Literary Fiction with a Latin America Focus

Try these books if you are looking for:

• Mutlicultural Fiction
• Latin American Characters
• Read-alikes for Isabelle Allende
• Read-alikes for Gabriel Garcia Marquez
• Literary fiction

Caramelo
By Sandra Cisneros
F CISNEROS
During her family's annual car trip from Chicago to Mexico City, Lala Reyes listens to stories about her family, including her grandmother, the descendant of a renowned dynasty of shawl makers, whose magnificent striped shawl has come into Lala's possession.

In the Time of the Butterflies
Julia Alvarez
F ALVAREZ
Readers who are drawn to Allende's masterful storytelling voice may enjoy Julia Alvarez. Her novel, In the Time of the Butterflies, is rooted in the history of the Dominican Republic and tells the story of the Mirabal sisters, vibrant, revolutionary women who opposed the Trujillo regime. The story is divided into sections voiced by each of the four sisters, and is a gripping, personal tale set against a sweeping backdrop.

Lost City Radio
Daniel Alarcon
F ALACORN
Imparting comfort while reading the names of missing people to her war-ravaged listeners, radio host Norma finds her life irrevocably changed when a young boy from a remote jungle village provides a connection to her long-missing husband.

Sister of My Heart
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
F DIVAKARUNI
Two girls, one the daughter of an upper-caste Calcutta family, the other the daughter of the black sheep of that same family, form a sisterly bond that shatters when one of the girls discovers a dark family secret.

Eccentric Neighborhoods
Rosario Ferre
F FERRE
A fictional memoir about a woman from a male-dominated family of industrialists in Puerto Rico who struggles to understand her late mother, Eccentric Neighborhoods, tells the story of the loves and tragedies of the Rivas de Santillana, vibrant and individualistic women, and the Vernets, flawed and grasping men.