SOURCE: "He Went for the Thrills," in The New York Times Book Review, November 13, 1988, p. 22.

An American author and critic, Morris has published novels, short stories, and travel pieces. In the following mixed review, she asserts that the theme of fate in The Dream of Heroes is more befitting a short story or parable than a novel.

In The Dream of Heroes, Taboada—secret protector and father-in-law of Emilio Gauna—speaks these dying words, intended for his son-in-law: "I should like to explain to him that there is generosity in happiness and selfishness in adventure." Written in 1954, and translated now for the first time, this is a novel about the choice which is most often the domain of men, especially in Latin culture, between domestic contentment and unbridied thrills. In the case of Emilio Gauna it is the tension in his life between bliss with Clara, the woman...