champion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorite Story: Bid Farewell To Her Many Horses

[Sasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

The details in these stories wrap the reader right into the atmosphere of the setting; Urrea immerses us in the scene with description, and the characters feel authentic. I liked the magical twist at the end of "Mr. Mendoza's Paintbrush", and the adolescent narrator’s perspective was well done, really drawing me in to the boy's comical take on life in a small Mexican village. In “Taped to the Sky” I liked the character of Don Her Many Horses—he seemed to drive into the narrative fully formed, both no-nonsense and playful, and his sarcasm was very revealing. The wry sense of humor really comes through in these characters and lightens the narrative.

As for the afterword, I liked how Urrea talked about writing as "a way of seeing, a way of being. The world is not only the world, but your personal filing cabinet. You lodge details of the world in your sparkling nerve-library that spirals through your brain...You write, even if you can't always 'write'". Writers are always observing, making little connections and keeping them, even if they don’t appear in writing right away. I also loved the quote about "understory" as "the dark stirrings in the basement of the story...Down there, where it's cobwebby and dusty, oily and stinky, weird and a little frightening, that's where the jars with the metaphors and similes and symbols and dreams are stored". Both of these ideas rang true for me, and I liked the imagery his descriptions evoked.

[Karen Michele Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

I chose Luis Alberto Urrea’s Six Kinds of Sky because I rated The Hummingbird’s Daughter 5 stars and because I love short stories. I was not disappointed and I have just added most of his other books to my TBR. I enjoyed the touch of magical realism and the multiple points of view and voices woven throughout the stories. The last three were my favorites. That may be because they are the freshest in my memory, though, because all of the stories were excellent. They were emotional and poignant and moved me to the core. I loved this line from “A Day in the Life”: “Our lives are gone.” “No, viejo, our lives are here.” She puts her hand on his chest. “Our lives are here,no?” Although many of the stories were filled with sadness, Urrea threaded a lot of humor throughout the stories as well. His “Afterward” was also worth reading. I don’t often feel that way about afterwards, but this one brought out the reason we read and listen to story and why we are grateful to those who can write them in both short and long form successfully as Urrea has done.

[John Paul Jaramillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was unfamiliar with Urrea's work but I've been reading through my list of Latino authors and I have to say there was much to admire. I enjoyed "Mr Mendoza's Paint Brush" perhaps most out of the collection. Urrea gives a mix of straight story telling and farce and perhaps a bit of the surreal mixing in the story. This seemed to be a constant throughout the stories. I also enjoyed "Bid Farewell to Her Many Horses"--a story about a white guy muorning the loss of his wife. A nice mix of the tragic and the beautiful. I was also intrigued by the final non-fiction essay of the book "Amazing Gracxe: Story and Writer." I liked the insight into Urrea's craft and thought process.

[Wade · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection reminds me that one of my favorite genres is farce. When it's done well, farce makes you laugh at the situations without turning away from the hard realities it describes. This book does that - makes me laugh and almost cry at the same time. While I don't know much about the realities of Mexican-US border life, I suspect that the underlying realities that Urrea describes are actually as stark and unjust, even if the actual people are not as broadly drawn, as slapstick, as he writes them. His descriptions of American missionaries are perfect! I'll be reading more of his books.

[Les · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5+

I love Urrea's writing and will be reading more by him very soon. This is one of my favorite collections of short stories ever. There is a GGMarquez-esque magically real story and the other five are realistic, poetic, brilliant, and wonderful. I am not often a fan of short stories because I do not like to invest time in a world that will end so quickly. In these stories, Urrea creates worlds that exist on their own, suck you in, and continue to grow despite the relatively few pages they actually inhabit. Brilliant stuff.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Urrea is truly a master of voice. The characters of his fiction are distinct and convincing (even the characters in the magical realism inflected first story seemed startlingly authentic). Each one of the six pieces in this collection seems to deal with 'home' or 'place' and the effort it takes to travel to it or escape from it (and even what 'it' really is).

[meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

a really, really excellent collection. maybe one of my favorite books ever.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

six short stories. a bit uneven, but full of honest, eloquent turns around outcasts and generally underrepresented characters. this one's not for kids. and it's a fast read.

[Sheila A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it...very gritty and heart-rending....you could feel the characters emotions!!

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read as four and a half stars.

Brilliant. Funny. Gritty. Heartbreaking. Haunted. Whimsical.

What a collection of short stories. Just fantastic.

[J.L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Luis Urrea, what can I say. One of my favorite authors.

[Red · Rating 4 out of 5]

Six poetic, poignant short stories that knock you down, wring you out, and stand you back up again.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Early Urrea, but still showing his writing chops. Six short stories with a bold look on life.