Entrancing and sentimental, told with wit and sharp insight, The Holy Days of Gregorio Pasos examines the joys and traumas of the Latinx American experience through the lens of a young man awakening to the nuances of identity, love, colonization, and home. As Gregorio recovers from a soccer injury, he relives a decisive period of his life when he is eighteen and adrift. His parents are divorcing, his sister is estranged, and his poor goalkeeping has just cost his soccer team their most important game of the season. As a graduation present, Gregorio's defiant uncle Nico takes him to Colombia, where he is introduced to old friends, family memories, and a culture ailing after years of conflict and colonization. When they return, Gregorio follows in his uncle's footsteps and pursues employment at an art museum in Washington, D.C., where he moves into the basement of a townhouse owned by Magdalena, a Basque exile he befriends. As the year wends on and anti-immigrant rhetoric reaches an apex, Gregorio notes the disparities in his community while struggling to define his own identity and direction. Gregorio joins his friend Raúl's soccer team, resuming his role as goalkeeper, seeking purpose and redemption.
The Holy Days of Gregorio Pasos is a compassionate story of benevolence, memory, and preservation that considers what has been lost, what must never be forgotten, and our collective responsibility to one another. Poetic and thoughtful, Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya has given us an unforgettable voice in Gregorio Pasos: astute, charming, and illuminating.
Additional Reading:
AN EXCERPT: Electric Literature presents "A Fresh Start in a City Ruled by History," and excerpt from The Holy Days of Gregorio Pasos, recommended by Tariq Shah.
AN EXCERPT: The Offing presents "Medellín," an excerpt from The Holy Days of Gregorio Pasos.
SELECT INTERVIEWS:
The Rumpus: A Conversation with Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya 9/20/2023
María Alejandra Barrios spoke with debut novelist Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya, author of The Holy Days of Gregorio Pasos, about "the process of writing his novel, the beauty of short and powerful books, his favorite Colombian authors, what's next for this Colombian American writer," and more!
Latino Book Review: Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya 7/20/2023
Daniel A. Olivas, for the Latino Book Review, spoke with author Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya about the journey his debut novel took from inception to publication, the effect that writing about his parents' homeland of Colombia had on him, how he crafted his characters and his settings, and much more!
Bookin' Podcast: Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya 7/9/2023
"This week, host Jason Jefferies is joined by Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya, who discusses his new debut novel The Holy Days of Gregorio Pasos. Topics of conversation include the relativity of time, sports novels, pain pills, Colombia, the value of literature, and much more! Bookin' Podcast is sponsored by indie bookstore Explore Booksellers.
Q&A with Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya 8/19/2022
We talk with Rodrigo Restrepo Montoya about his forthcoming debut novel, The Holy Days of Gregorio Pasos.
