The Cemetery of Untold Stories

Ultimately, Alvarez has written a story about storytellers, and the novel therefore examines the potentially negative consequences of being exposed to a story. In the opening chapter of the novel, for example, Alma and her writer-friend both struggle with the sense of overwhelm that arises when important stories remain stubbornly untold. As Alma tells her friend, “We don’t get free until we write our stories down. […] If you bring forth what is inside you, what is inside you will save you. If you do not bring forth what is inside, what is inside you will destroy you” (9). She equates creative energy to a flow of electricity, something that must be grounded and channeled so that it does not become destructive. When her friend dies, Alma believes that “[w]hat killed her friend was that novel she could neither write nor put aside” (10). This central belief in the destructive capability of an untold story sets the novel in motion, especially when Alma realizes that she must ritualistically separate herself from her own untold stories. Unfortunately, the clutter of stories in her head worsens even after she buries her untold tales, and her mental health suffers from this overload.