Chicago Matters

Back in July, I wrote about two great books that tell important immigrant stories. Thursday evening, Luis Alberto Urrea, the author of one of those books, The Devil's Highway, spoke at our local public library--and I am so glad that I went to hear him! His appearance was part of the year-long public affairs series Chicago Matters: Beyond Borders program, which is put on by Chicago Public Radio and friends. The focus for 2007 is immigration.

Here he is reading a short excerpt from The Devil's Highway. He looks guero, but he was born in Tijuana to a Mexican father and an Estadounidense (United Statesian) mother:

On the day of his talk, I finished reading a second book of his, The Hummingbird's Daughter, which I thought was fabulous. The book is a novel based on the life of Teresita, Urrea's great aunt, who was a midwife and a healer. I would highly recommend it.

Luis Urrea's website is worth a look, but I especially like his blog. He just seems like a great person. Not only is an excellent writer who makes important observations about immigration and identity and life, but he is funny and (seemingly) authentic. I look forward to reading more of his books and short stories. If you want to hear excerpts from past public radio interviews with him and conversations about his writing, you can find them on the Chicago Public Radio site.

By chance, I ran into my mom's friend, Gerry, at the reading. She was sitting in front of me, and it took us a long time to figure out how we knew each other.


I love the view of the skyline from the Pink Line: