Signed Best Selling Chicano Novel "Bless Me Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya, Quinto Sol Publication, 1973

Rudolfo Anaya

Book

[Chicano Literature] Anaya, Rudolfo A. Bless Me, Ultima, Signed by the author , 1973, a foundational work of Chicano literature exploring Mexican American identity and tensions between Indigenous spiritual traditions and Catholic orthodoxy in the U.S. Southwest. Written during a period of intensified Chicano cultural and political activism, the novel establishes a narrative of cultural continuity and resistance through the coming of age of Antonio “Tony” Márez, whose moral and spiritual development unfolds amid competing familial, religious, and communal expectations. Anaya’s incorporation of curanderismo through the figure of Ultima positions Indigenous healing practices and cosmology as enduring systems of knowledge, directly challenging assimilationist pressures and Anglo-American cultural dominance while contributing to the formation of a distinct Chicano literary canon.

Anaya, Rudolfo A. Bless Me, Ultima. Berkeley, California: Quinto Sol Publications, 1973. Signed by the author on front free endpaper: “Para Ana Con carino bueno suerte. Rudolfo A. Anaya May 10, 1974.” The novel traces Tony’s negotiation of identity through encounters with folklore, myth, and religious doctrine, using Ultima’s presence as both spiritual guide and cultural anchor. Its publication through Quinto Sol, a press central to the Chicano literary movement, and its receipt of the Premio Quinto Sol situate the work within a broader effort to establish Mexican American voices in U.S. publishing. The book’s sustained presence in educational curricula alongside repeated challenges and attempts at censorship underscores its contested role in discussions of religion, sexuality, and cultural authority in American public life. Over time, Bless Me, Ultima has become one of the most widely circulated works of Chicano fiction, reflecting its continued relevance in literary and cultural studies. 8vo. Black pictorial softcover. Minor shelfwear with some cracking to spine and light signs of handling; owner’s ex libris on frontispiece. Overall very good condition.

Item #20229

Price: $580.00