Author Talks: Esmeralda Santiago @ El Museo del Barrio This Wednesday

Join Mireya Navarro, New York Times journalist in a conversation with Esmeralda Santiago about her new book Conquistadora. Bear witness to an evening of memories, tales and experiences about the task of writing an epic novel of love, discovery and adventure by the author of the best-selling memoir When I Was Puerto Rican.

About this Book:

As a young girl growing up in Spain, Ana Larragoity Cubillas is powerfully drawn to Puerto Rico by the diaries of an ancestor who traveled there with Ponce de León. And in handsome twin brothers Ramón and Inocente—both in love with Ana—she finds a way to get there. She marries Ramón, and in 1844, just eighteen, she travels across the ocean to a remote sugar plantation the brothers have inherited on the island.

Even as she relishes the challenge of running Hacienda los Gemelos, Ana faces unrelenting heat, disease and isolation amidst the dangers of the untamed countryside, When the Civil War breaks out in the United States, Ana finds her livelihood threatened by the very people on whose backs her wealth has been built: the hacienda’s slaves, whose richly drawn stories unfold alongside her own. Once Ana falls for a man who may be her destiny—a once-forbidden love—she will sacrifice nearly everything to keep hold of the land that has become her true home.

This is a sensual, riveting tale, set in a place where human passions and cruelties collide. Historical fiction at its finest, this narrative has never before been brought so vividly and unforgettably to life.

Space is limited. RSVP is required.

RSVP HOLDERS: Please note that reservations do not guarantee access. We ask that you please arrive to El Teatro with a printed reservation by 6:15pm, as RSVP benefits are only held until 15 minutes prior to showtime. After said time guests will be admitted on a first come, first served basis.

For more info: Author Talks | El Museo del Barrio New York.

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