The Latin Deli: Telling the Lives of Barrio Women

by Judith Ortiz Cofer

Book Overview

A community transplanted from what they now view as an island paradise, these Puerto Rican families yearn for the colors and tastes of their former home. As they carve out lives as Americans, their days are filled with drama, success, and sometimes tragedy. A widow becomes crazy after her son is killed in Vietnam, her remaining word "nada." Another woman carries on after the death of her husband, keeping their store, filled with plantain, Bustello...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393313131
• ISBN13: 9780393313130
• Release Date: May 1995
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.3" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Have Lunch with The Latin Deli!

This tasty book is full of the smells, textures, colors and lives of the Barrio. Lively, inspiring, heartfelt and sometimes heartbreaking, Ortiz fills this book with individuals whose lives are both representative of immigrated people and yet strikingly the stories of every woman and man. Mostly comprised of short-shorts the occasional poem is also brought in. Not all of the characters are named, and there is a sense that the reader is sometimes getting both the history and the future of the same characters. Marvelously woven, this book is a tapestry of personalities, lives, tastes and aromas. Check this book out for something unique! May I also recommend that a cup of Cuban coffee goes wonderfully!