The joyful cacophony of color that envelopes visitors to Guatemala may
seem misplaced at first. After all, the nation has only recently emerged
from a 36-year civil war that destroyed its infrastructure and claimed
more than a million lives. But to the authors of ¡Viva Colores!: A
Salute to the Indomitable People of Guatemala, it is a vivid expression
of a 1,500-year-old spirit that refuses to die. Photographer Paola
Gianturco and writer David Hill offer inspirational profiles of a people
who have endured and, indeed, gained strength, thanks to the bounty of
their land, their beliefs, traditions, and kinship with one another.
People like Luis.
Luis was orphaned as a small child. The aunt and uncle who took him in
sent him into the streets to hawk trinkets and cadge pesos from
tourists. He quickly figured out that he could do better if he learned
the tourists' language, so he taught himself English. At 18, he became a
licensed tour guide. Five years later, he was begging again, a homeless
panhandler, brought low by demon rum. Then he found AA, which helped him
get sober and gave him a reason to live. He traveled his country,
launching AA programs. Today, he's a doting grandfather and popular tour
guide. Luis' story is but one of many Gianturco and Hill have discovered
in their travels through Guatemala. Readers of their book will enjoy-and
be inspired by-many more.
