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66 pages 2 hours read

Pablo Cartaya

The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2017

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Symbols & Motifs

Food

From the Zamoras’s traditional family dinners, to Abuela’s mango batidos, to Aunt Tuti’s “legendary” (143) churros, food serves as an important motif in the novel, signifying the nurturing that sustains families and communities. Abuela and Abuelo opened their first restaurant, a small luncheonette, where many Cuban immigrants lived, and it provided “comfort food to a whole group of people who longed for a taste of home” (129). La Cocina de la Isla likewise serves its Cuban neighborhood familiar foods from Cuba, and thereby nourishes and strengthens the common cultural roots of the community.

As sharing and enjoying food strengthens family and community ties, it is noteworthy that Wilfrido deprives his employees of the foods they crave. When Arturo and Carmen find Claudio near tears while eating cake, he explains, “I haven’t had sugar in two years. Wilfrido […] forbids his assistants from gaining even one pound” (216). Wilfrido is the nemesis of traditional communities in several ways, including restricting the enjoyment of food.

Abuela’s Floribunda Bush

Abuela’s floribunda bush symbolizes her faith that by treating others with genuine care, one can help them flourish and reach their potential. Although she assiduously tends to the bush, ensuring it has everything it needs, it has never bloomed. Arturo notes that Abuela nevertheless refuses to give up and “keeps thinking they’re going to bloom soon” (53).

The evening of Abuela’s memorial dinner, Carmen hauls a flowering floribunda bush to La Cocina. As “[f]riends and friends of friends showed up by the dozens” (197) to honor Abuela’s memory, they demonstrate that, through the care and attention she gave everyone, she nurtured a thriving community. While Abuela’s own bush never bloomed, the flowering floribunda at her memorial dinner symbolizes the flourishing community she always lovingly tended to.

The Incredible Hulk

Arturo wakes every morning to his Incredible Hulk alarm clock and masquerades as the superhero to spy on Wilfrido. The costume he barely squeezes into is a holdover from when he was smaller, suggesting the Hulk symbolizes his childhood and his reluctance to grow out of it. Upon seeing Arturo wearing the costume, Carmen mistakenly thinks he has chosen to disguise himself not as the Hulk, but as her “little brother” (61). Her assumption underscores the connection between the superhero and childhood.

If the Hulk symbolizes Arturo’s childhood, however, the character also symbolizes change. According to the comic book story, whenever circumstances trigger his anger, a mild-mannered scientist transforms into the mighty Hulk superhero. The metamorphosis involves changing from a condition of powerlessness to one of power, much like the transition from childhood to adulthood. In this way, the Hulk figure represents both Arturo’s boyhood and his growth into young adulthood.

Pipo Place

Wilfrido’s proposed luxury high-rise, Pipo Place, looms large in Arturo’s narrative, representing the powerful, pervasive economic forces that drive change, often at the expense of “the little guy.” While protesting Wilfrido’s project, Carmen exclaims, “We’re trying to make a difference, just like José Martí. He fought for Cuban independence from Spain” (141). Her remark points to the novel’s implicit construal of gentrification as a modern-day form of colonialism. Although Wilfrido hypes his proposal as progress for the neighborhood, his redevelopment of Canal Grove would destroy the unique culture of its tight-knit community. Like the Spanish domination of Cuba, Wilfrido seeks “a hostile takeover” (144) of Canal Grove for his own profit.

José Martí

The novel provides historical details about the life and accomplishments of José Martí; within Arturo’s narrative, Martí represents love, compassion, and the struggle for justice. He also serves as a model for Arturo, who, like Martí, uses his poetry to defend his community against the invasion of an outsider.

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