The Five Wounds

“And as the blade slid into his back, Amadeo’s swelling sense of his own falseness.”

Amadeo is well aware that he is an odd choice for the role of Jesus. Part of why he is so invested in his performance is that he sees playing Christ “well” as its own kind of redemption: He hopes that if the town thinks that he does a good job, they will forgive his many sins and misdeeds. His role in this early part of the novel lays the foundation for the theme of Redemption and Faith, which the following part explores with more depth and nuance.

“All this beauty. Also underfunded public schools, dry winters, a falling water table, shitty job prospects. Mostly what people have now is cheap heroin.”

This passage speaks to the motif of heroin within the novel and the role that the opioid epidemic has played in the socioeconomic depression of the region. In many ways, the town of Española is the epicenter of the current opioid epidemic in northern New Mexico; Valdez Quade draws attention to that issue through her narrative.

“It’s called a recession, Angel. Besides, I’m getting together a business, windshield repair. I have a kit and everything.

This passage speaks to Amadeo’s characterization. In this moment, he snaps at Angel for asking him about his current employment and tries to blame his own lack of motivation on the broader economic climate in the United States. He has recently purchased, with his mother’s money, a kit with which he hopes to start a business. Sadly, this effort resembles many of his other failed “business ventures” in the past, and Angel does not have high hopes for it.

“You shouldn’t have come. You think you have a right to just barge into my house and make yourself at home.”

This passage shows Amadeo’s unwillingness to be a parent to his child. He lives with Yolanda, so it isn’t truly “his house.” The bigger problem (and irony), though, is that during a week of preparation for the Easter procession, during which he is supposed to be thinking about sacrifice, responsibility, and duty, he mostly just thinks about himself. His self-centeredness prevents him from realizing that Angel is his real responsibility, not the parade.

“They both feel entitled to be in her home, and it surprises Yolanda that she doesn’t necessarily think that they are.”

This passage speaks to Yolanda’s characterization. She has always quietly and patiently supported her family members both financially and emotionally. They do not necessarily return this level of caring and respect. In the context of the theme of Generational Trauma and Healing, Yolanda is keenly aware of the impact of generational trauma on her children, and part of her descendants’ road to healing will be caring for Yolanda at the end of her life.

“Española being Española, she expected there to be heroin addicts.”

This line speaks to the motif of heroin within the narrative and to the theme of Generational Trauma and Healing. The area in which The Five Wounds is set is the epicenter of the opioid epidemic in New Mexico, and Valdez Quade aims to draw attention to that crisis through her writing.

“So Angel went out more and more to parties in people’s parentless houses or at empty buildings and construction sites at the end of long roads in the empty desert.”

This moment speaks to Angel’s characterization and to the theme of Generational Trauma and Healing. Because Angel grew up without a stable family, she looks for solace in other places. Her own parents’ diminished parenting ability is also rooted in generational trauma, and Angel is thus emblematic of the way that such trauma plays out in generation after generation.

“When he looks at his daughter, Amadeo sometimes has the sense that he’s looking at one of those holographic postcards. She’s a woman, she’s a child, she’s the tiny kid he once was. He can’t get her image to hold steady.”

This moment is the beginning of Amadeo’s road to redemption, marking the first time that he sees Angel for her true self. He is struck by her age and inexperience. In addition, much like her own mother, Angel is having a baby of her own before she reaches adulthood. This realization is part of Amadeo’s broader transformation, supporting the development of his Personal Growth and Identity.

“‘I remembered a joke. Did you hear about the hurricane that passed through Española?’ A nurse is doing something between Angel’s legs, so Amadeo rushes. ‘Ripped right through town and did two million dollars worth of repairs.’”

This passage speaks to the poverty that characterizes the region in which the novel is set. Poverty is both a cause and effect of generational trauma. The characters in the narrative have grown up without equitable access to healthcare, education, and jobs, which perpetuates their struggles.

“Marissa never asked him to do pickups or take Angel to doctor’s appointments; she turned instead to her mother and his. She never even had the faintest flicker of faith in him, and was right not to.”

This passage speaks to Amadeo’s characterization at the beginning of the novel. Because he is self-centered and is not an involved parent, Marissa does not even attempt to rely on him. This dynamic will shift as the narrative progresses, but Amadeo is not initially characterized as a responsible father.

“What’s the point of being sober if nobody notices?”

This passage speaks to one of Amadeo’s most defining traits at the beginning of the novel, his desire for attention and praise. Although rooted in the trauma of losing his father at a young age, it manifests as self-interest and prevents him from meaningfully relating to his family members. In terms of Personal Growth and Identity, Amadeo’s character arc exemplifies great change in this area.

“Even in these long, exhausting days when she’s constantly yanked by the needs of the baby’s body and her own, Angel keeps the duvet smooth, her lotions and baby toiletries lined up on the bureau, label out as if they were still on display at the store. In this tiny, enclosed piece of the planet, she is in control of her life.”

This passage speaks to Angel’s characterization. It reveals her to be an intelligent, responsible, caring individual who is actually well equipped to be a parent in spite of her young age. In the context of Personal Growth and Identity, Angel began a step ahead of her parents in many ways, yet she still struggles with the profound changes she is facing.

“They’re so incurious, her offspring.”

This passage is a critical piece helping the reader to understand Yolanda, who is largely ignored by her children in spite of the large role she plays in their lives. Much of her inner monologue is dedicated to an experience of living that is completely hidden to her children and, to a lesser extent to Angel. They are too involved in their own lives to notice Yolanda.

“Why can’t I make things better, Angel?”

Marissa speaks these lines to Angel. They reflect the theme of dysfunction and forgiveness in families. Marissa and Angel have a damaged relationship, and although Angel wants to forgive her mother, she finds it difficult. Angel is too young to have so much responsibility, and she suffers when her parents continue to shift a parental role onto her—in this case, with her mother needing instruction on forgiveness.

“Amadeo surges with anger at this God who can’t understand a 16-year-old girl’s anguish about her body.”

This passage speaks to the novel’s complex relationship with religion and the theme of Redemption and Faith. Although Amadeo initially thinks that religion will be his road to redemption, it is much more through the realization of the importance of family that he undergoes a process of personal growth.

“He looks around the bathroom, but there’s no help to be found. He’s 19 again, and it’s summer, and he’s with Marissa in her parents’ backyard. They stretch out by the kiddie pool, beers warming in their hands and in the sun, while Angel plays. Amadeo has a plastic dinosaur in his hand, a purple stegosaurus, and he’s making it dance on the surface of the water.”

This is a striking moment in which Amadeo recognizes the similarities between Angel’s experiences and his own with her mother. It is one of the key instances of self-reflection that allow him to redeem himself and to become a responsible, caring member of his family.

“Oh, hijita, the baby blues pass.”

Yolanda attempts to comfort Angel, who is suffering from post-partum depression. This representation of “the baby blues” is an important piece of the novel, as post-partum depression so often goes undiscussed. Although not as prominent as other issues in the novel, the lack emotional support for women, especially in the aftermath of giving birth, is another pathway by which generational trauma continues.

“He’s not so bad, her dad. She can see the effort he’s making.”

Here, Angel, who is very self-reflective, can begin to see signs of growth and change in her father. Out of the two, Angel has the more emotional intelligence. These lines demonstrate that Angel can sense changes in Amadeo before he can.

“Oh god, Angel thinks, in bed with Lizette. I am a lesbian, and the thought thrills and horrifies her.”

This is an important moment of characterization for Angel. Although previously sexually active, it is only with Lizette that Angel experiences true intimacy. This relationship teaches her more about herself than any of her previous flings.

“And so begins the time of caretaking. Yolanda is going to die at home, she informs them.”

This portion of the text marks the first time the family comes together as a whole. Their aim, finally, is to provide Yolanda with the care she provided to them their whole lives. This process is part of how the family members all heal from generational trauma, that is, by working together and focusing on one another.

“Until four in the morning, Amadeo paced the hot living room with his grandson, narrating everything the way Angel taught him.”

Amadeo is undergoing a process of redemption and personal growth. He has gone from being self-centered and self-involved to being involved in the life of his family. He puts their needs over his own.

“Amadeo is a father, a grandfather. He’s involved in an adult relationship. His terminally ill mother depends on him. All of these things may be true on the surface, but in the face of Angel’s exhaustion, whatever is going on between him and Brianna seems very slight and very juvenile.”

Amadeo has come to understand more about responsibility and family, and because he has accepted his role as supporter and provider for his daughter, he is able to properly prioritize the different parts of his life. Because Angel is more important, Brianna begins to seem trivial.

“Angel doesn’t even fake a smile. The fact that it didn’t occur to her to challenge her expulsion, didn’t occur to her father either, is galling.”

This moment speaks not only to the theme of Generational Trauma and Healing but also to the ways that privilege and poverty interweave. Had Angel grown up in a family with more social and educational capital, she and her parents would have known that they had a right to contest her expulsion. Because her own parents lacked not only education but also experience within the world of education (a kind of privilege), they are not aware that they have a right to at least meet with school officials.