Discover the Poignant Tale of Love Migration and Family Ties
Watercolors and Tears -A Novel
Passionately narrates a love story crossed by the migratory phenomenon. The uprooting of the couple, Manuel and Elvira, a ubiquitous theme in the narrative, depicts a contemporary phenomenon that affects millions of people. Thanks to his realistic depiction of scenes and emotions throughout the novel, the author manages to involve the reader. It addresses powerful themes: family ties strained by remoteness, love and romance at a distance, the reconstruction of the characters’ lives, and their struggle to achieve their dreams.
The story is told by an omniscient narrator, granting ample freedom to explore Manuel's and Elvira's paths and experiences. The language is masterfully used, interspersed with lyrics and images, with credible and well-crafted dialogues. The literary style is fluid, simple, and elegant, with aesthetic effects and touches of verbal ingenuity that make the text a delightful read. The scenes are presented in vivid and clear recounting, emotions are explored in depth, and the action is narrated precisely.
Meet the Characters
The characters are delicately drawn inside and out. A few words from their lips or a description of their surroundings are enough to let us know what’s in them. Some are touching, others are troubled, but they are never inert.
We have Elvira and Manuel, the couple who emigrate and fight against all obstacles, including the most straining one: loneliness.
There is Antonio, the lawyer for whom Elvira works as a babysitter in Madrid, who captures her heart. Martin is a child who has taken refuge in his inner silence since his father was deported, and Manuel rescues him from his depths with his watercolor paintings. Doña Neti, the owner of the house where Manuel lives in New York, is a loving and helpful landlady who gives her heart to each of her tenants.
Other lesser but memorable characters are Dr. Duque, a dentist from the University of Cuenca, Ecuador. Without a license to operate in New York, he establishes an extensive underground practice by word of mouth, literally. Sister Felisa, the nun who shows Elvira the collection of ancient books in her convent of Cuenca, thus encouraging her love of reading. Many other memorable characters accompany the reader and give life to the novel.
Synopsis
Manuel and Elvira, bound by love and the shared dream of a better life, find themselves separated by continents as they pursue the elusive promise of migration. Manuel embarks on a treacherous journey north, only to find himself at death's steps in the unforgiving Arizona desert. Rescued by Pedro, a Yaqui healer, he learns from his ancestral wisdom that would offer solace amidst the chaos of his trip.
Elvira tries to join her husband by sea. After a harrowing storm, she is shipwrecked and narrowly escapes when rescued by a fishing boat. Restless and ambitious, she later flies to Madrid, Spain. She is hired as a nanny for a wealthy family. One day Antonio, the father of the children she cares for, discovers she is secretly reading a book from his antique collection. In awe, he leaves an adhesive mark on a passage for her to read. After much hesitation, she leaves her marks on phrases in other books. Through this absorbing literary exchange, love quickly seeps in.
Torn between commitment and a newfound passion, Elvira becomes entangled in a utopian romance that deepens the chasm between her and Manuel. Letters and fleeting phone calls are her only ties to her husband as the abyss between them grows vaster with the burden of secrets and regrets.
After years of separation, carrying the weight of her choices, Elvira journeys to New York. She plans to bring Manuel to their homeland to mend the fraying bond with her children. A tragic accident forces a reckoning, and she must travel alone. She then discovers the precious watercolors he has painted in his long solitude. His brushstrokes lacerate deep into her heart.
Jose Orlando Castañeda
After finishing high school in his hometown (Ibagué, Colombia) and winning a local history contest, JOSÉ ORLANDO CASTAÑEDA emigrated to the United States. Following a liberal arts college degree, a master's degree from Columbia University, and a J.D. from Pace University, he opened a law firm in Port Chester, New York, where he later became a judge. That transition is presented in his short story The Flower Parade.
His profession allowed him to work with the immigrant community and appreciate up close the consequences of separation: broken homes, children growing up without their parents, and the grief of those left behind. “We live for those we love and stay, and we die for those we love and are gone,” an elderly man once told him. The stories he heard throughout his career motivated him to write WATERCOLORS AND TEARS, an absorbing and realistic tale written against the background of immigration, a relentless phenomenon that, while seeking progress, isolates families and truncates love.
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