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KUHF-Arte Público Author of the Month: Beatriz Rivera

August 13, 2010    
by: Eric Ladau

Beatriz Rivera has been selected as this month's KUHF/Arte Público Press Author of the Month. In the next installment of a series of monthly features, KUHF's Eric Ladau spoke with Ms. Rivera.

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Cuban-American writer Beatriz Rivera specializes in creating witty and dizzying characters, and now with When a Tree Falls, she introduces readers to Otilia Mancuso, a self-professed Xanax poster girl who works, sleeps, breathes, loves and bribes in Hudson County.

Otilia has lived in a high rise next to the Holland Tunnel ever since she was elected to the Hudson County Board of Chosen Freeholders. Her sudden and unexpected election — to a seat vacated by the untimely death of her predecessor in a sleazy motel — made her the first woman to be elected legislator at the county level.  But now, all Otilia wants is to click her heels and disappear from the mess she's in. Her lover, a charming psychiatrist who provides millions of dollars worth of services to county facilities, convinces her to deliver an envelope full of money to the county executive. Soon, she finds herself charged with four counts of aiding and abetting extortion and three counts of mail fraud.

This offbeat love story is full of oddball characters in absurd situations: a clog-wearing, tea-drinking psychiatrist obsessed with yoga, financial success, and cheap-motel sex; his gorgeous wife, a passionate animal rights advocate and brilliant veterinarian with a predilection for designer clothing, organic food, and breast implants; and the owner of an organic food farm and a yoga school who has taken an eternal vow of chastity.

Loosely based on the machinations of New Jersey politicians, the off-the-wall antics of Rivera's scheming characters are depicted with her distinctive literary style.

BEATRIZ RIVERA is the author of several books in which Latinas deal with questions of identity and tradition, including Do Not Pass Go, Playing with Light, Midnight Sandwiches at the Mariposa Express, and African Passions and Other Stories. She received her Ph.D. from the City University of New York Graduate Center in Spanish Literature and is an associate professor at Penn State University Worthington Scranton in Dunmore, PA.

Arte Público Press is the nation's largest and most established publisher of contemporary and recovered literature by U.S. Hispanic authors. Based at the University of Houston, Arte Público Press, Piñata Books and the Recovering the U.S. Hispanic Literary Heritage project provide the most widely recognized and extensive showcase for Hispanic literary arts and creativity. For more information, please visit www.artepublicopress.com.

In the next installment of a series of monthly features, KUHF's Eric Ladau spoke with Ms. Rivera about her works.

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Arte Público Press and KUHF have teamed up to showcase Hispanic authors whose works have been published by APP. KUHF's Eric Ladau will interview an author each month, and the interviews, along with transcripts and photos, will be available here to online listeners through on-demand audio streaming.

KUHF-Arte Publico Author of the Month: Xavier Garza

June 14, 2010    
by: Eric Ladau

Xavier Garza has been selected as this month's KUHF/Arte Publico Press Author of the Month. In the next installment of a series of monthly features, KUHF's Eric Ladau spoke with Mr. Garza
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KUHF-Arte Público Author of the Month: Dr. Marion Oettinger, Jr.

April 21, 2010    
by: Eric Ladau

Dr. Marion Oettinger, Jr. has been selected as this month's KUHF/Arte Público Press Author of the Month. In the next installment of a series of monthly features, KUHF's Eric Ladau spoke with Dr. Oettinger.
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KUHF-Arte Público Press Author of the Month: Stella Pope Duarte

March 16, 2010    
by: Eric Ladau

Author Stella Pope Duarte has been selected as this month's KUHF/Arte Público Press Author of the Month. In the next installment of a series of monthly features, KUHF's Eric Ladau spoke with Ms. Duarte.
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KUHF-Arte Público Press Author of the Month: Stephanie Fetta

February 8, 2010    
by: Eric Ladau

Editor Stephanie Fetta has been selected as this month's KUHF/Arte Público Press Author of the Month. In the next installment of a series of monthly features, KUHF's Eric Ladau spoke with Ms. Fetta.
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KUHF-Arte Público Press Author of the Month: Amy Costales

January 7, 2010    
by: Eric Ladau

Author Amy Costales is the subject of this month's KUHF/Arte Público Press Author of the Month. In the next installment of a series of monthly features, KUHF's Eric Ladau spoke with the author.
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