Despite the backing of towering figures in American media, Jeanine Cummins’ page-turning portrayal of a mother on the run is now at the center of the first bonafide literary controversy of the year.
“When we took the book out, our hearts dropped,” Horan said in a telephone interview from Philadelphia, where the American Library Assn. is holding its
“I read the book and I loved it. That experience can’t be changed by people who don’t like it,” said novelist Ann Patchett, who called “American Dirt” a “moral compass” in her quote for the title. “There’s a level of viciousness that comes from a woman getting big advance and a lot of attention,” she added. “If it had been a small advance with a small review in the back of the book section I don’t think we’d be seeing the same level of outrage.
last week in Baltimore, she defended her right to write the novel from the perspective of the Mexican woman at the heart of her book.Her character Lydia, 32, is middle-class, college-educated wife and mother who owns a bookshop in the resort city of Acapulco and survives a bloody massacre at a family quinceañera. With her journalist husband and other family members killed, the bookish protagonist and 8-year-old son make a desperate run for the U.S.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Commentary: When Latinos are shut out of the book industry, you end up with 'American Dirt''American Dirt' by Jeanine Cummins was celebrated by many critics as the great immigrant novel of our day. Then Latinos called it out as a stereotype-riddled act of appropriation.
Read more »
Here's why the 'American Dirt' book has garnered Oprah's praise and social media's criticismJeanine Cummins' new novel, 'American Dirt,' is the latest choice for Oprah Winfrey's book club, but it's also drawn heavy criticism.
Read more »
‘American Dirt’ Leaves Mexican Immigrants in the Dust'It’s less a window than a funhouse mirror, one which reflects a vision of whiteness back on itself to disturbing effect.' –angiejaime
Read more »