Ixtepec es un peque o poblado que ha sobrevivido los embates de la violenta presencia de las tropas de los ej rcitos revolucionarios enfrentados en una lucha fratricida y sin tregua. Sus pobladores, desencantados porque la "revoluci n" no les llev justicia ni progreso, llevan una vida anodina y nost lgica que se fractura otra vez ante un nuevo conflicto armado, la Guerra Cristera, que promete pr ximas desgracias. Las autoridades han designado al general Francisco Rosas para que se haga cargo de mantener el orden y haga cumplir las disposiciones que el gobierno central disponga, en especial lo relativo al cese del culto religioso.

Las vidas del general Rosas, as como las de sus colaboradores m s cercanos y las de sus amantes, las de las prostitutas, beatas, perros callejeros, locos y de los miembros m s conocidos de las familias pudientes de Ixtepec, se ver n mezcladas y llevadas a un destino tr gico, donde no tienen cabida ni la ilusi n ni el amor.

Esta obra, considerada por muchos dentro de la corriente del realismo m gico, sustenta la fuerza de la narraci n en recursos po ticos que, lejos de confundir, potencian la trama; contada a trav s de varias voces, nos muestra un complejo entramado de planos narrativos entretejidos por la voz p trea y sombr a de los pobladores de Ixtepec, dejando al descubierto sus m s ntimos y oscuros deseos.

ENGLISH DESCRIPTION

The emblematic work of one of Mexico's canonical writers, accompanied by a critical analysis.

Ixtepec is a small village that has survived the battering of the violent presence of revolutionary troops pitted against each other in a ceaseless, fratricidal fight. Its residents, disillusioned because the "revolution" brought them neither justice nor progress, lead dull, nostalgic lives that are fractured again in the face of a new armed conflict, the Cristero War, which promises further misfortune. The authorities have charged Francisco Rosas with maintaining order and carrying out the wishes of the central government, especially those relating to ending religious worship. The lives of General Rosas, his closest collaborators, and his lovers, along with the lives of the prostitutes, clergy, street dogs, madmen, and most well-known members of Ixtepec's powerful families become intertwined and led to a tragic destiny, where there is no room for dreams or love. This work, considered by many to be in the vein of magic realism, supports the strength of its storytelling with poetic devices which merely enhance the plot. Told through various voices, this novel shows us a complex web of narrative planes that are interwoven through the stony, somber voices of Ixtepec's residents, exposing their darkest, most intimate desires.