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Genizaro cover

Summary: SEPTEMBER 1 2008 READING NEW MEXICO FEATURES GENIZARIO THE ARTIST All good biographies and histories whether sweeping in scope or minutely focused rely on the stories of individuals to bring them to life The Genizaro the Artist delights the reader with both small brightly polished details and larger pieces of history most likely unknown to the average New Mexican This thoughtful gentle book contains the story of Napoleon Garcia a Genizaro born and raised in Abiquiú NM As he and his coauthor Analinda Dunn explain the Genizaros a term long fallen out of use were native peoples made slaves by the early Spanish settlers then baptized into Christianity with the goal of eradicating all indigenous identity According to the authors the Genizaros came from many of the nomadic tribes such as the Navajo Utes Comanches Kiowa Pawnee Apache and other non Pueblo Indians who were in the area at the time of Spanish colonization In later generations these families intermarried with Spanish families Abiquiú is one of the best known of the Genizaro communities involved in the Spanish land grants of the mid 1700s It is also known as the home of artist Georgia O Keefe for 40 years at the start of which time Garcia was a neighbor boy who ran errands for her His reminiscences of Abiquiú of Genizaro history and customs of Ghost Ranch and curanderas and of his interactions with the artist lady and her life in the community should interest not only historians and fans of Georgia O Keefe but also sociologists anthropologists folklorists and curious readers in general The two voices in The Genizaro the Artist are those of Garcia speaking in the first person and Dunn speaking in the third   These friends create a sweet duet reviving for us a world now gone and showing the strands that remain interwoven in the Abiquiú of today where Garcia reigns as one of its elders and local characters I recommend this slim volume for the gem like stories photos insights and generosity of spirit running through its deceptively straightforward narrative www readingnewmexico com

Image Dimensions: 72 x 108