In this blog post, you will read about a book based on a young Jewish martyr and his sister who died together in Mexico city in 1596. The book is titled "Fire & Song: The Story of Luis de Carvajal and the Mexican Inquisition" by Anna Lanyon.
I first came across this book a few years ago when I was researching Luis de Carvajal the founder of el Nuevo Reino de Leon which is present day Nuevo Leon, Mexico. By the way, this book does mention him but it is based on his nephew who had the same name, Luis de Carvajal.
I bought the book and browsed through it but had not had the chance to read it until recently. The nudge I needed was that it was the selected book for September for Las Villas del Norte book club.
Once I started to read it I could not put it down. The author made the people come to life and even got us in their head and way of thinking just by the careful study of historical documents.
As for genealogy it includes a family tree of the Carvajal family. In the book I also came across a reference to one of my ancestors, Francisco Benavides, who at the time was a soldier that witnessed the execution of Luis de Carvajal.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Jewish ancestry in Mexico and anyone interested in learning more about the Mexican Inquisition.
Fire & Song: The Story of Luis de Carvajal and the Mexican Inquisition
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations xiii
Preface and Acknowledgements ix
Maps xvi
Genealogy xviii
- A Distant Shore Pg. 1
- The City in the Fields Pg. 27
- The Place of Otters Pg. 48
- Captivity Pg. 78
- Acts of Faith Pg. 100
- The Book of Miracles Pg. 123
- Eyes Filled With Light Pg. 138
- Betrayal Pg. 164
- Joseph Pg. 187
- Days of Consolation
- More Like an Angel Than a Man
- Fragile Seed
- Silent for a Thousand Steps
- Coda
Note on Translation and Spelling Pg. 344
Biobibliography Pg. 345
Index Pg. 358
About the Author
Anna Lanyon studied Spanish, Portuguese and History at La Trobe University in Melbourne. She travelled widely before settling with her family on the southern coast of Victoria, near Portland. She teaches and translates Spanish, and is the author of Malinche's Conquest (A+U 2000). She works in Portland for La Trobe University's Centre for the Study of Mothers' and Children's Health, and continues to write whenever she can.
Get A Copy of This Book
Printed Copy - Buy at Amazon
Find a Copy at a Library Near you - WorldCat
