There are hundreds of published Chicana and Latina authors, and a few of the most popular ones include Esmeralda Santiago, Angie Cruz, and Sandra Cisneros. These writers create poignant novels often dealing with mother and child relationships, the growing-up process, and male/female issues and confrontations.
These books are just as intricately well-crafted with interesting narrative structures and compelling characters as those on the New York Times Best-Seller List. However, they are not as well known as books by writers such as Jodi Picoult and Patricia Cornwell. Although some African American and Asian women writers have achieved a popular audience (Toni Morrison and Amy Tan, in particular, come to mind), Chicana and Latina writers have yet to achieve mass popularity with U.S. readers.
Esmeralda Santiago
Born in Puerto Rico and the eldest of eleven children, Santiago came to the United States when she was thirteen. Her first novel, based on her childhood memories, is entitled When I Was Puerto Rican (Vintage Books, 1994). Her second novel in her memoir series is entitled Almost A Women (Vintage Books, 1999) and chronicles her life from adolescence through post-high school. The third segment, The Turkish Lover (Da Capo Press, 2005), deals with events when Santiago was in her twenties. This trilogy is slightly fictionalized autobiography. In the first two novels, mother-daughter relationships are paramount. The third novel explores male/female relationships, concentrating on psychological abuse.
Santiago's novel America's Dream (Harper Perennial, 1997) is a fictional account of a Puerto Ricana woman, America Gonzales, who works as a maid while enduring family problems and an abusive relationship. Santiago is also the author of a children's book. A Doll for Navidades (Scholastic Press, 2005). She is working on another novel, Conquistadora, which is due out in 2010. For additional information see Esmeralda Santiago's website.
Angie Cruz
Born in New York of Dominican parents, Cruz has written two novels, Let It Rain Coffee (Simon and Schuster, 2006) and Soledad (Simon and Schuster, 2002). Let It Rain Coffee involves a Dominican wife who moves her family to the United States thinking that it is exactly as portrayed on television. The novel features an extended family who have their differences and are forever negotiating the fine line between individualism and community. This is a beautifully written book full of sensory images. Soledad is about a Dominican artist who must move back home during the summer to care for an ailing mother. Again, family issues create the major theme and the novel is told in the numerous voices of Soledad's family members.
Sandra Cisneros
Cisneros is a prolific poet, novelist, and short story writer. Her poetry collections include Bad Boys (Mango Press, 1980), My Wicked, Wicked Ways (Third Woman Press,1987), and Loose Woman (Knopf, 1994). Woman Hollaring Creek (Random House, 1991) is a collection of short stories, and Hairs=Pelitos (Knopf, 1994) is a children's book. The House on Mango Street (Arte Publico Press,1988) is Cisnero's first novel told in a series of vignettes by a girl named Esperenza. The short chapters discuss everything from family dynamics to rape and domestic violence to class issues. Cisnero's second novel, Caramelo (Knopf, 2002) is a multi-generational story set both in Mexico City and Chicago. It involves family and ancestry in all its variables and is written in an intriguing narrative style with wondrous and haunting details. For more information see Cisneros's website.
Many of these books by Chicana and Latina authors are available at public libraries or can be ordered online at various booksellers. Choosing a few of these books and experiencing these wonderful authors who are missing from the top-twenty best sellers can be a plus to summer reading enjoyment.
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