"Arana has achieved the impossible... LatinoLand is indispensable, unforgettable. A work of prophecy, sympathy and courage.”
–Junot Díaz, Pulitzer Prize winner
“Meticulously researched, the book’s greatest strengths are the power of its epic narrative, the beauty of its prose and its rich portrayals of character. . . . a marvelous book.” ~The Washington Post
Bolívar’s life is one of history’s most dramatic canvases, a colossal narrative replete with adventure and disaster, victory and defeat.
“American Chica transports us far beyond the conventional boundaries of ethnic memoir; with great delicacy, Arana helps us understand why the marriage of the Americas is as difficult as it is inevitable”.
–National Book Award
“Erotic, catastrophic . . . Arana’s novel of taboo passion, tragic misperception, and life’s hidden dimensions is as shattering as it is seductive.”
Marie Arana has created a rich, boisterous saga about a remarkable family, a wondrous invention, and a powerful collision between science, magic, and faith.
“Monumental, stupendous. . . . a must-read for anyone who wants to understand this hemisphere.”
~Julia Alvarez
“Meticulously researched, the book’s greatest strengths are the power of its epic narrative, the beauty of its prose and its rich portrayals of character. . . . a marvelous book.”
~The Washington Post
“A lively and learned account of Latin America, ingeniously structured.”
~The New York Times
A major work of history, Bolivar colorfully portrays a dramatic life even as it explains the rivalries and turmoil that bedeviled Bolivar’s tragic last days.
“Finally, Bolivar gets the sweeping biography he deserves. He was the greatest leader in Latin American history, and his tale is filled with lessons about leadership and passion. This book reads like a wonderful novel but is researched like a masterwork of history.” –Walter Isaacson, author of Steve Jobs
Marie is a Peruvian-American author of nonfiction and fiction as well as the inaugural Literary Director of the Library of Congress. She is the recipient of a 2020 literary award from the American Academy of Arts & Letters. In 2024, she received the Leadership for the Americas Award from the Inter-American Dialogue at the Organization of American States (OAS).
Silver, Sword and Stone
News & Events
History with David Rubenstein (PBS)
In 1960, one out of every 25 people in the United States was of Latino heritage. In 2023, it is one out of five. In 2050, it will be one in three. Latinos are our largest, oldest, most undercounted, fastest growing, and least understood community. Prizewinning author Marie Arana explains who they are and what they have meant to America.
Read MoreWhat do ‘Latino voters’ want? The GOP thinks it knows. (Washington Post)
Is there such a thing as “the Latino voter”?
My father, a Peruvian, was something of a Republican, even when he wasn’t yet a citizen of the United States. For the first 15 years of my parents’ marriage, in Peru, he was mostly concerned with the careening allegiances of his own countrymen: the gaping divide between the elites and the poor; the wild, destabilizing vacillation between right wing and left wing in Latin America; the perpetual pendulum swing between oppression and revolution.
Read MoreLatinoLand: Press Release
In LATINOLAND: A Portrait of America’s Largest and Least Understood Minority (Simon & Schuster; February 20, 2024), the award-winning author and historian Marie Arana offers readers a sweeping, personal portrait of the largest racial and ethnic minority in the United States.
Read MoreLatinoLand: For Book Clubs
Resources and Downloads.
These files are also available at Marie’s publisher Simon & Schuster.
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