Pillars of Creation
A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean World
By Carlos Nicolás Flores
Literary Fiction, Coming of Age
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Publication Date: 22 July, 2025
*** SYNOPSIS ***
Where is God amidst the mass graves, poverty, drug trafficking, and corrupt officials on the Texas-Mexico border?
Yoltic Cortez, a college dropout and aspiring writer in his mid-twenties, grapples with this question while living in an impoverished colonia. His bedridden father warns him to prepare spiritually for the challenges ahead by returning to their religious traditions and confronting the “Devil in the desert.”
Encouraged by his mentor, the “Failed Poet,” to pursue a literary career, Yoltic struggles to write his first book. His situation is further complicated when a young Mexican woman, fleeing the violence in northern Mexico, seeks his help.
In this Nietzschean world, a secular realm fraught with fear and loathing, where God has been declared dead, Yoltic’s quest for redemption and wisdom unfolds. Pillars of Creation: A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean World by Carlos Nicolás Flores offers a powerful perspective on the crisis at the Mexican-American border through the eyes of a gifted young Tejano.
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*** REVIEW ***
It’s an understatement to say I enjoyed Pillars of Creation, but enjoy it I did.
Immensely.
There are times that a break from light, genre fiction is in order, and this literary novel is one to read slowly and savor every element that went into crafting an engaging story.
First there’s the central character, Yoltic, who lives on the Texas side of the border with Mexico. The area is filled with drug dealing and violence and Yoltic is searching to find God in that desolate place. Does God even care about the people there? About him?
Nietzschean philosophy is a complex system of thought that renounces traditional morality, religion, and truth in favor of individual self-creation and the affirmation of life. To paraphrase one of the tenets: True art isn’t an illusion but the truthful representation of the difficulty found in the search for greatness.
A rather esoteric explanation, but one that applies to a specific aspect of Yoltic’s quest as he struggles to find a truth, any truth, and write a novel that in the end will mean something. Likewise, the philosophy is in play throughout as we read about Yoltic’s efforts to find God in such Godless circumstances. His search for meaning brings him in contact with the Failed Poet, who is a wise mentor throughout, but also someone who often confuses Yoltic.
At one point he tells the young man a harsh truth about writers, “So many books,” the failed poet once said, “are being published today that soon there will be more writers than readers. So while these megabook stores are sanctuaries of learning, they are also vast pits where the important writers get lost. No one reads them. You may spend years writing a masterpiece only to discover that no one gives a shit. . . . A real writer must concentrate on the craft, the discipline, not fame and fortune.” That makes Yotic wonder if he should even bother continuing with his novel.
The threads of that philosophical plot line are neatly intertwined with that of facing the dangers of living in such a volatile neighborhood. Yoltic yearns to be away from the poverty, the danger, but struggles to pull his roots from the place; roots that go back generations.
That struggle intensifies as the relationship between him and Marfil strengthens. She’s a Mexican immigrant woman who’s trying to escape the drug cartels and save her grandfather’s ranch in Mexico. Their love story is at times as volatile as the place in which they live. They have much to overcome if this is going to be a forever love, a major difference being religion. She’s Catholic and he’s Protestant, and they have many conversations about the differences in how they were raised and what they believe.
During one of those discussions when the topic is how to address God, Yoltic says, “I’d prefer the Jewish custom of not using God’s real name. That way we will not have to use The Great Name. We won’t risk profaning it. Maybe that way people won’t kill each other over it.”
How true that is!
The characters. The mystery. The intrigue. The suspense. The complicated relationships. They all work superbly in this terrific novel. The second-person POV did take a bit of time to adjust to, but then I realized that writing as if we are Yoltic, lets us have a deeper relationship with him. The technique, while unusual, works, and as the story progressed, I was more anxious to see where it was taking us.
An added benefit for me when picking up a novel like this is reading a story that broadens my world view, and I appreciated the chance to learn more about the people and the culture of those border towns. Pillars of Creation is reminiscent of Rudy Ruiz’s wonderful book, The Border Between Us, which was my first deep dive into Hispanic literature.
It won’t be my last, and I highly encourage readers to come on in. The water’s fine and the reading is easy.
*** ABOUT THE AUTHOR ***
A lifelong resident of the Texas-Mexico border, Carlos Nicolás Flores has much lived experience to draw from as a novelist. In Our House on Hueco, he portrays an impoverished family’s struggle to achieve the American dream. “This book feels like a classic to me,” states Naomi Shahib Nye. In Sex as a Political Condition, a satire of the cultural wars on the border, he reflects on the male condition at the end of the Cold War. In Pillars of Creation: A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean (Atmosphere Press 2025), he portrays a young Chicano’s search for meaning in a world torn apart by violence on the Texas-Mexico border. According to Lily Andrews of Feather Quill Reviews, Flores “ably captures what it means to be stuck between cultures by showing how being Chicano isn’t just about language or heritage, but a constant tug-of-war between belonging and not.”
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Loved this book! So glad you did too!
Thanks for stopping by Jeanie. So happy you enjoyed the book as much as I did. Wonderful, engrossing story. Hope to read more from Mr. Flores.
Review: Pillars of Creation: A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean World
By Sylvia Elia Vargas
This novel offers an in-depth exploration of the internal and external world of its protagonist, Yoltic Cortez, presenting a living history of a young man grappling with profound existential and cultural challenges. The book is structured into four distinct parts, tracing Yoltic’s journey from his roots to a quest for personal renewal.
Structure and Protagonist’s Journey
The first part introduces Yoltic’s foundation, detailing his early relationship with Marfil, the key family and friends who shaped him, and the geographical settings that influenced his formative years. The subsequent section delves into how his surroundings—coupled with his studies, experiences, and memories—transformed his ideological worldview. Part three focuses on the unraveling of Yoltic’s spiritual, psychological, cultural, and social identity. The final section culminates in his search for balance and a new beginning, characterized by him shedding unnecessary, non-essential belongings while strategically retaining books and intellectual artifacts that were crucial to his self-building.
Themes of Existential Crisis and Identity
Yoltic Cortez is presented as a complex figure whose religious beliefs have been shattered by doubt, leaving his soul full of emptiness yet flickering with fragile hope. A central tension of the novel is Yoltic’s constant, emotional search for meaning amid the complexities of life, particularly the conflict between scientific and philosophical theories versus religious practices and beliefs. He also wrestles with the perceived futility of his writing ambitions, lamenting that the ideas presented by literary icons might no longer be valued.
Despite his religious upbringing (mainly Protestant, influenced by his father), Yoltic is on a persistent journey toward personal and religious enlightenment. He is a middle-class man whose literary aspirations were shaped by classical writers and guided by his mentor, the “Failed Poet.” His mental landscape is heavily influenced by the consumption of “Tez,” which triggers multiple visions and daydreams, reinforcing his own ideas about death. His encounters with “ghosts” serve as powerful symbols of his cultural attachments, reminding him of his Chicano heritage. Yoltic’s identity is preserved through his loyalty to his legacy, reflected in the perspectives and practices of his characters.
Relationships and Societal Horrors
Yoltic’s personal life is intertwined with Marfil, a Mexican, Catholic, blonde woman escaping the perilous world of drug dealers. Their relationship is notably detached from conventional commitment, driven by Marfil’s protective instinct to shield Yoltic from the consequences of her dangerous past.
The novel, through the voice of the author, Flores, does not shy away from exposing the horrors of inhumanity. Passages like the Kosovo narration—detailing the sadistic mutilation of men by uncivilized people, as relayed by a pastor whose nurse wife witnessed it—and the cruel, savage condemnation of Conchita (a victim of drug dealers) serve as powerful symbols of barbarism and a stark reminder of human cruelty. The dialogue with the elderly Don Cleofas, whose mechanical rhythms and potential mental decay are questioned by Yoltic, also provides an opportunity to explore the effects of time on the human mind. Hallucinations, such as Yoltic seeing the ghosts of his late father conversing with fishermen, become a ritualistic element reflecting his melancholy and depression.
Conclusion
Pillars of Creation: A Quest for the Great Name in a Nietzschean World effectively showcases the paradigms of the human mind and behavior within a modern society often dominated by inadequate actions. The book posits that the “survival of the fittest” can be secured only by reflecting on past wrongdoings to ensure they are not repeated, thereby constructing a better future. Ultimately, the novel serves as an outcry, utilizing symbolic and thematic explorations from a personalized Chicano perspective to advocate for the preservation of good conduct in daily life.