Burro Genius (2004) is a memoir by Mexican American author Victor Villaseñor. Villaseñor recounts his childhood and adolescence, his experiences as a Mexican American in a discriminatory educational system, his struggles with dyslexia, and the formative years on his family’s ranch in California. Villaseñor situates the book in The Second Family Trilogy, a family saga about growing up as an immigrant in the United States and striving to maintain his cultural heritage. The trilogy includes the memoirs Beyond Rain of Gold and Crazy Loco Love.

Villaseñor is an acclaimed author and public speaker widely known for his national best-selling nonfiction book Rain of Gold. A three-time Pulitzer Prize nominee, he has received various awards and endorsements, including an appointment to serve as the founding Steinbeck Chair at Hartnell College and the National Steinbeck Center. His works, often taught in American schools, focus on Mexican identity and cultural heritage, Indigenous worldviews, and the importance of education and family.

This study guide uses the 2008 e-book edition by Harper Collins.

Content Warning: The source material discusses racism, abuse, and alcohol use disorder, and contains outdated and offensive terms for Indigenous peoples, replicated in this guide in direct quotes only.

Summary

Victor Villaseñor narrates his struggles in writing his memoir Burro Genius, a work in progress for years. Villaseñor had been working on the draft since 1962 and completed it decades later, after constant rejections and the publication of different books.

In Book 1, Villaseñor narrates his experiences at the 1973 English teachers’ conference in California. As a newly published author, he was invited to provide a writing workshop along with experienced fellow writers. After the main speaker was delayed, Villaseñor volunteered to offer the keynote address. Feeling enraged, he provided a fiery speech criticizing English teachers and the American school system for the abuse and racial discrimination he experienced at school. He stressed that his Yaqui grandmother was his greatest teacher. While many teachers congratulated him, one encouraged him to speak about his positive experiences in his education.

Villaseñor recalls his years as an adolescent student at the Army Naval Academy and his racist and abusive English teacher, Mr. Moses. However, he remembers a substitute teacher who sparked his love of writing. With a free writing project focusing on enthusiasm for writing, Villaseñor forgot his language struggles and realized his storytelling ability. The teacher gave Villaseñor his first A grade. However, when Mr. Moses returned, he re-graded his paper to D and ridiculed him in front of the class. A group of bullies in the Academy also attacked him and Villaseñor vowed revenge against his teachers.

In Book 2, Villaseñor recalls his childhood years at his family’s ranch and his traumatic school experiences. As a Spanish-speaking student, Villaseñor struggled with the English-only policy at school often imposed with violence. Before his first day of school, his father reminded him to be proud of his Mexican identity, and Villaseñor kept his grandmother’s teachings in mind. However, racial prejudice and discrimination at school impacted his psyche. Villaseñor demonstrated self-hatred and began to see his family through a prejudiced lens that considered Mexicans culturally inferior and inherently bad.

Villaseñor coped with his inner crisis, spending time with his family and encountering non-racist white people. He met two white cowboys who spent time on his family’s ranch using their corral for cattle. The two men praised Mexican culture and admired Villaseñor’s parents while dining with them, helping Villaseñor to regain his love for his family. Villasenor continued to experience distress due to his struggles with reading and his teachers’ abusive behaviors. Meanwhile, he was also spending time with his father and brother while building their ranch, absorbing their lessons on Mexican culture and manhood. His brother, Joseph, while battling an illness, taught him how to play marbles. Through his lessons, Villaseñor understood the importance of practice, focus, and method in learning. As he improved at the game and won over his classmates, he became more confident at school.

His father emphasized the importance of respecting the natural world and avoiding violence. When Villaseñor learned about his father’s struggles with lawlessness and alcohol use disorder, he realized the contradictions and challenges in the lives of men. His father explained that men must develop the heart of the “burro macho” to be emotionally strong and resilient. As Joseph’s health deteriorated, he conveyed to Villaseñor that compassion, forgiveness, and understanding are the values necessary for humanity. Such lessons guided Villaseñor’s path into manhood.

Villaseñor started to react against the children who bullied him, participating in fights. The night his brother died, Villaseñor saw Shep, Joseph’s dog, disappearing. Learning that animals are the guides of human souls to heaven helped him reconnect with the natural world and feel eternally connected to his brother.

In Book 3, Villaseñor traces his adolescence and returns to his years at the Army Naval Academy. After learning that he would have to repeat the third grade for a second time, he was devastated and continued to experience rejection and bullying because of his ethnicity. As the family grieved Joseph’s death, Villaseñor’s father kept reminding him of his resilient grandmother and her teachings, assuring him that the family would remain strong. Villaseñor had a unique experience riding his brother’s horse to the beach. The horse stepped into the sea to communicate with a pod of dolphins. Witnessing this, Villaseñor felt one with nature and saw a vision of his brother with Jesus Christ. Ηe was certain that Joseph was in heaven.

Villaseñor was transferred to a Catholic school, where he experienced the same prejudice and abuse. He was often punished by attending church alone, but Villaseñor found comfort in the church, feeling close to God. He realized that the educational system did not promote cultural diversity and critical thinking among the students.

In the seventh grade, Villaseñor attended the Army Naval Academy like his brother Joseph. His fellow cadets often bullied him, and he immediately had problems with Mr. Moses. He became an accomplished athlete but his teacher’s constant ridicule intensified his distress. Villaseñor felt his childhood fear of school transforming into rage and he became obsessed with killing Mr. Moses. His mind changed after witnessing an argument between his parents. His father was asking his mother to forgive the doctor who neglected Joseph’s illness, while his mother was dwelling on her rage and grief. Villaseñor realized that rage limits people’s lives. He struggled to forgive the doctor but, seeing his father embodying Joseph’s values of forgiveness and compassion, he understood that violence was not the solution. He returned to the ocean and re-encountered the dolphins while swimming, feeling his rage dissolve.

In the Afterword, Villaseñor reveals his dyslexia diagnosis while already a published author. He felt relieved that his struggles were finally recognized. Villaseñor states that an English-only policy in education limits children’s mental development. He advocates an inclusive educational system that would embrace a diversity of languages and allow students to access their inner “genius.” Villaseñor reveals that he encountered his old teacher Mr. Moses after the English teachers’ conference. The man could not remember his abusive behavior and congratulated Villaseñor as a writer. Ultimately, Villaseñor forgave him.