The topic of mothers and mothering transcends all spaces, from popular culture to intellectual thought and critique. This collection of essays bridges both methodological and theoretical frameworks to explore forms of mothering that challenge hegemonic understandings of parenting and traditional notions of Latinx womxnhood. It articulates the collective experiences of Latinx, Black, and Indigenous mothering from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Thirty contributors discuss their lived experiences, research, or community work challenging multiple layers of oppression, including militarization of the border, border security propaganda, feminicides, drug war and colonial violence, grieving and loss of a child, challenges and forms of resistance by Indigenous mothers, working mothers in maquiladoras, queer mothering, academia and motherhood, and institutional barriers by government systems to access affordable health care and environmental justice. Also central to this collection are questions on how migration and detention restructure forms of mothering. Overall, this collection encapsulates how mothering is shaped by the geopolitics of border zones, which also transcends biological, sociological, or cultural and gendered tropes regarding ideas of motherhood, who can mother, and what mothering personifies.

Contributors
Elva M. Arredondo
Cynthia Bejarano
Bertha A. Bermúdez Tapia
Margaret Brown Vega
Macrina Cárdenas Montaño
Claudia Yolanda Casillas
Luz Estela (Lucha) Castro
Marisa Elena Duarte
Taide Elena
Sylvia Fernández Quintanilla
Paula Flores Bonilla
Judith Flores Carmona
Sandra Gutiérrez
Ma. Eugenia Hernández Sánchez
Irene Lara
Leticia López Manzano
Mariana Martinez
Maria Cristina Morales
Paola Isabel Nava Gonzales
Olga Odgers-Ortiz
Priscilla Pérez
Silvia Quintanilla Moreno
Cirila Quintero Ramírez
Felicia Rangel-Samponaro
Coda Rayo-Garza
Shamma Rayo-Gutierrez
Marisol Rodríguez Sosa
Brenda Rubio
Ariana Saludares
Victoria M. Telles
Michelle Téllez
Marisa S. Torres
Edith Treviño Espinosa
Mariela Vásquez Tobon
Hilda Villegas

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By a striking new voice in fiction, an electric coming-of-age novel that explores grief, family, sexuality, and love as an ambitious young woman from Washington Heights tries to make it on Broadway

“Guerrero leaves the reader not just enthralled and delighted but waiting with bated breath for what she will conjure up next.”—Xochitl Gonzalez, author of Anita de Monte Laughs Last

After her sister Nena’s sudden death, Xiomara, an Afro-Latina singer and actress born and raised in Washington Heights, is numb. With her sister gone, Xiomara, painfully close to thirty, is living in a tiny apartment with her ultra-Catholic Puerto Rican mother, and having the same shitty sex with the same shitty men that she’s been entertaining for years. Behind on rent despite two minimum-wage jobs, one of which involves singing show tunes while serving pancakes to tourists at Ellen’s Stardust Diner, Xiomara is bitingly cynical, especially in her grief, and barely treading water.

But when a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity falls into her lap—the chance to audition for Manny Santos, the most charismatic director of the moment—Xiomara sees a second chance to pursue the dream she thought she’d lost. Meanwhile, something about Santi, a new co-worker at the print shop where she spends half of her days photocopying other performers’ headshots, starts to tug at the threads of her apathy. Nothing is simple, and soon Xiomara finds herself interacting with the ugliest sides of the industry and the powerful men who control it. Sometimes the closer you are to your dreams, the further away you become from yourself, and as Xiomara grapples with this hard truth, she is forced to ask herself if she has what it takes to build a new shiny life without losing the truth of her old one.

With hopeful spirit and unapologetic energy, My Train Leaves at Three is a coming-of-age story about the balancing act between moving on and moving forward.

Natalie Guerrero is an Afro-Latina Writer and Producer living in Los Angeles, California. After spending 5 years in traditional publishing, first at HarperCollins, then at WME Books, Natalie moved across the country to Los Angeles in 2020. Since landing in LaLa Land, Natalie has primarily worked as a development executive for MACRO and M88 across their film, television, and representation verticals. During her time at MACRO, it has been her responsibility to use her longstanding relationships in the publishing world to scout books, IP, etc. for film/television adaptation and oversee the adaptation process on those projects. From reviewing material, attaching auspices, creating pitches, supplying writer notes, and prepping for production Natalie shepherds all her projects from start to finish.

Outside of her traditional workload, Natalie has used the past few years to dig deep into her own writing and activism. After fundraising over $100,000 dollars for the families of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd via social media, her essay ON SILENCE was featured in Hungry Hearts, a heartwarming anthology of essays published by Penguin Random House in 2021. 

Shortly after, Natalie co-authored Jenifer Lewis’ NAACP-nominated book of essays, WALKING IN MY JOY, which was published on August 2nd, 2022. Most recently, Natalie acted as a story consultant for Audible and Broadway Video’s original fiction podcast MICHELLE ROJAS IS NOT OK.  Along with her writing, Natalie continues to actively develop and produce Film and Television projects alongside MACRO, 40 Acres and a Mule (Spike Lee),  Family Owned, Archewell, Spotify, and more. 

Currently, Natalie has published her first novel, The Train Leaves at Three while serving as the Director of The Writers’ Colony and walking her dog, Tupac, in the hills of Los Feliz.

https://www.thewriterscolony.com/natalie-guerrero

@nataliee.guerrero