Survival is multi-dimensional
with Mona Alvarado Frazier author of ‘The Garden of Second Chances’
#NuevasPáginas is a space that aims to amplify and spotlight Hispanic/Latine/x authors with newly published books. The goal is to connect readers to their next favorite Hispanic/Latine/x authored book through a mini casual get-to-know-the-book-and-author interview. So please help me connect to more readers. So that together we can continue to build the love/support of Latine literature!
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Hey Book Franz!
I am ready to share some REALLY EXCITING news. I’ve teamed up with DC Public Library to launch a series called La Comunidad Reads:
You can read more about it here but the most important thing I want you to know about it is that I see it as an extension of this newsletter. Another way to continue to build out spaces + communities to amplify and support Latine literature! I am so grateful to the DC Public Library and the DC Public Library Foundation for helping make this series happen.
La Comunidad Reads is an author-inclusive book club series dedicated to supporting Latine literature and connecting with each other in the process. The series is launching this August with four author-inclusive events available in person and virtually with @loyaltybooks as the official booksellers for the series.
We kick off Saturday, Aug. 5, at 3 p.m. at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library w/ @olivalejandra author of one of my favorite books this year - ‘Rivermouth: A Chronicle of Language, Faith and Migration’ and you can sign up/learn more about two other events HERE. I’ll be sharing more about each of them very soon! In the meantime, I hope you’ll consider joining this new series/community 🥹!
See you very soon at the library!
-Lupita
Without further ado, our special guest author for today’s Nuevas Pagina issue is……Mona Alvarado Frazier author of ‘The Garden of Second Chances’ !
Could you tell me a bit about where this photo was taken? Is it special to your book in some way?
The photo is taken in my backyard garden by my son, Nico. The area is special to me for three reasons:
Growing up, we lived in housing projects or apartments without backyards or our own outside space other than asphalt. Besides a room of one’s own, I wanted a garden of my own. Digging into the soil, planting, and nurturing the garden draws me closer to nature, where I sit while butterflies, hummingbirds, and lizards enjoy the space with me.
Our garden is a scrapbook. It holds twenty-eight years of memories from when it had a playhouse, later a skate ramp, and currently succulents and flowers.
The garden connects to the book because it is a space that holds fond memories for Juana. While her mother tended their backyard, she imparted life lessons and wisdom to Juana. While in prison, the garden is a safe place amidst the chaos in her life where she can breathe easier and reflects on her mother’s life.
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
The gap would be the forgotten young women in prison. We hear the negative, but there is also resilience, strength, and bravery, along with trauma, heartache, and loneliness.
What are two central themes in your book that you connect with the most and why?
The first theme is Intimate partner violence. IPV is growing among high schoolers (approximately 12%), with disproportionate numbers among marginalized people, including LGBTQ and Trans communities. This statistic saddened me as I experienced partner violence decades ago and thought we had made more progress.
The second theme is resilience. People can go through so much pain and manage to survive. Survival is multi-dimensional and takes different forms, which I illustrate in the novel. The strength it takes to survive and thrive has always interested me.
If a book was home, where would your home be?
My home would be a peaceful garden, with a reading nook nestled among the flowers and trees with a gazebo where I could talk with fellow writers and book lovers.
If your book was a famous musician who would it be?
Linda Rondstadt because her music represents diverse genres: country, light opera, jazz, and Mariachi ballads. There are many sides to her music, just like there are many aspects of Latinx people.
What comfort food could a reader pair with your book?
Cup of Noodles or Ramen with crushed Fritos and hot sauce with Kool-Aid on the side.
In what ways has access (or little to no access) to Hispanic/Latinx/e literature defined you as a writer?
I didn’t have access to Latinx literature until college, and those were male writers with whom I identified. Still, they didn’t resonate with my experiences as a woman.
The novels that spoke to me were written by: Sandra Cisneros, especially her poetry books. Novels by Denise Chavez and Ana Castillo and short stories by Michele Serros. Those novels hit me in the gut. Their voices helped me find my own. They made me believe our stories are worth writing, although I didn’t begin writing until 2010.
Where can readers keep up with your work?
My website is the best place: www.alvaradofrazier.com, where I offer a prequel to TGOSC when you sign up for the monthly newsletter. I’m on Instagram: m.alvaradofrazier and Twitter @AlvaradoFrazier.
My second YA novel, A Bridge Home, debuts in December 2024, published by Arte Público, University of Houston. This is a historical novel set in the early 70s against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, the rise of feminism, and the Chicano Movement.
Thank you to Mona Alvarado Frazier for taking the time to chat with me about her book! Please please make sure you purchase a copy (or request your local library carry a copy) #SupportLatinxLit!
Mona Alvarado Frazier- “After decades of working with incarcerated youth and raising three kids as a single parent, Mona is fulfilling her passion for writing fiction.
She is a member of SCBWI, Macondo Writers, and a co-founder of #LatinxPitch, an annual Twitter pitch event.
Mona’s novels feature diverse characters in historical and contemporary fiction. She writes to amplify the voices of underrepresented women.”
Synopsis for The Garden of Second Chances:
Juana’s life has taken a dark turn. Accused of her husband’s death, she’s now a seventeen-year-old mother, alone and undocumented in a prison cell. No one believes her when she claims she’s innocent, not even the prison staff or the gang leader in her block who torments her relentlessly.
Her only solace is in her baby, but as Juana struggles to survive the dangers lurking in prison, the threat outside grows even more terrifying. Her husband’s furious family wants to take the child away.
With no hope in sight, Juana discovers a glimmer of light in a small patch of earth in the prison yard. As she nurtures the plants, memories of her mother’s strength and resilience surface, pushing Juana to fight for her freedom and her daughter’s future. This is a story of courage, hope, and determination in the face of impossible odds.
Adding to the TBR list!