On Divided Loyalties
con Reyna Grande, author of 'A Ballad of Love and Glory'
#NuevasPaginasconLupita is a space that is both an archive and resource aimed to "spotlight" Hispanic/Latinx/e authors with newly published books. The goal is to connect readers to new and/or old favorite Hispanic/Latinx/e authors and their books! So give this & every post a share to help us reach more readers!
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Here’s the deal, I came up with a set of casual/random/funny questions to ask each Hispanic/Latinx/e author, I interview. For now, the questions will all be the same but maybe in the future I’ll launch this into more specific questions to the author or maybe I’ll turn this series into a mini-podcast, or maybe……well, you get it! The possibilities are endless.
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Hey Heyyy Book Franz!
I am thrilled to be popping into your email this week and on this very special day! You might be thinking…. “huh? it’s a Tuesday” …..well, it’s not just a Tuesday. It’s REYNA GRANDE Day!!! And on Reyna Grande day we have the honor of celebrating the release of her newest book A Ballad of Love and Glory (available at all book stores TODAY) with this interview.
I was lucky enough to stumble across Reyna Grande’s nonfiction work a few years ago and I have since been a deep admirer. The way Grande’s words entered my life and filled a gap to not only be seen but written into existence is something I’ll never forget. I wrote about it a little bit here but honestly, I don’t think there are really enough words in the world to say to one of my favorite authors - Thank you for writing. Thank you for sharing your life and words with readers in this way because through them I’ve connected to parts of myself I wasn’t able to before. Anyways before I get weepier I am incredibly excited to read more of her fictional work, especially this one because it centers around a time period I’ve always wanted to learn more about.
So without further ado, our special guest author today…THE Reyna Grande <3
Could you tell me a bit about where this photo was taken? Is it special to your book in some way?
This photo was taken in May 2021 at the Palo Alto Battlefield where the first battle of the Mexican-American War was fought. It is special because this is one of the geographical areas I write about in A Ballad of Love and Glory. The day I visited the battle site, it was raining and thundering, and it sounded like the booms of a cannon. If I closed my eyes, I could feel myself back in May of 1846.
Tell me about your book without telling me about your book - share any literary inspirations behind your book! If there are none, the gap you wanted to fill in the literary canon with your book.
My female protagonist is based on a poem about a woman named Ximena who is out on the battlefield tending the wounded, both friend and foe alike. “The Angels of Buena Vista” was written by John Greenleaf Whittier in 1847 during the Mexican-American War. This war has not been written much about in fiction (or nonfiction for that matter), and I wanted to offer a new perspective—and corrective—on this time in our history when the US invaded Mexico and provoked an unjust war.
What are two central themes in your book that you connect with the most and why?
Divided loyalties is a central theme in my book, and I connected with it very strongly because as a Mexican immigrant living in the US, I have often felt torn between both countries, both cultures, both languages. For a long time, there was an internal battle within me, when my Mexican side was fighting with my American side. I often felt that I had to be one or the other, and other times I felt that I was not enough of either. Sometimes when I found myself really loving my life in the US, I felt I was betraying Mexico, but then when I return to my native country, and I want to feel that I belong there, I realize that I’ve assimilated more than I dare to admit. Another theme in the book is not running away from the storm. I feel that throughout my life I have learned to face my fears and stand my ground even though sometimes I would rather run away and hide.
If a book was home, where would your home be?
My book is my home! My writing is where I am most at home. As Gloria Anzaldúa wrote: “I am a turtle. Wherever I go, I carry home on my back.” I’ve learned that home isn’t a place on a map. It is a place in our heart, our mind, on the page. And we can carry it with us wherever we go. It’s a theme I explored in my second memoir, A Dream Called Home.
If your book was a famous musician who would it be?
It would be Lila Downs. She sings with all her heart and soul and Mexican pride. Her voice turns you inside out and makes you bleed. That’s how I hope A Ballad of Love and Glory makes readers feel.
What comfort food could a reader pair with your book?
Tamales, tacos de cabrito, ensalada de nopales, and a prickly pear margarita!
In what ways has access (or little to no access) to Hispanic/Latinx/e literature defined you as a writer?
Having little access to Chicana/Latina literature was both a blessing and a curse. I felt so left out of literature. I felt invisible. Sometimes I felt like an outsider reading about characters that didn’t look like me or live in my world. But it gave me the desire to write stories about myself and my community. I had to write myself into existence. Write the books I wanted to read.
Where can readers keep up with your work?
They can visit my website at reynagrande.com and follow me on IG: @writerreynagrande.
A huge thank you to Reyna Grande for taking the time to chat with me about her work! Please please make sure you purchase a copy (or request your local library carry a copy) of her book #SupportLatinxLit!
Bio for Reyna Grande from her website:
Reyna Grande is the author of the bestselling memoir, The Distance Between Us, (Atria, 2012) where she writes about her life before and after she arrived in the United States from Mexico as an undocumented child immigrant. The much-anticipated sequel, A Dream Called Home (Atria), was released in 2018.
Her other works include the novels, Across a Hundred Mountains, (Atria, 2006) and Dancing with Butterflies (Washington Square Press, 2009) which were published to critical acclaim. The Distance Between Us is also available as a young readers edition from Simon & Schuster’s Children’s Division–Aladdin. Her books have been adopted as the common read selection by schools, colleges, and cities across the country. She has two forthcoming books due to be published in 2022: A Ballad of Love and Glory (Atria, March 15), a novel set during the Mexican-American War, and an anthology by and about undocumented Americans called Somewhere We Are Human: Authentic Voices on Migration, Survival and New Beginnings (HarperVia, June 7).
Synopsis for A Ballad of Love and Glory from the Simon & Schuster website:
A Long Petal of the Sea meets Cold Mountain in this sweeping historical saga following a Mexican army nurse and an Irish soldier who must fight, at first for their survival and then for their love, amidst the atrocity of the Mexican-American War—from the author of the “timely and riveting” (People) Across a Hundred Mountains and The Distance Between Us.
A forgotten war. An unforgettable romance.
The year is 1846. After the controversial annexation of Texas, the US Army marches south to provoke war with México over the disputed Río Grande boundary.
Ximena Salomé is a gifted Mexican healer who dreams of building a family with the man she loves on the coveted land she calls home. But when Texas Rangers storm her ranch and shoot her husband dead, her dreams are burned to ashes. Vowing to honor her husband’s memory and defend her country, Ximena uses her healing skills as an army nurse on the frontlines of the ravaging war.
Meanwhile, John Riley, an Irish immigrant in the Yankee army desperate to help his family escape the famine devastating his homeland, is sickened by the unjust war and the unspeakable atrocities against his countrymen by nativist officers. In a bold act of defiance, he swims across the Río Grande and joins the Mexican Army—a desertion punishable by execution. He forms the St. Patrick’s Battalion, a band of Irish soldiers willing to fight to the death for México’s freedom.
When Ximena and John meet, a dangerous attraction blooms between them. As the war intensifies, so does their passion. Swept up by forces with the power to change history, they fight not only for the fate of a nation but for their future together.
Heartbreaking and lyrical, Reyna Grande’s spellbinding saga, inspired by true events and historical figures, brings these two unforgettable characters to life and illuminates a largely forgotten moment in history that impacts the US-México border to this day.
Will Ximena and John survive the chaos of this bitter war, or will their love be devoured along with the land they strive to defend?
The best ways you can support Latinx/e authors and Latinx/e literature is by doing the following:
Leave a review for their books on any website that sells books
Request that your local library carry a copy
Purchase a copy of a friend, family member, your nemesis (hey! I’m sure they read too).
Shout about the book on any social media platform or to your friends and family!
Share this interview widely! Word of mouth does wonders for connecting readers to books.
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