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The second book in the Salmon Library Let’s Talk About It Reading and Discussion Program is Woman Hollering Creek, by Susan Cisneros. The book is a collection of short vignettes that capture moments in the vibrant and varied life on both sides of the Mexican border.  Cisneros shares a collection of stories of breathtaking range and authority, such as a young girl revealing secrets only an eleven-year-old can know to a witch woman circling above the village on a predawn flight. Once again the element of “magical realism” that has been used to describe much of Latin American literature is clearly present.

Sandra Cisneros was born in Chicago in 1954, the only daughter in a family that had six sons.  Both her parents were Mexican (her mother Mexican/American) and Cisneros spent her childhood in a variety of run-down Hispanic neighborhoods which offered experiences that found their way into her writing. She attended a variety of Catholic elementary schools, then from Loyola Univerity, she earned a BA in English and later an MFA in creative writing from University of Iowa Writer’ Workshop. Internationally acclaimed for her poetry and fiction, she has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Lannan Literary Award and the American Book Award, and a MacArthur Foundation fellowship. Sandra Cisneros has published many books, including House on Mango Street.  She lives in San Antonio, Texas.

This year’s Let’s Talk About It theme is Other Americas. As our country continues to grow more diverse, divisions remain in our society.  Despite the fragmentation, we also realize that there are things that unite us all.  The books in this series provide a window on how this has come to be historically, and how the future may be shaped. Each program will have a featured speaker who will set the stage for some lively group discussions. Participants are encouraged to read the book selection prior to the program, but all interested parties are encouraged to attend any or all programs that are scheduled for Thursdays at 7:00 p.m. at the Salmon Public Library, 204 Main Street, Salmon. For more info, call the library at 208-756-2311 or email them at salmonpubliclibrary@centurytel.net.  The library website, www.salmonlibrary.org will feature each book selection with descriptions, featured speakers, recommended reading lists etc.
 

The second program is scheduled for Thursday, January 26 in the library basement and the program scholar will be Dan Hunt, Associate Professor of Spanish at ISU.  He has been a Let’s Talk About It program scholar since the 1990’s. The next book in the series will beInvisible Man (1952) by Ralph Ellison. The books are now available to be checked out.

Sponsors of the Let’s Talk About It program are the Idaho Humanities Council, The Idaho Commission for Libraries, US Bank and the Salmon Arts Council.