January 2013 Conversations with Las Comadres: Teleconference Series
Have You Seen Marie? — Outside Links: Book Author Publisher
Maria, Daugher of Immigrants — Outside Links: Book Author Publisher
LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW: Length — 00:47:43 | Size — 8.59 MB
January 2013 Book of the Month:
Have You Seen Marie?
By Sandra Cisneros
Illustrated by Ester Hernandez
Translated by Liliana Valenzuela
Published by Knopf/Random House Inc
ISBN-13: 978-0307744708
The internationally acclaimed author of The House on Mango Street gives us a deeply moving tale of loss, grief, and healing: a lyrically told, richly illustrated fable for grown-ups about a woman’s search for a cat who goes missing in the wake of her mother’s death.
The word “orphan” might not seem to apply to a fifty-three-year-old woman. Yet this is exactly how Sandra feels as she finds herself motherless, alone like “a glove left behind at the bus station.” What just might save her is her search for someone else gone missing: Marie, the black-and-white cat of her friend, Roz, who ran off the day they arrived from Tacoma. As Sandra and Roz scour the streets of San Antonio, posting flyers and asking everywhere, Have you seen Marie? the pursuit of this one small creature takes on unexpected urgency and meaning. With full-color illustrations that bring this transformative quest to vivid life, Have You Seen Marie? showcases a beloved author’s storytelling magic, in a tale that reminds us how love, even when it goes astray, does not stay lost forever.
About the Author: Sandra Cisneros
Sandra Cisneros is the author of two highly celebrated novels, The House on Mango Street and Caramelo. Her awards include National Endowment for the Arts Fellowships, the Lannan Literary Award, the American Book Award, and a MacArthur Fellowship.
Other books include the story collection Woman Hollering Creek; two books of poetry; and two books of children’s literature. Her work has been translated into more than twenty languages.
Cisneros is the founder of the Alfredo Cisneros Del Moral and Macondo Foundations, which serve creative writers.
January 2013 Additional Conversation:
Maria, Daughter of Immigrants
By María Antonietta Berriozábal
Published by Wings Press
ISBN-13: 978-1304064899
More than a memoir of personal and political achievements, this volume chronicles a family’s development from Mexican immigrants to American leaders. Written in an authentic and unique voice, this book describes how the author’s Mexican parents instilled a love of learning, a desire to excel, and a commitment to community in their children.
Relating how her heritage and upbringing allowed her to lead her community and promote social justice, the author conveys a courageous story of hope, love, faith, and a fighting spirit long committed to social and environmental justice, regardless of the personal cost.
About the Author: María Antonietta Berriozábal
María Antonietta Berriozábal became the first Latina to be elected to the City Council of San Antonio and received a presidential appointment as the U.S. Representative to the Inter-American Commission on Women of the Organization of American States
She has five siblings—three boys and two girls—which is hard growing up. She writes poetry which she finds very therapuetic.