With Love, the Argentina Family

by Mirta Ines Trupp

Revealing the insecurities of a young immigrant girl, this memoir unfolds in America. With a mother who never stops crying about the “Argentina Family” and a father employed with an international airline, Mirta’s life is divided between her adopted country and her native land. Dramas abound with a long-distance relationship in the aftermath of Argentina’s “Dirty War,” a frightening interrogation with the Argentine police and an astonishing encounter at the American consulate. In this autobiographical story, a girl comes to terms with her Jewish heritage, her Argentine traditions and her fierce American patriotism.

Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Mirta Ines Trupp’s With Love, the Argentina Family (available in English only) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

Signs Preceding the End of the World / Señales que precederán al fin del mundo

by Yuri Herrera

Traversing the lonely border territory between Mexico and the United States is Makina, a young woman who has learned to survive in a violent, macho world. Leaving behind her life in Mexico to search for her brother, she is smuggled into the US carrying a pair of secret messages—one from her mother and one from the Mexican underworld.

Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Yuri Herrera’s Signs Preceding the End of the World (Spanish: Señales que precederán al fin del mundo) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

The Man Who Loved Dogs / El hombre que amaba a los perros

by Leonardo Padura

Leonardo Padura brings a noir sensibility to a fascinating and complex political narrative: the 1940 assassination of Leon Trotsky in Mexico. The story revolves around Iván Cárdenas Maturell, once the great hope of modern Cuban literature–until he wrote a story deemed counterrevolutionary. Years later, he’s a humbled and defeated man living a quiet, unremarkable life. One afternoon, he meets a mysterious foreigner in the company of two Russian wolfhounds. As the pair grow closer, Iván begins to understand that his new friend is hiding a terrible secret…

The group will meet Wednesday, February 8, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Leonardo Padura’s The Man Who Loved Dogs (Spanish: El hombre que amaba a los perros) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

The Tunnel / El túnel

by Ernesto Sábato

In this psychological novel of obsessive love, artist Juan Pablo Castel recounts from his prison cell  the story of María Iribarne. Obsessed from the moment he sees her examining one of his paintings, he fantasizes for months about how they might meet again. When he happens upon her one day, a relationship develops that convinces him of their mutual love. But his growing paranoia leads him to destroy the one thing he cares about.

The group will meet Wednesday, January 11, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Ernesto Sábato’s The Tunnel (Spanish: El túnel) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

 

The Alchemist / El Alquimista

by Paulo Coehlo

Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho’s masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different—and far more satisfying—than he ever imagined. Santiago’s journey teaches about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, of recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life’s path, and, most importantly, to follow our dreams.

The group will meet Wednesday, December 14, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist (Spanish: El Alquimista) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

The Private Lives of Trees / La vida privada de los arboles

by Alejandro Zambra

Each night, Julián , a young professor of literature, has improvised a story about trees for his stepdaughter, Daniela. But tonight something is different: as Julián becomes increasingly concerned that his wife won’t return from her art class, he imagines what Daniela—at 20, at 30 years old, without a mother—will think of his novel about a man tending to his bonsai.

Note: Participants may also read Zambra’s short novel Bonsái which is included in the Spanish edition of The Private Lives of Trees. The English edition of Bonsai will be available only on a limited basis. (Bonsái was also made into a film.)

The group will meet Wednesday, November 9, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Alejandro Zambra’s The Private Lives of Trees (Spanish: La vida privada de los arboles) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

 

The Body Where I was Born / El cuerpo en que nací

By Guadalupe Nettel

From a psychoanalyst’s couch, the narrator looks back on her bizarre childhood. She was born with an abnormality and her family is intent on fixing it. In a world without the time and space for innocence, she intimately recalls her younger self—a fierce and discerning girl open to life’s pleasures and keen to its ruthless cycle of tragedy. With raw language and a brilliant sense of humor, Nettel strings together hard-won, unwieldy memories—taking us from Mexico City to France, and back again—to create a portrait of the artist as a young girl.

The group will meet Wednesday, October 12, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Guadalupe Nettel’s The Body Where I was Born (Spanish: El cuerpo en que nací) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

 

War Against All Puerto Ricans / Guerra contra todos los puertorriqueños

By Denis A. Nelson

In 1950, after decades of military occupation and colonial rule, the Nationalist Party of Puerto Rico staged an unsuccessful armed insurrection against the United States.  Violence swept through the island: assassins were sent to kill the president, gunfights roared in towns, police stations and post offices were burned down. To suppress the uprising, the U.S. Army deployed troops and—for the first time in history— bombarded its own citizens. Through interviews, eyewitness accounts and congressional testimony, War Against All Puerto Ricans tells the story of a forgotten revolution.

The group will meet Wednesday, September 14, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Nelson A. Denis’ War Against All Puerto Ricans (Spanish: Guerra contra todos los puertorriqueños) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk two months before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

Note: There will be no meeting in August! Enjoy your summer and see you in September!

 

Torn from the Nest / Aves sin nido

by Clorinda Matto de Turner

In this tragic tale, Peruvian novelist Clorinda Matto de Turner explores the relationship between the landed gentry and the indigenous peoples of the Andean mountain communities. While unfolding as a love story rife with secrets and dashed hopes, Torn from the Nest in fact reveals a deep and destructive class disparity, and criticizes the Catholic clergy for blatant corruption. Torn from the Nest was first published in Peru in 1889 amidst much enthusiasm and outrage. This fresh translation preserves one of Peru’s most distinctive voices.

The group will meet Wednesday, July 13, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Clorinda Matto de Turner’s Torn from the Nest (Spanish: Aves sin nido) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!

 

¡Ask a Mexican! / ¡Pregúntale al mexicano¡

by Gustavo Arellano

Originally appearing in Gustavo Arellano’s popular Orange County weekly column, ¡Ask a Mexican! chronicles into one acerbic volume 2 years of questions and answers. Arellano answers serious, curious, and sometimes hateful but mostly irreverent questions about Mexicans (including language, sex, immigration and food), wittily defuses bigotry and mocks stereotypes with his often well-researched replies. This lighthearted and irreverent celebration of Mexican-American culture challenges clichés and misconceptions, while offering insight into its complexity and power as an American economic force.

The group will meet Wednesday, June, 7-8:00 pm, 3rd Floor, Seminar Room, Main Library. Attendees have the option to read in English and/or Spanish. Discussions may also be in English and Spanish. Attendees do not have to be bilingual. Copies of Gustavo Arellano’s ¡Ask a Mexican! (Spanish: ¡Pregúntale al mexicano¡) will be held at the 2nd floor Readers Services Desk one month before the discussion. Call to register at (847) 448-8620!