Almanac of the Dead (1991)

Almanac of the Dead is the second novel by Leslie Marmon Silko, first published in 1991.

Overview

Almanac of the Dead takes place in the American Southwest and Central America, focusing on the conflict between Anglo-Americans and Native Americans. It follows the stories of dozens of major characters in a non-linear narrative format, switching between the present day, flashbacks, and occasional mythological storytelling.

The novel's numerous characters are often separated by both time and space, and many seemingly have little to do with one another at first. A majority of these characters are involved in criminal or revolutionary organizations; including the Zapatista Army of National Liberation revolutionaries, arms dealers, drug kingpins, an elite assassin, corrupt politicians, and a black market organ dealer.

Driving many of these individual storylines is a general theme of total reclamation of Native American lands, as well as a celebration of the value of storytelling.

Critiquing the limitations of the American Indian Movement, the novel presents readers with the model of "tribal internationalists," individuals who work with international alliances to reclaim their Indigenous land. Several literary critics have been critical of the novel's depiction of homosexuality, as the novel features male gay and bisexual characters who are variously abusive, sadistic, and cruel.

Plot

Part One: The United States of America

The opening section consists of eight books with smaller chapters totalling 234 pages. In this section, the following characters are introduced: Lecha, Zeta, Seese, Sterling, Yoeme, Calabazas, Ferro, Paulie, David, Eric, Beaufrey, Jamey, Root, Mosca, Mahwala, Sarita, and Liria. These characters contain the core expository elements and conflicts of the opening section. Most of this section takes place in Arizona, New Mexico, and Southern California.

Part Two: Mexico

This section only has two books: "Reign of Death Eye-Dog" and "Reign of Fire-Eye Macaw", which both consist of interconnected short stories. They total 91 pages. New characters are introduced, namely Menardo, Iliana, Alegria, General J, Green Lee, El Grupo, Bartolomeo, Angelita La Escapia, El Feo, and Tacho. All the events occur in Tuxtla, Chiapas, or in and around Mexico City.

Part Three: Africa

This section of the novel consists of three books: "New Jersey", "Arizona", and "El Paso", and is 117 pages. In this section, some of the characters from the previous two parts re-appear. Menardo, Alegria, Zeta, and Lecha are mentioned. Others return fully to the center of the narrative. The new characters introduced are Max Blue, Leah, Trigg, Rambo-Roy, Clinton, Sonny Blue, Bingo, Angelo, Marilyn, Peaches, and Judge Arne. Sterling, Ferro, Paulie, Seese, and Jamey are present through the rest of the book.

Part Four: The Americas

This section takes place in Mexico and Colombia. It is split into two books: "Mountains" and "Rivers," and consists of 100 pages. The stories of this section focus on Menardo, Alegria, El Feo, Tacho, Bartolomeo, and Angelita La Escapia, as well as the minor characters Beaufrey and Serlo.

In "Rivers", the latter two have gone to Colombia with David to make deals, ride horses, sniff coke, and indulge any of their other desires. Beaufrey and Serlo's personal histories are also described, showing them to be narcissists obsessed with the pure blood of their European ancestors. They also wish to make an alternative world away from Black, Native, Asian, or mixed people, as well as white people who they claim to be of lower-class rank and status. It is revealed that Beaufrey is gay, has a fetish for torture videos, and is using David for nothing more than sex and emotional manipulation. Both Beaufrey and Serlo are also revealed to be behind the disappearance of Seese and David's child Monte, and explicitly state how much pleasure they had in watching David and Seese suffer as a result.

Part Five: The Fifth World

The fifth section of the novel continues to have the various story-lines and plot points converge. At nearly 140 pages, it is the second longest section of the novel. It is made up of three books: "The Foes," "The Warriors," and "The Struggle". In the first book "The Foes", the plot focuses on the trauma experienced by the twin sisters Lech and Zeta. Simultaneously the sisters learn of the triplets La Escapia, El Feo, and Tacho and their resistance efforts. It is revealed that Seese is from Tucson, where she worked as a stripper for Tiny.

Mosca develops an obsession for the Blue family and their businesses in Tucson, while Calabazas is shown to be compassionate, yet losing his edge. Liria and Sarita's work on the border is also described. All these characters' worlds become explicitly connected to Max Blue and his family in "The Warriors" book, due to Mosca's plan that makes Sonny begin a feud with the Tucson police. Judge Arne also features extensively in this section, and is shown to be as powerful as Max Blue and deranged as Serlo or Beaufrey.

The third book, "The Struggle" sees Alegria crossing the Mexico-U.S. border, and a new character is introduced; Awa Gee, who is a close friend of Zeta. Awa Gee is a Korean computer scientist that hacks the U.S. government and develops weapons for the poor. Awa Gee becomes a vital component of Zeta's plan. Ferro's lover Jamey is also introduced.