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By Vicki Gundrum (Jun 24, 2005) Introducing new books available from the Biblioteca Pública, including a novel by Denise Chávez for your loving pleasure Someone once said that when trying to sell a screenplay to movie producers, you sell the set-pieces. Denise Chávez´s novel Loving Pedro Infante is about real life and the movies, and its wise Chicana heroines chat up a bawdy time and live big dreams between the sometimes tragic, sometimes hilarious set-pieces of life in a small town. Teresina "La Tere" Avila is a teacher's aide by day and a regular at the local bar La Tempestad by night. But at the El Colón movie theater, when looking up at Pedro Infante, the Mexican movie star looming several sizes larger than life, Tere dreams. You see, Pedro Infante was Elvis Presley and Cary Grant rolled into one, a sexy, singing star who died tragically in a small airplane accident when only 40. Infante had a passion for life that captured the souls and enraptured the hearts of the Mexican people-everyman wanted to be like him and every woman, just wanted him. He infatuated Tere, a round-the-clock member of the Pedro Infante Club #256. Tere and her best friend Irma "La Wirma" Granados, indulge in weekly Pedro-athons. His films are not just their escape but their vessel for experiencing passions, both desires and objects of anger. The movies highlight Tere's misguided love for another, her Lucio, as they unveil the Mexican psyche. Chavez's voice sways, a to and fro between conversational English and Spanish-creating an engrossing and knowing voice. She delivers zany punches in a lyrical tempo of Chicano slang. Publisher's Weekly writes of the novel: "A liberating Chicana coming-of-a-certain-age tale, rooted in a profound love for la gente, the book gives us heroines we didn't know we had and makes us understand that love means embracing flaws our own as well as those of others." To get in the spirit of the book, you can begin with Chavez's dedication, which reads in part: For all fans of Pedro Infante, those who smile on hearing his name, those who loved him, love him still. And to those new fans, welcome to the Club. And now, to all you fans of Denise Chavez, here is another fine novel. And to those of you just joining the fun, welcome to Chavez's club. About the Author Denise Chavez is the author of The Last of the Menu Girls and Face of an Angel, for which she won the American Book Award. She is a founder of the Border Book Festival in Las Cruces, New Mexico, where she lives. More New Arrivals The Biblioteca Publica features these other new additions to its English-language collection on its "Recent Arrivals" shelf: Blue Blood, a biography by Harvard-educated cop Edward Conlon. This is said by many to be the best book ever about what life is like on the NYPD. The last chapter is a tone poem to those lost in the terrorist attack on the twin towers, as the men and women "in blue" labor on that day in the streets, and in the days to follow, to bring some sort of order to the chaos, sense to the rubble. I took two months to read this book, savoring some picaresque adventures of cops on the beat in New York City's projects-plus learning the real stories of Serpico and The French Connection (now I must see the movies again!). Leap of Faith: Memoirs of an Unexpected Life, This biography is by the American-born Queen Noor of Jordan. She focuses on the political life of her late husband, King Hussein, and his pivotal role in Arab-US relations. Queen Noor's charitable work and life as a royal draw her as a unique character, however close to the heated politics of the Middle East. Two reference books for 2005 await your attencion, whether its weather facts you want or that important prescription information: The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2005 Complete Guide to Prescription & Nonprescription Drugs: 2005 |