Bless Me, Ultima Chapters 17-22

Well the book is over and I am relieved, but I'm also very disappointed. My top prediction about Antonio becoming an "Ultimo" was completely wrong. I clearly have not been using my clues well enough. The ending is not surprising though, and now that I have thought about it I feel like it was probably the best choice for an ending (aside from my prediction). The story ends like it begins, with uncertainty. Toni never knows what he wants to be and by the end surprise, surprise he still doesn't know. I'm all for the coming of age novel, but I thought that this one was not that great. I didn't care for how much emphasis was placed on religion, but I can live with it because I'm sure early twentieth century Mexico was intensely religious. Antonio places a whole bunch of significance into his first communion, thinking he will have a new found connection with god. This shows how immature Antonio really still is. When Toni is disappointed by the communion it shows that he can't just go with his mother's views like that. I would rate this book with a 6.5 out of 10, but that is just my opinion. Many people seem to like it.