Mi Mochito Sephardim from Northern New Mexico

About the Book

What a delightful book! Jo Izay is an able story teller, which is quite an art. The book had me in stitches with mi Mochito's recitation of "history." The character mi Mochito is unique and shares an incredibly hilarious view of historic events. The book takes place in the northeast mountains of New Mexico where a few hundred years ago Sephardic Jews went to escape the inquisition. Although the book is ostensibly fiction, it does give much very interesting accurate historical information about what happened to these people and how they intermarried with, e.g., Indians, other Jews, etc, yet kept the rudiments of their religious practices to this very day. There is so much to be learned about, e.g., the penitentes, Indians "Los Mormones", language (Spanish, Ladino, English, Latin, Hebrew, etc), that anyone interested in cultures will find the book fascinating. The relationship between the Catholic priest and the Rabbi is fascinating and humorous. In my opinion, the book should be in the library of every synagogue and every student of cultures. And, it's funny! Bert Robinson – Baton Rouge, LA

About the Author

Jo Roybal Izay was born in the village of Llano located at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains along northern New Mexico and southern Colorado. Her ancestors were among the first colonizers in the late 1700 in Las Trampas and later, in Llano. Raised by her elderly grandparents, she listened intently as they described the hardship fleeing from the Holy Inquisition that had for centuries followed the Ladinos from Spain, to Old Mexico and to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Izay has been writing and lecturing on the Sephardim and the Penitentes for the past 40 years. She is the author of “Señor Gamblin’ Rabbi” and “Penitente, the Credo in Verse.”