The Journal of Antonio Montoya (edition 1996)

From My Blog....

An astonishingly brilliant debut novel, The Journal of Antonio Montoya by Rick Collignon portrays the importance of family life and one's roots. After the death of Jose and Loretta Montoya, Ramona finds herself taking in her nephew Jose Jr., something she never envisioned she would be doing, especially since she did not think she would ever return to her hometown of Guadalupe, New Mexico. Caring for a child is not the only change in Ramona's life, she moved into her grandparents home and they too live there, even though they are deceased. Collignon takes an interesting route to show a family what is good and important. This is not a novel about hauntings, rather about life lessons which also come to Romano through a diary Jose Jr. found from 1924, which speaks of the town and the inhabitants of the town, their joys and struggles. The Journal of Antonio Montoya is an extraordinary novel, descriptively rich, splendidly narrated and filled with delightful characters. Collignon's debut novel is a vivid novel of family, life and learning from the past. I strongly recommend The Journal of Antonio Montoya to any and all readers and want to point out this novel is the first in a series that occur in the charming town of Guadalupe. ( )

Life in the magical Land of Enchantment.

She sat up in her casket & ran her fingers through her wet hair. “It's not a good day to be buried," she said. "In the mud. I hate the mud."

This was a fun little read. A contemporary ghost story with a dash of folklore. I came across the title during a scan of NM authors. I was surprised, when I opened the package and found a cute little book the size of a personal journal. Playfully odd and strikingly familair. You just knew that the author had spent lots of time around the people of New Mexico. Enjoyed it very much, thank you Mr. Collignon. ( )