| |
http://www.ctnow.com/features/lifestyle/hc-esmeralda0609.artjun09,0,3326529.story
Esmeralda
Santiago's `One Book'
`When I Was Puerto
Rican' Is 2004 Pick
June 9, 2004
By CAROLE GOLDBERG,
Courant Books Editor
In 1961, at age 13, Esmeralda Santiago was
brought by her mother from rural Puerto Rico to a new life in New
York City. The oldest of 11 siblings, Santiago was a bright student
who at first spoke little English, yet she went on to attend the
prestigious Performing Arts High School and eventually earned
degrees from Harvard University and Sarah Lawrence College.
With her husband, Frank Cantor, she founded a film and media
production company and has written two memoirs and a novel.
While she made the transition successfully to a different culture
and new expectations on the mainland, she was surprised, upon
returning to the island after 12 years, that her very
"Puerto-Rican-ness" was questioned because she had been away so
long. She realized, "My life is lived in English, but my internal
life is in Spanish."
Santiago told the story of her early years in a much-praised memoir,
"When I Was Puerto Rican," published by Perseus in 1993. That book
has been chosen as the One Book for Greater Hartford selection for
2004.
The community reading program, now in its third year, brings people
together through discussions, lectures and other events. Such
programs have become a nationwide phenomenon, and an appearance by
James McBride, author of Hartford's 2003 selection, "The Color of
Water," drew more than 700 people.
Santiago "is a very important American writer and an author with
wide recognition in the Puerto Rican community, which makes it so
important to have her here," says Louise Blalock, chief librarian of
the Hartford Public Library, a major sponsor of the program. Her
book, "perfect in many ways, with appeal for young adult readers and
parents," Blalock says, is one that "everyone can relate to. It
opens up what that experience was like."
The book also augments the library's exploration of Puerto Rican
literature and culture this year through the statewide World of
Words program sponsored by the Connecticut Center for the Book,
which is based at the library.
The 2004 One Book program, whose honorary chairman is Hartford Mayor
Eddie Perez, will kick off on Sept. 9 at the library with a free
bilingual workshop from 9:45 a.m. to 2 p.m. that will train
participants to lead book discussions and present activities for
community groups.
A resource guide and book discussion schedule will be distributed.
The library and its branches will hold discussions in English and
Spanish during September and October, and libraries in other towns
also will hold programs.
The program will culminate Oct. 16, when Santiago speaks at the
library from 7 to 8 p.m. and signs books from 8 to 9 p.m.
Registration is required for the workshop and author visit and can
be made by calling 860-695-6342.
|
 |
