Latino Book Club will meet September 26th at 3 at Pomegranate Books, on the corner of Kerr and Park to discuss Luis Rodríguez' Always Running.
Topics for discussion, courtsey Irene:
1. How does family life influence the attraction of gang life to young adults.
2. How does education(or lack of) fail these young adults.
3.How did the walk-out change the LA schools.
4.What part did the L.A. police officers play in gang wars?
5.What changes occurred in Luis's life to change him.
Despite the rains we had Lizzy, Lauren and I meet at the cozy and comfy Pomegranate Books. Always Running was enjoyed by all of us. It is interesting how a personal life could read so much like a "novel."One just does not expect so much to happen to just one person. We all felt that Luis Rodriguez' life is certainly very inspirational and that he is what he is because he put his heart and mind into it. He may have had some help from some of the people in his life, but he made all the decisions to get out of the gang life. It does feel that he always had a way out-the violence was not that bad that one would have to die if they wanted out of it, as is the case in many instances.
Rodriguez' writing style is very fluid, and I don't want to use "poetic" because that conjures images of beauty. In this case, even though it is about violence and kids with no guidance and facing racism at every turn, there is this feeling of hope, a feeling of calm, that seems to emerge from the writing.
The comparison to Piri Thomas is of course inevitable as we read the book in our series and also because Rodriguez talks of it as one the books that changed his life. Thomas' style is much coarse and stylistically matches the street life he describes. Rodriguez does not take that route. L.A. in the 60s was certainly the time to be for the Chicano Movement. It was just the other side of the gangs. Gangs were groups to belong to, but acted out through violence and other anti-social behavior, where as MeCHA and the Chicano Movement in itself was another group to which one could belong and actually bring a change the way people see Mexican Americans and other ethnic minorities.
Also a note aside, Tía Chucha the crazy aunt, the inspirational aunt, is the name of Luis Rodriguez' Press which helps kids publish their writings and find an alternative to life. As Lauren, said, Rodriguez seems to begin with her and end with her. Tía Chucha is the outlet for all the craziness trapped inside of the young kids.
Next month we read Xavier Garza's Creepy Creatures and Other Cucuys. This will be our way of celebrating the season! Read the newsletter.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
August 2009: The World in Half
Latino Book Club will meet August 29th to discuss Cristina Henríquez' The World in Half at 3PM at Francesco's Cafe.
Themes of discussion:
1. Daughter-Mother Relationship: In many of the books we have read, we find a typical/stereotypical Latina mother who will do anything for the child. The mother is the caring parent till the end. Here of course the mother is not Latina, but the roles seem to have reversed. The child is the caretaker. As the daughter is still very young, in her 20ies, it is a hard job, and the frustration comes through. It is certainly one of the first we have seen. For comparison sake here are some mother-daughter(child) relationships we have seen before: Geographies of Home, How the García Girls Lost Their Accents, What Night Brings, Rain of Gold.
2. Child and the Missing Parent: I was almost mad at Mira for not looking for her father, and frolicking with the good-for-nothing Danilo, till Hernán and Danilo's concern about disappointment seem to calm my anxiety. It is interesting to read how Mira imagines her father's way of being.
3. Language: I thought it was interesting that the author includes Mira's Spanish limitations, even though writing in English, to constantly remind that the conversations are taking place in another language other than the one used to narrate them.
4. The Title: The World in Half refers to the Panama Canal dividing the Americas into 2 separate land masses, and Mira's life.
5. The Geographical Metaphors: Don't forget to take a look at the titles of each chapter. Earth's history and human history is a profound philosophical comparison.
Looking forward to other comments.
August 29th, 2009
Lauren, Lizzy, Irene, Cathy, Olga and I met at our usual meeting place. It was the last time at that place, as we had all noticed that the service had deteriorated, especially one of the server wasn't very "happy" to be there. So we decided that we would move to our initial intended place: The Pomegranate Books at the corner of Kerr and Park. Kathleen, the owner of the store kindly agreed to make the space available and also have the next months' book available for us to pick up when we meet there.
For ONCE, we all agreed that we all liked the book, although we had trouble with some things.
WHO IN HER RIGHT MIND GOES AND LIVES WITH TWO GUYS SHE DOES NOT KNOW! What did our mothers teach us about not speaking with strangers. In spite of the fact that Mira thinks that Danilo and his uncle are NICE people, one does not go and live with them.
Another that I had not put in the THEMES above, was Danilo. He got a lot of our talk-time. He seemed like a sweet guy and even though he comes across as the useless vagabond, but he redeems himself with his drawings, in abandonment tale, and of course the letters that he writes to Mira. It was refreshing to see that it does not end up in a clichéd "love-affair."
Irene thought that may Germán was the father! That was the reason he invited Mira. I guess Irene was trying to rationalize Mira's living with strange men.
We did have some disagreement with how the mother dealt with her affair and her family. Some said why didn't she leave her family and when she did why did she continue to be so hard and distant from the daughter and also Mira's real father. The others thought that it isn't easy for people to change completely, having been brought up in a style of living. I would think that Mira's grandparents weren't the best role models for Mira's mother, and hence we do not see any outward show of love.
Also, we thought her prose was beautiful. Henríquez has a style of writing which flows easily. Her geographical metaphors worked for some of us but not for all, but we were open to reading something by her.
Next time we will be reading Luis Rodríguez' Always Running. That will be a drastic change. The e-newsletter is available now.
Themes of discussion:
1. Daughter-Mother Relationship: In many of the books we have read, we find a typical/stereotypical Latina mother who will do anything for the child. The mother is the caring parent till the end. Here of course the mother is not Latina, but the roles seem to have reversed. The child is the caretaker. As the daughter is still very young, in her 20ies, it is a hard job, and the frustration comes through. It is certainly one of the first we have seen. For comparison sake here are some mother-daughter(child) relationships we have seen before: Geographies of Home, How the García Girls Lost Their Accents, What Night Brings, Rain of Gold.
2. Child and the Missing Parent: I was almost mad at Mira for not looking for her father, and frolicking with the good-for-nothing Danilo, till Hernán and Danilo's concern about disappointment seem to calm my anxiety. It is interesting to read how Mira imagines her father's way of being.
3. Language: I thought it was interesting that the author includes Mira's Spanish limitations, even though writing in English, to constantly remind that the conversations are taking place in another language other than the one used to narrate them.
4. The Title: The World in Half refers to the Panama Canal dividing the Americas into 2 separate land masses, and Mira's life.
5. The Geographical Metaphors: Don't forget to take a look at the titles of each chapter. Earth's history and human history is a profound philosophical comparison.
Looking forward to other comments.
August 29th, 2009
Lauren, Lizzy, Irene, Cathy, Olga and I met at our usual meeting place. It was the last time at that place, as we had all noticed that the service had deteriorated, especially one of the server wasn't very "happy" to be there. So we decided that we would move to our initial intended place: The Pomegranate Books at the corner of Kerr and Park. Kathleen, the owner of the store kindly agreed to make the space available and also have the next months' book available for us to pick up when we meet there.
For ONCE, we all agreed that we all liked the book, although we had trouble with some things.
WHO IN HER RIGHT MIND GOES AND LIVES WITH TWO GUYS SHE DOES NOT KNOW! What did our mothers teach us about not speaking with strangers. In spite of the fact that Mira thinks that Danilo and his uncle are NICE people, one does not go and live with them.
Another that I had not put in the THEMES above, was Danilo. He got a lot of our talk-time. He seemed like a sweet guy and even though he comes across as the useless vagabond, but he redeems himself with his drawings, in abandonment tale, and of course the letters that he writes to Mira. It was refreshing to see that it does not end up in a clichéd "love-affair."
Irene thought that may Germán was the father! That was the reason he invited Mira. I guess Irene was trying to rationalize Mira's living with strange men.
We did have some disagreement with how the mother dealt with her affair and her family. Some said why didn't she leave her family and when she did why did she continue to be so hard and distant from the daughter and also Mira's real father. The others thought that it isn't easy for people to change completely, having been brought up in a style of living. I would think that Mira's grandparents weren't the best role models for Mira's mother, and hence we do not see any outward show of love.
Also, we thought her prose was beautiful. Henríquez has a style of writing which flows easily. Her geographical metaphors worked for some of us but not for all, but we were open to reading something by her.
Next time we will be reading Luis Rodríguez' Always Running. That will be a drastic change. The e-newsletter is available now.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
July 2009: Ask a Policeman: A Rafe Buenrostro Mystery
Latino Book Club will meet on July 25th to discuss Rolando Hinojosa's Ask a Policeman at 3 pm.
A rather different book from our earlier ones, yet a very pertinent one to the US-Mexico border issue, and an old one too. No, it is not immigration, it is drug-trafficking.This novel is of course much lighter than many of our earlier novels, even though it deals with a very serious problem of drug trafficking. Reading this novel, published in 1998 these days when the drug wars are at its height in Mexico, after the death of the main drug lord, makes it so real and current. A colleague of mine who specializes in Colombian literature, always reminds his students that the drug problem is not simply a Colombian issue, rather much closer to home, one in Mexico. Of course the problem is also very American where the market demands the trafficking. Reading this novel one may be reminded of the movie Traffic, which if you have not seen, is a must see among the Hollywood films about this topic (brilliant acting by Benicio del Toro and Michael Douglas). Of course in the movie the American side was led by a White American dealing with his own problems with a drug addicted daughter, unlike Rafe who is Mexican American, very much in tune with the Mexican culture.
It actually makes the novel humorous when Rafe and his Mexican counterpart play along with the American District Attorney, who is unaware of the cultural norm of exchanging pleasantries and asking about families' well being before jumping into business, unlike American mainstream culture which keeps personal out of business. I also enjoyed the fact that the Mexican Director of Public Order of Barrones is a woman. I look forward to hearing from the others about the characters Rafe Buenrostro and Lu Cetina.
25th July 2009
Latino Book Club members Lizzy, Cathy, Irene, and I met at our usual place and discussed Hinojosa's Ask a Policeman. We all agreed that it was an easy and fast read, just like a good detective novel should be. In spite of the fact that it was "light" the drug issue was very current. One thing that was pointed out was the senseless killing. The Goméz family go on a killing spree, which includes their own family. It tells of the complete lack of human connection in favor of making hordes of money quickly and illegaly. The arms that are used in the killings are coming from the United States as is the demand for drugs. The series of senseless killings is topped by the erotica-murder-suicide filmed by the Goméz son and delivered to the police. All this talk led us to discuss other books that depict such senseless killing, outside the drug world. Lizzy pointed out Teresa Rodríguez' Las hijas de Juárez. It is based on Rodríguez' investigative reporting of a true incident of multiple deaths of women in Juárez. You can read about it on Univision's Webpage.
Another book that takes a look at senseless mass killing is Jorge Ibargüengoitias Las muertas, a fictionalized story based on the brothel murders known as the "Las Poquianchis" incident in the state of Guanajato, Mexico. It uses dark humor to counter the macabre incident.
Although Olga wasn't there to initiate the topic she suggested about assimilation vs. acculturation, we did get to discuss it. Assimilate, which is a term defined in Cultural Studies as taking on the culture of the mainstream, leaving behind, or loosing one's original cultural habits. In cultural studies assimilation sees cultures in hierarchy, and therefore to assimilate is to consider one better than the other, and therefore has a negative connotation. This led to a very interesting observation by Cathy of involuntary assimilation vs. voluntary assimilation. She is Mexican American (although Cathy Murphy, does not say so, like millions of other Mexican Americans), but does not speak Spanish, something she says that she would love to speak and understand, but it was not a choice she made, nor one her parents did, who could not speak Spanish either. She sees herself assimilated, but perhaps, not by choice. On the other hand I spoke of how a graduate classmate of mine of Ecuadorian heritage would only speak in English to her kids, so they would assimilate with the mainstream US culture. Here is an example of voluntary assimilation, where the child who could have learnt Spanish and more of the Ecuadorian culture is denied the opportunity, even when it is easily accessible. If you have comments or thoughts, please comment.
Moving on to our next month, we will be reading Cristina Henríquez' The World in Half. You can read more about the book and the author in this months e-newsletter. This is the first Panamanian American author in our list. Also for fast readers, we wanted to let you know that in September we will be reading Luis Rogríguez' Always Running.
Happy readings!
A rather different book from our earlier ones, yet a very pertinent one to the US-Mexico border issue, and an old one too. No, it is not immigration, it is drug-trafficking.This novel is of course much lighter than many of our earlier novels, even though it deals with a very serious problem of drug trafficking. Reading this novel, published in 1998 these days when the drug wars are at its height in Mexico, after the death of the main drug lord, makes it so real and current. A colleague of mine who specializes in Colombian literature, always reminds his students that the drug problem is not simply a Colombian issue, rather much closer to home, one in Mexico. Of course the problem is also very American where the market demands the trafficking. Reading this novel one may be reminded of the movie Traffic, which if you have not seen, is a must see among the Hollywood films about this topic (brilliant acting by Benicio del Toro and Michael Douglas). Of course in the movie the American side was led by a White American dealing with his own problems with a drug addicted daughter, unlike Rafe who is Mexican American, very much in tune with the Mexican culture.
It actually makes the novel humorous when Rafe and his Mexican counterpart play along with the American District Attorney, who is unaware of the cultural norm of exchanging pleasantries and asking about families' well being before jumping into business, unlike American mainstream culture which keeps personal out of business. I also enjoyed the fact that the Mexican Director of Public Order of Barrones is a woman. I look forward to hearing from the others about the characters Rafe Buenrostro and Lu Cetina.
25th July 2009
Latino Book Club members Lizzy, Cathy, Irene, and I met at our usual place and discussed Hinojosa's Ask a Policeman. We all agreed that it was an easy and fast read, just like a good detective novel should be. In spite of the fact that it was "light" the drug issue was very current. One thing that was pointed out was the senseless killing. The Goméz family go on a killing spree, which includes their own family. It tells of the complete lack of human connection in favor of making hordes of money quickly and illegaly. The arms that are used in the killings are coming from the United States as is the demand for drugs. The series of senseless killings is topped by the erotica-murder-suicide filmed by the Goméz son and delivered to the police. All this talk led us to discuss other books that depict such senseless killing, outside the drug world. Lizzy pointed out Teresa Rodríguez' Las hijas de Juárez. It is based on Rodríguez' investigative reporting of a true incident of multiple deaths of women in Juárez. You can read about it on Univision's Webpage.
Another book that takes a look at senseless mass killing is Jorge Ibargüengoitias Las muertas, a fictionalized story based on the brothel murders known as the "Las Poquianchis" incident in the state of Guanajato, Mexico. It uses dark humor to counter the macabre incident.
Although Olga wasn't there to initiate the topic she suggested about assimilation vs. acculturation, we did get to discuss it. Assimilate, which is a term defined in Cultural Studies as taking on the culture of the mainstream, leaving behind, or loosing one's original cultural habits. In cultural studies assimilation sees cultures in hierarchy, and therefore to assimilate is to consider one better than the other, and therefore has a negative connotation. This led to a very interesting observation by Cathy of involuntary assimilation vs. voluntary assimilation. She is Mexican American (although Cathy Murphy, does not say so, like millions of other Mexican Americans), but does not speak Spanish, something she says that she would love to speak and understand, but it was not a choice she made, nor one her parents did, who could not speak Spanish either. She sees herself assimilated, but perhaps, not by choice. On the other hand I spoke of how a graduate classmate of mine of Ecuadorian heritage would only speak in English to her kids, so they would assimilate with the mainstream US culture. Here is an example of voluntary assimilation, where the child who could have learnt Spanish and more of the Ecuadorian culture is denied the opportunity, even when it is easily accessible. If you have comments or thoughts, please comment.
Moving on to our next month, we will be reading Cristina Henríquez' The World in Half. You can read more about the book and the author in this months e-newsletter. This is the first Panamanian American author in our list. Also for fast readers, we wanted to let you know that in September we will be reading Luis Rogríguez' Always Running.
Happy readings!
Monday, June 1, 2009
June 2009: The Gifted Gabaldon Sisters
Latino Book Club meets on June 27th at Francesco's Cafe on Kerr Ave. to discuss Lorraine Lopez' The Gifted Gabaldon Sisters.
1. Your favorite sister and why?
Everybody liked Lorreta, of course she is the most independent one and carves a place in her life. Another thing that we did not discuss in the book club meeting is Lorreta's sexual preference. Her being a lesbian is presented in a way as should be, as something normal, but what struck me is how it was not a big deal in a Latino family.
2. Which of the four gifts would you rather have?
This was certainly anti-climactic. One feels cheated by Bette. To think all your life that you have a gift of curses that can kill people and one day you are told that it is just a joke told by your big sister. The big sister has some explaining to do, which she doesn't in this book.
Lorraine Lopez the author of the book has agreed to answer questions about the book. We look forward to get a glimpse of how an author creates his or her art. Please enjoy.
Some questions for the author by Donna:
1. In the Gifted Gabaldon Sisters, you weave a rich tapestry of fiction, nonfiction, and traditions from various cultures and then tie it together so effortlessly that it lifts the reader past their preconceived ideas of those cultures. What was your inspiration for writing about the magic and drama you so aptly portray with these characters?
First of all, thank you for noticing the multi-textual structure and multi-genre presentation of the novel and gracias for your opinion that I succeeded with this framework. When drafting the novel, I thought it important to create many layers and many sources of story to deepen and expand the narrative. This entailed a great deal of research, and it acquainted me with the “iceberg” principle behind research used in fiction. Only a small percentage of the material I gathered ended up in the book, but I had to have the base in order to present that tip. So, indeed, I learned how Hopi women wheeled their hair in “butterfly whorls,” the onerous and labor intensive rituals performed before marriage, what kinds of myths and legends were and are still being told, and as much as I could about the world as it was when Fermina was a child. I also had to investigate the WPA reports, and my research led me into some intrigue, wherein a rather controlling director of the project routinely suppressed reports that did not honor a particular vision of the past, and I was able to use this as well. I also had to research Los Angeles from the 1960s to the present to portray the cultural, geographic, and historic context correctly, or as correctly as possible. This took a tremendous amount of time, but I acquired an amazing wealth of information about the world of the novel in this process, and I am relieved that, from your point of view, it was successful.
My inspiration for the book was rather pragmatic, but also borne of a seed sewn by family history that I uncovered. I decided to use the multi-textual approach and the multiple perspectives to tell the story because I worried that I would not be able to sustain a single perspective in relaying a narrative as complex as this. Insofar as the spark for the work goes, years ago I was stunned to learn that my paternal grandfather was the biological son of the man he thought was his uncle and a Pueblo woman who worked in his grandparents home, a Native American servant. This woman actually had two children. Her son was adopted by his biological father’s brother and wife who were childless, but the daughter was sent to an asilo de huerfanos (an orphan asylum). This bit of family history saddened and intrigued me. I wanted to imaginatively revisit and recreate that time. I wondered what if things had been a bit different and what if my grandfather’s birthmother could tell her story. What kind of story would she tell and how would it be told so as to be preserved for later generations? This was the impetus for the novel.
2. The interaction of family members was raw, and clean. Did you draw from your own childhood experiences with family members? Or did the characters come to you completely fleshed out with their individual personalities waiting for you to chisel out the parts you wanted for this story?
I believe I draw on three critical sources or braid three distinctive strands together when writing fiction: 1) imagination, 2) experience, and 3) imaginative experience gained from literature I have read. For this novel, the characters all seem to represent elements of myself as well as information about human interaction that I acquired growing up in a large family. The family dynamic I observed certainly informs my writing, but the fictional family soon took on a life of its own and a distinctly separate dynamic. There is no way to convey all the nuance, depth, and complexity that comprises a living human being, so these characters consist of glimpses informed by my imagination, my experience, and that imaginative experience I’ve gained from reading, and in that order.
3. The story implies that women are better off without men. And it also raises the issues women face at many ages with sexual predators. Do you feel women are sexually preyed upon in all cultures, ages, economic standing and nationalities? If so how can they empower each other as they did in your story?
I would like to think the story suggests that some women are better off without men, like Sophia and Bette, but Loretta is very fond of her brother, and Rita is clearly better off with Rafe. On a personal note, like Rita, I do a lot better when my husband is around. Perhaps my message is that not all women are better off with men as our culture seems to suggest. Marriage, to me, does not automatically mean a happy ending.
As to the second part of this question, I would like to avoid generalization, but I believe that as long as there is an unfair power dynamic, conditions present themselves that can be conducive to predatory behavior. I also believe that without equality, there can be no true intimacy between the partners. The exception to this, of course, would be found in healthy relationships between parents and their children.
Typically, in our culture and my subculture, men have been empowered and women dominated by men. Thus conditions for abuse and predation on the part of the more powerful group—men—have been prevalent.
The culture I emerge from is known for patriarchal relationships. Machismo is a term coined by Spanish speakers when describing this dynamic. I had the unusual experience of growing up in a matriarchal home. That is to say, my mother was in charge. She and my father both worked, but she handled the money, she made important decisions, she disciplined all of us—including my father, and she was the unchallenged leader in our home. In my father’s home, the same dynamic occurred. His mother ruled her twelve children and husband. To go back to my previous statement: In these homes, I witnessed how a matriarchal household can be as stifling and oppressive to the individual (male or female) as a patriarchal home.
4. Have you considered writing, or have you written any books for young adult readers? (ages 6-13) I would think they would benefit significantly from your courageous portrayal of their struggles and fears.
Thank you for this great question! My second book, Call Me Henri (Curbstone Press, 2005), is a young adult novel about a thirteen-year-old boy who is an immigrant from Mexico. It’s set in Pacoima, California, where he is an ESOL student who would like to study French, though he is prevented from doing this because, according to the teachers and administrators at his school, he must first learn English. My next project that I intend to begin next year is another young adult novel (working title: “The Vidalia Onion Queen”). This will be the story of Flor, a character who appears in Call Me Henri. She is the child of immigrant farm workers who relocate to the South. Flor really caught hold of my imagination and she will not let go.
Currently, I have a book of short stories coming out this fall from BkMk Books. The collection is titled “Homicide Survivors Picnic.” And I also have a collection of essays I have edited for the University of Michigan Press coming out in December. That book is titled “An Angle of Vision: Women Writers on Their Poor and Working Class Roots.” This work presents powerful personal essays and memoir on social class and gender by writers including Dorothy Allison, Sandra Cisneros, Joy Harjo, and Judith Ortiz Cofer, among others. And right now, I am working to finish another novel for HBGUSA/Grand Central Press, which brought you The Gifted Gabaldón Sisters. This novel is titled “Limpieza,” a word that refers to the Santeria practice of clearing evil spirits out of a physical space, and I’m having a great time writing it. It will be out this coming spring.
Again, I send abundant thanks for reading my book and for your interest in the work. These are thought-provoking questions that I enjoyed answering.
1. Your favorite sister and why?
Everybody liked Lorreta, of course she is the most independent one and carves a place in her life. Another thing that we did not discuss in the book club meeting is Lorreta's sexual preference. Her being a lesbian is presented in a way as should be, as something normal, but what struck me is how it was not a big deal in a Latino family.
2. Which of the four gifts would you rather have?
This was certainly anti-climactic. One feels cheated by Bette. To think all your life that you have a gift of curses that can kill people and one day you are told that it is just a joke told by your big sister. The big sister has some explaining to do, which she doesn't in this book.
June 29th, 2009
This past Saturday the Latino Book Club members- Lizzy, Jacquie, Donna, Cathy, Irene, and our guests Chris and Naya (Irene’s sister and her grand-daughter, visiting from LA) - met at our regular coffee shop. We had a hard time giving the book The Gifted Gabaldon Sisters a “grade,” as we felt that as a concept, the story, the relationship between the sisters, the Hopi history was really well crafted, but by the end of it all it fell apart. I can only say that the ending about the gifts and the adult lives of the sisters are anti-climactic. All through the story the reader is led to believe that the sisters have magical gifts, till suddenly Bette, one with the gift to tell lies, says it is a lie that she told. It is hard to understand why, and how no one, especially the sister who supposedely had the gift to curse people to their death did not react. To live all your childhood and young adult life thinking you have killed someone is a horrible pain to suffer.
On the other hand the documentation of the Hopi culture certainly gives a fresh flavor to the stories we have read. Read the comment by the author below about including the Hopi tradition in the novel. The colonization and the brutal treatment of the Hopis by the Spanish are ironic and give a glimpse into the history and power domination of the south-west. To see how the Latino population has become the oppressed one in the lands they settled in. It is the history of power and colonization. Others are welcome to comment on our blog site.
Even though we have mixed feeling about the book, at least we are very happy that the author Lorraine Lopez took the time to send such detailed well thought responses. We wish her all the best.
Moving on to our next month’s book, please read the June e-newsletter for more information. We will be reading Rolando Hinojosa’s Ask a Policeman. It is the first detective novel for our club, and I thought it will be an interesting change for the summer. The Public Library has a copy and you can also order it through Pomegranate Books http://pomegranate.booksense.com/
The Book Drive is coming along and as soon as we are ready to launch we will send out more information to all book club members.
Lorraine Lopez the author of the book has agreed to answer questions about the book. We look forward to get a glimpse of how an author creates his or her art. Please enjoy.
Some questions for the author by Donna:
1. In the Gifted Gabaldon Sisters, you weave a rich tapestry of fiction, nonfiction, and traditions from various cultures and then tie it together so effortlessly that it lifts the reader past their preconceived ideas of those cultures. What was your inspiration for writing about the magic and drama you so aptly portray with these characters?
First of all, thank you for noticing the multi-textual structure and multi-genre presentation of the novel and gracias for your opinion that I succeeded with this framework. When drafting the novel, I thought it important to create many layers and many sources of story to deepen and expand the narrative. This entailed a great deal of research, and it acquainted me with the “iceberg” principle behind research used in fiction. Only a small percentage of the material I gathered ended up in the book, but I had to have the base in order to present that tip. So, indeed, I learned how Hopi women wheeled their hair in “butterfly whorls,” the onerous and labor intensive rituals performed before marriage, what kinds of myths and legends were and are still being told, and as much as I could about the world as it was when Fermina was a child. I also had to investigate the WPA reports, and my research led me into some intrigue, wherein a rather controlling director of the project routinely suppressed reports that did not honor a particular vision of the past, and I was able to use this as well. I also had to research Los Angeles from the 1960s to the present to portray the cultural, geographic, and historic context correctly, or as correctly as possible. This took a tremendous amount of time, but I acquired an amazing wealth of information about the world of the novel in this process, and I am relieved that, from your point of view, it was successful.
My inspiration for the book was rather pragmatic, but also borne of a seed sewn by family history that I uncovered. I decided to use the multi-textual approach and the multiple perspectives to tell the story because I worried that I would not be able to sustain a single perspective in relaying a narrative as complex as this. Insofar as the spark for the work goes, years ago I was stunned to learn that my paternal grandfather was the biological son of the man he thought was his uncle and a Pueblo woman who worked in his grandparents home, a Native American servant. This woman actually had two children. Her son was adopted by his biological father’s brother and wife who were childless, but the daughter was sent to an asilo de huerfanos (an orphan asylum). This bit of family history saddened and intrigued me. I wanted to imaginatively revisit and recreate that time. I wondered what if things had been a bit different and what if my grandfather’s birthmother could tell her story. What kind of story would she tell and how would it be told so as to be preserved for later generations? This was the impetus for the novel.
2. The interaction of family members was raw, and clean. Did you draw from your own childhood experiences with family members? Or did the characters come to you completely fleshed out with their individual personalities waiting for you to chisel out the parts you wanted for this story?
I believe I draw on three critical sources or braid three distinctive strands together when writing fiction: 1) imagination, 2) experience, and 3) imaginative experience gained from literature I have read. For this novel, the characters all seem to represent elements of myself as well as information about human interaction that I acquired growing up in a large family. The family dynamic I observed certainly informs my writing, but the fictional family soon took on a life of its own and a distinctly separate dynamic. There is no way to convey all the nuance, depth, and complexity that comprises a living human being, so these characters consist of glimpses informed by my imagination, my experience, and that imaginative experience I’ve gained from reading, and in that order.
3. The story implies that women are better off without men. And it also raises the issues women face at many ages with sexual predators. Do you feel women are sexually preyed upon in all cultures, ages, economic standing and nationalities? If so how can they empower each other as they did in your story?
I would like to think the story suggests that some women are better off without men, like Sophia and Bette, but Loretta is very fond of her brother, and Rita is clearly better off with Rafe. On a personal note, like Rita, I do a lot better when my husband is around. Perhaps my message is that not all women are better off with men as our culture seems to suggest. Marriage, to me, does not automatically mean a happy ending.
As to the second part of this question, I would like to avoid generalization, but I believe that as long as there is an unfair power dynamic, conditions present themselves that can be conducive to predatory behavior. I also believe that without equality, there can be no true intimacy between the partners. The exception to this, of course, would be found in healthy relationships between parents and their children.
Typically, in our culture and my subculture, men have been empowered and women dominated by men. Thus conditions for abuse and predation on the part of the more powerful group—men—have been prevalent.
The culture I emerge from is known for patriarchal relationships. Machismo is a term coined by Spanish speakers when describing this dynamic. I had the unusual experience of growing up in a matriarchal home. That is to say, my mother was in charge. She and my father both worked, but she handled the money, she made important decisions, she disciplined all of us—including my father, and she was the unchallenged leader in our home. In my father’s home, the same dynamic occurred. His mother ruled her twelve children and husband. To go back to my previous statement: In these homes, I witnessed how a matriarchal household can be as stifling and oppressive to the individual (male or female) as a patriarchal home.
4. Have you considered writing, or have you written any books for young adult readers? (ages 6-13) I would think they would benefit significantly from your courageous portrayal of their struggles and fears.
Thank you for this great question! My second book, Call Me Henri (Curbstone Press, 2005), is a young adult novel about a thirteen-year-old boy who is an immigrant from Mexico. It’s set in Pacoima, California, where he is an ESOL student who would like to study French, though he is prevented from doing this because, according to the teachers and administrators at his school, he must first learn English. My next project that I intend to begin next year is another young adult novel (working title: “The Vidalia Onion Queen”). This will be the story of Flor, a character who appears in Call Me Henri. She is the child of immigrant farm workers who relocate to the South. Flor really caught hold of my imagination and she will not let go.
Currently, I have a book of short stories coming out this fall from BkMk Books. The collection is titled “Homicide Survivors Picnic.” And I also have a collection of essays I have edited for the University of Michigan Press coming out in December. That book is titled “An Angle of Vision: Women Writers on Their Poor and Working Class Roots.” This work presents powerful personal essays and memoir on social class and gender by writers including Dorothy Allison, Sandra Cisneros, Joy Harjo, and Judith Ortiz Cofer, among others. And right now, I am working to finish another novel for HBGUSA/Grand Central Press, which brought you The Gifted Gabaldón Sisters. This novel is titled “Limpieza,” a word that refers to the Santeria practice of clearing evil spirits out of a physical space, and I’m having a great time writing it. It will be out this coming spring.
Again, I send abundant thanks for reading my book and for your interest in the work. These are thought-provoking questions that I enjoyed answering.
Friday, May 1, 2009
May 2009: Lost City Radio
Latino Book Club meets on May 30th at 3 pm at Francesco's Cafe on Kerr Ave, to discuss Daniel Alarcon's Lost City Radio. Please send your comments or leave them here at our blog site.
1. Should Latinos growing up in the United States be writing of Latin American issues?
June 15th 2009
Sorry for the late post. I got back last week from India and was glad to hear that Irene, Cathy, Lizzy and Jacquie met on May 30th to discuss Lost City Radio. Lizzy wrote back to me saying,
"The general consensus was that we were not crazy about the book. I did not dislike it but it was not my favorite. I think we all felt lost, which I consider the point of the book - to give us a feeling of the chaos and confusion during war. We all agreed that one thing we did not like is that the book did not elicit an emotional response toward any of the characters. Irene also had an interesting observation: religion and the Church were never mentioned in this book. In the other books we have read religion plays a significant role in the lives of the characters."
This is certainly one of the very different books we have read. The author is a trained anthropologist, and we are dealing with a Civil War in a country, a theme that we have not touched upon in any of our books and moreover it is not about the Latinos of the United States.
1. Should Latinos growing up in the United States be writing of Latin American issues?
June 15th 2009
Sorry for the late post. I got back last week from India and was glad to hear that Irene, Cathy, Lizzy and Jacquie met on May 30th to discuss Lost City Radio. Lizzy wrote back to me saying,
"The general consensus was that we were not crazy about the book. I did not dislike it but it was not my favorite. I think we all felt lost, which I consider the point of the book - to give us a feeling of the chaos and confusion during war. We all agreed that one thing we did not like is that the book did not elicit an emotional response toward any of the characters. Irene also had an interesting observation: religion and the Church were never mentioned in this book. In the other books we have read religion plays a significant role in the lives of the characters."
This is certainly one of the very different books we have read. The author is a trained anthropologist, and we are dealing with a Civil War in a country, a theme that we have not touched upon in any of our books and moreover it is not about the Latinos of the United States.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
April 2009: Dreaming in Cuban
The Latino Book Club meets on April 25th at Francesco's Cafe at 3PM.
Some topics of discussion:
Who is "crazier" Celia, Felicia, or Lourdes?
Celia's unsent letters to the "love of her life."
Santeria/ Regla de ocho
---
26th April 2009
Latino Book Club met yesterday. Thanks to Donna, Lizzy, Irene, Cathy, and Olga for coming out. We had a wonderful discussion. We all agreed that Felicia is the "craziest." She burns her first husband Hugo, who gave her syphilis, the second Ernesto died soon after she married him, and Otto was supposedly pushed off the roller coaster by Felicia.
All the characters' life represents an unfulfilled dream or promise: a metaphor for Cuba's situation. The unfulfillment is represented through the failed human relationships.
Celia's love Gustavo goes back to Spain to fight in the Civil War (which was lost by the Republicans: the liberal group), Celia's new hope "El Lider" does not bring the desired change everyone hoped to Batista's Cuba, and finally she loses her family to exile, death or moving away.
Lourdes is raped by the Revolutionary soldiers and she exiles to Brooklyn. She also loses her unborn son.
Javier's wife elopes with another man and takes their daughter, and he returns to Cuba from Czechoslovakia to get lost in Cuba.
Felicia is of course THE representation of unfulfillment. She turns to Santeria to find her future, but she is unable beat her inevitable death.
Moving on to May: There is a change in the book we had chosen earlier. Instead we will be reading the Peruvian American Daniel Alarcon's Lost City Radio. This is set in an unnamed country in Latin America. Please read the e-newsletter.
We will also be reading Lorraine López' The Gifted Gabaldón Sisters in June. It is a good summer read.
We will also meet for the Book Drive meeting on Tuesday 27th April at 3 pm in Leutze Hall 103 at UNCW. I hope you will join us or volunteer to participate in it.
Happy Reading!
Amrita
Some topics of discussion:
Who is "crazier" Celia, Felicia, or Lourdes?
Celia's unsent letters to the "love of her life."
Santeria/ Regla de ocho
---
26th April 2009
Latino Book Club met yesterday. Thanks to Donna, Lizzy, Irene, Cathy, and Olga for coming out. We had a wonderful discussion. We all agreed that Felicia is the "craziest." She burns her first husband Hugo, who gave her syphilis, the second Ernesto died soon after she married him, and Otto was supposedly pushed off the roller coaster by Felicia.
All the characters' life represents an unfulfilled dream or promise: a metaphor for Cuba's situation. The unfulfillment is represented through the failed human relationships.
Celia's love Gustavo goes back to Spain to fight in the Civil War (which was lost by the Republicans: the liberal group), Celia's new hope "El Lider" does not bring the desired change everyone hoped to Batista's Cuba, and finally she loses her family to exile, death or moving away.
Lourdes is raped by the Revolutionary soldiers and she exiles to Brooklyn. She also loses her unborn son.
Javier's wife elopes with another man and takes their daughter, and he returns to Cuba from Czechoslovakia to get lost in Cuba.
Felicia is of course THE representation of unfulfillment. She turns to Santeria to find her future, but she is unable beat her inevitable death.
Moving on to May: There is a change in the book we had chosen earlier. Instead we will be reading the Peruvian American Daniel Alarcon's Lost City Radio. This is set in an unnamed country in Latin America. Please read the e-newsletter.
We will also be reading Lorraine López' The Gifted Gabaldón Sisters in June. It is a good summer read.
We will also meet for the Book Drive meeting on Tuesday 27th April at 3 pm in Leutze Hall 103 at UNCW. I hope you will join us or volunteer to participate in it.
Happy Reading!
Amrita
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
LATINO BOOK CLUB'S BOOK DRIVE
THE IDEA:
The book drive is an idea that emerged from Marcio's suggestion at the first meeting of the Book Club to donate the books read in our club to school children. As we have entered into our second year and we have been going strong with 30+ members. I thought it was time we expand our love for books to students in local schools and ESL programs. We all are in some way or the other involved with the Latino cultures and of course would love to help Latino kids, but I think if our book drive can reach as many kids as possible, irrespective of their race or ethnicity, it will be a success.
THE PLAN:
This is where I need help. I have contacted Eleni Pappamihiel, a member of the Latino Book Club and also a Professor of Education at UNCW. She has been kind enough to get us in touch with three local schools who have all shown interest in our plan and be the target programs. These schools are: Williston Middle School, Hoggard High School, and Mary C. Williams Elementary School.
Now we need to figure out the next step. Please send your comments.
NEXT MEETING: 28th April 3 PM Leutze Hall 103.
The book drive is an idea that emerged from Marcio's suggestion at the first meeting of the Book Club to donate the books read in our club to school children. As we have entered into our second year and we have been going strong with 30+ members. I thought it was time we expand our love for books to students in local schools and ESL programs. We all are in some way or the other involved with the Latino cultures and of course would love to help Latino kids, but I think if our book drive can reach as many kids as possible, irrespective of their race or ethnicity, it will be a success.
THE PLAN:
This is where I need help. I have contacted Eleni Pappamihiel, a member of the Latino Book Club and also a Professor of Education at UNCW. She has been kind enough to get us in touch with three local schools who have all shown interest in our plan and be the target programs. These schools are: Williston Middle School, Hoggard High School, and Mary C. Williams Elementary School.
Now we need to figure out the next step. Please send your comments.
NEXT MEETING: 28th April 3 PM Leutze Hall 103.
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