Milagro Beanfield War

Rating:
Summary: Dense and hilarious
Review: If you liked the fictional town of Grace, AZ in Barbara Kingsolver's "Animal Dreams" I can pretty much guarantee you'll LOVE the town of Milagro, NM. Although Kingsolver does an excellent job of creating sympathetic characters, I feel like she tends to over-simplify the "big issues"-- issues that Nichols has no problem tackling. "The Milagro Beanfield War" confronts substantive topics (like water rights) head on, but the story is also overflowing with colorful characters and subplots, so I am forced to disagree with the reviewers who say you can get through it in two days-- at least, I know I didn't. Although I recommend the movie as well (Ruben Blades is great!), it does not do justice to the book's complexity, nor is it as funny. If you have seen the movie and liked it at all, read this book. And if you haven't seen the movie, read the book first-- you won't regret it.

Rating:
Summary: Dense and hilarious
Review: If you liked the fictional town of Grace, AZ in Barbara Kingsolver's "Animal Dreams" I can pretty much guarantee you'll LOVE the town of Milagro, NM. Although Kingsolver does an excellent job of creating sympathetic characters, I feel like she tends to over-simplify the "big issues"-- issues that Nichols has no problem tackling. "The Milagro Beanfield War" confronts substantive topics (like water rights) head on, but the story is also overflowing with colorful characters and subplots, so I am forced to disagree with the reviewers who say you can get through it in two days-- at least, I know I didn't. Although I recommend the movie as well (Ruben Blades is great!), it does not do justice to the book's complexity, nor is it as funny. If you have seen the movie and liked it at all, read this book. And if you haven't seen the movie, read the book first-- you won't regret it.

Rating:
Summary: Dense and hilarious
Review: If you liked the fictional town of Grace, AZ in Barbara Kingsolver's "Animal Dreams" I can pretty much guarantee you'll LOVE the town of Milagro, NM. Although Kingsolver does an excellent job of creating sympathetic characters, I feel like she tends to over-simplify the "big issues"-- issues that Nichols has no problem tackling. "The Milagro Beanfield War" confronts substantive topics (like water rights) head on, but the story is also overflowing with colorful characters and subplots, so I am forced to disagree with the reviewers who say you can get through it in two days-- at least, I know I didn't. Although I recommend the movie as well (Ruben Blades is great!), it does not do justice to the book's complexity, nor is it as funny. If you have seen the movie and liked it at all, read this book. And if you haven't seen the movie, read the book first-- you won't regret it.

Rating:
Summary: Nichols's Masterpiece, a gem in American literature
Review: If your literary tastes run toward Hemingway, don't bother trying to wade through "The Milagro Beanfield War." Action and plot take a back seat to the exploration of characters and cultures here. On the other hand, if you enjoy Steinbeck or Updike, you will feel perfectly at home in this beautifully crafted novel.

Nichols introduces us to nearly every inhabitant of the village of Milagro, as well as many of the non-natives involved in the story, and spends a great deal of time telling us their past stories, their habits and traits, and their thoughts and emotions. Through these people we also learn about their places in society, the cultures they inhabit and create, the land that they live on and how their lives are tied to that land. In reading this novel for the first time I found I often had to reread entire sections and chapters to make sure that I had, in fact, caught every detail and digested every piece of the story; somehow, if I glossed over something, I could sense that an important piece was missing.

People, places, and cultures are really the heart of this novel. The story itself, about land-developers trying to find a delicate way to keep one native's illegal irrigation of a tiny beanfield from blowing out of control and destroying their resort development plans, moves forward only in drips and bits. Any particular scene or incident of note along the way is used largely to advance our understanding of the people and their cultures and conflicts and prejudices, and only tangentially happen to advance the story. By the end of the novel, you will probably get the sense that not much happened at all in the story, and you'd be right. If you come to this conclusion, however, spend some time thinking about what might have happened to your understanding of these "fictional" characters and the very real lands and cultures they live in.

(Although this novel takes place in the Southwest United States at some time in the mid-1970's, astute readers will be able to transfer this character and culture study to other current conflicts in the world between American and native cultures in other countries. The basic themes and lessons of "Milagro" can apply nearly anywhere.)

Nichols's gift for the written word is on its best display in this novel. Other books by Nichols are well written, but this one stands out in particular as his masterpiece. Read this book first before reading any of his other novels.

If you decide to buy this book, plan on reading it two or three times. Every new pass will reveal things you missed or didn't quite catch the first time around and will enhance your enjoyment of the novel.

Rating:
Summary: Nichols's Masterpiece, a gem in American literature
Review: If your literary tastes run toward Hemingway, don't bother trying to wade through "The Milagro Beanfield War." Action and plot take a back seat to the exploration of characters and cultures here. On the other hand, if you enjoy Steinbeck or Updike, you will feel perfectly at home in this beautifully crafted novel.

Nichols introduces us to nearly every inhabitant of the village of Milagro, as well as many of the non-natives involved in the story, and spends a great deal of time telling us their past stories, their habits and traits, and their thoughts and emotions. Through these people we also learn about their places in society, the cultures they inhabit and create, the land that they live on and how their lives are tied to that land. In reading this novel for the first time I found I often had to reread entire sections and chapters to make sure that I had, in fact, caught every detail and digested every piece of the story; somehow, if I glossed over something, I could sense that an important piece was missing.

People, places, and cultures are really the heart of this novel. The story itself, about land-developers trying to find a delicate way to keep one native's illegal irrigation of a tiny beanfield from blowing out of control and destroying their resort development plans, moves forward only in drips and bits. Any particular scene or incident of note along the way is used largely to advance our understanding of the people and their cultures and conflicts and prejudices, and only tangentially happen to advance the story. By the end of the novel, you will probably get the sense that not much happened at all in the story, and you'd be right. If you come to this conclusion, however, spend some time thinking about what might have happened to your understanding of these "fictional" characters and the very real lands and cultures they live in.

(Although this novel takes place in the Southwest United States at some time in the mid-1970's, astute readers will be able to transfer this character and culture study to other current conflicts in the world between American and native cultures in other countries. The basic themes and lessons of "Milagro" can apply nearly anywhere.)

Nichols's gift for the written word is on its best display in this novel. Other books by Nichols are well written, but this one stands out in particular as his masterpiece. Read this book first before reading any of his other novels.

If you decide to buy this book, plan on reading it two or three times. Every new pass will reveal things you missed or didn't quite catch the first time around and will enhance your enjoyment of the novel.

Rating:
Summary: An Antidote to Modern Cynicism
Review: If, like me, you need an occasional break from the cynicism and irony that prevails in modern fiction, you're probably just looking for a good, warm-hearted, read. This is it. It offers up a story of people who are at odds with each other, but learn to compromise. The characters are quirky, but the writing is not overly cute, as is the case with authors such as Tom Robbins, to whom Nichols is sometimes compared. This is essentially a "good time" read. Those looking for deep human insights or psychological delving should look elsewhere. This one's an unadulterated joy-ride.

Rating:
Summary: Mark Twain Would Definetly Approve
Review: Nichols best assest is his ability to develop some of the most interesting and funny characters in modern fiction. I embarrassed myself several times by laughing outloud while reading this book. I have not seen the movie which was directed by Robert Redford. I can't see it working out well because there is such a great deal of charcaters and subplots. If anyone has any comments about the film you should publish them here.

Rating:
Summary: A thought provoking yet hilarious view of life in rural N.M.
Review: Nichols has captured, in this classic novel, the struggle between the Anglo and Hispanic cultures in rural New Mexico. The book is filled with some of the most colorful and unforgettable characters in all of literature, from the irrepressible Joe Mondragon, who defies his neighbors and the state in irrigating his bean field to Onofre Martinez, the ancient character whose arm was lost to butterflies and now flies around stealing odds and ends to Pacheco, whose pig is the terror of the community. The reader comes away from this book having laughed, cried and understood a little bit more about courage and stupidity.

Rating:
Summary: Enchanting
Review: Now more than a quarter century since it was first published, The Milagro Beanfield War remains a wonderfully entertaining and humorous look at life in rural New Mexico. Although fictional, the little town of Milagro that John Nichols describes is like any of the small towns in the beautiful mountains of northern New Mexico - the kind of place where not much has changed in the last 50 years and probably not much will change in the next 50; the kind of place where everybody in town not only knows everbody else in town, but they also know everybody else's secrets (thanks to the archaic old party line phone system where anyone can listen in on anyone else's phone conversations).

The residents of Milagro have been oppressed for years by Ladd Devine, rich developer and owner of the Ladd Devine Sheep Company. The "war" starts when Joe Mondragon, a stubborn and not-so-bright lifelong troublemaking resident of Milagro, decides to irrigate his father's old beanfield against the wishes of Devine, who obtained nearly all the water rights from Milagro farmers years ago. The sparks begin to fly almost immediately as the town's cast of eccentric characters debate whether to support Joe while Devine, the governor, and the state police try to decide how to react without inciting a riot among the residents of Milagro.

All of the characters like Sammy Cantu, the town's mayor (who supported installing a single parking meter in town in hopes of getting enough revenue to pay for the sherrif's office), the one-armed Onofre Martinez who is the only resident to ever park in front of that meter, and the slightly insane Seferino Pacheco, owner of a giant pet pig that is constantly getting loose and wreaking havoc around town, provide plenty of laughs while the "war" rages on.

Nichols describes the simple life and beauty of northern New Mexico masterfully, making it possible to almost feel the cool mountain air and taste the enchiladas while enjoying the exploits of the town's residents. If you've ever wondered why New Mexico is called the Land of Enchantment, read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Enchanting
Review: Now more than a quarter century since it was first published, The Milagro Beanfield War remains a wonderfully entertaining and humorous look at life in rural New Mexico. Although fictional, the little town of Milagro that John Nichols describes is like any of the small towns in the beautiful mountains of northern New Mexico - the kind of place where not much has changed in the last 50 years and probably not much will change in the next 50; the kind of place where everybody in town not only knows everbody else in town, but they also know everybody else's secrets (thanks to the archaic old party line phone system where anyone can listen in on anyone else's phone conversations).

The residents of Milagro have been oppressed for years by Ladd Devine, rich developer and owner of the Ladd Devine Sheep Company. The "war" starts when Joe Mondragon, a stubborn and not-so-bright lifelong troublemaking resident of Milagro, decides to irrigate his father's old beanfield against the wishes of Devine, who obtained nearly all the water rights from Milagro farmers years ago. The sparks begin to fly almost immediately as the town's cast of eccentric characters debate whether to support Joe while Devine, the governor, and the state police try to decide how to react without inciting a riot among the residents of Milagro.

All of the characters like Sammy Cantu, the town's mayor (who supported installing a single parking meter in town in hopes of getting enough revenue to pay for the sherrif's office), the one-armed Onofre Martinez who is the only resident to ever park in front of that meter, and the slightly insane Seferino Pacheco, owner of a giant pet pig that is constantly getting loose and wreaking havoc around town, provide plenty of laughs while the "war" rages on.

Nichols describes the simple life and beauty of northern New Mexico masterfully, making it possible to almost feel the cool mountain air and taste the enchiladas while enjoying the exploits of the town's residents. If you've ever wondered why New Mexico is called the Land of Enchantment, read this book.