Once Upon a Time (Bomb) is a charming memoir of a young boy growing up in El Salvador. It tells the story of Alfonso Duque the Thirteenth, a youngster from a poverty-stricken family and a budding poet. Surrounded by hovering women-his mother, aunts, grandmothers, and sisters-little Alfonso still manages to enjoy boyish pranks and endure scraped elbows, knees, and ego while also discovering the pleasures of reading. The womenfolk laughingly describe him on his "throne" atop the trees or back in the outhouse, where he often escapes to read. This work of innocence is set against a darker...

Once Upon a Time (Bomb) is a charming memoir of a young boy growing up in El Salvador. It tells the story of Alfonso Duque the Thirteenth, a youngster from a poverty-stricken family and a budding poet. Surrounded by hovering women-his mother, aunts, grandmothers, and sisters-little Alfonso still manages to enjoy boyish pranks and endure scraped elbows, knees, and ego while also discovering the pleasures of reading. The womenfolk laughingly describe him on his 'throne' atop the trees or back in the outhouse, where he often escapes to read. This work of innocence is set against a darker...