RAW SILK SUTURE

illustrated by Maria Arango

Gente: below is the press release for what is my latest book, Raw Silk Suture. It has been a blessed project, and a labor of love. My dedication is also posted, but I would be remiss if I did not also thank Maria Arango for her gorgeous illustrations, my editor Carlos Mock, my graphic designer, Bill Rattan, and my publisher, Roberto Cabello-Argandoña, and the talented and generous Susan Palmer Marshall for her invaluable feedback. Lastly, un abrazo to Juan Felipe Hererra, Demetria Martinez and Francisco Aragon for their encouragement and unflagging support.

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PRESS RELEASE

In this collection, Lisa Alvarado wields the pen and cuts deeply to the heart of Chicanisma, female identity, the use and misuse of the body, its restoration, and the power of love. With finely etched free verse, each subject is explored to the depth without hesitation, and boldly revealed.

PRAISE FOR RAW SILK SUTURE

"Figures in black abound in Alvarado’s “perishable craft,” her words of and for the unseen...her intensities are relentless. Alvarado is a poet of the abyss...Such an artist was Frida Kahlo....Lisa does not offer an exit; this is one of her superb contributions. She conjures, that is all....Caress this book as you would hold your soul-to-be gasping for life. That is all." -- Juan Felipe Herrera, poet. Author of 187 Reasons Mexicans Can't Cross the Border and Half of the World in Light, New and Selected Poems; Professor, Tomás Rivera Endowed Chair, Department of Creative Writing University of California

"Alvarado's call for "a quiet remaking of cells" is nothing short of revolutionary. Read this book, look at yourself and the world around you and know: anything is possible." -- Demetria Martínez author, Confessions of a Berlitz-Tape Chicana

"Simply put, Raw Silk Suture is “a scar / that has / become a flower.” -- Francisco Aragón Editor, The Wind Shifts: New Latino Poetry Founding Editor, Latino Poetry Review (LPR)

"The poetry of Lisa Alvarado thunders across the page. Fiery and smoky, these are poems for midnight whiskey and pre-dawn espresso. These are poems for what ails us." -- Manuel Ramos, Author, Moony's Road to Hell, and Founder and Columnist, La Bloga

Lisa will kickoff the national release, Saturday, September 20th, 7:30 PM, at: Decima Musa, 1901 S. Loomis St, Chicago, IL, hosted by Palabra Pura/Guild Complex. She will also be appearing at Acentos in the Bronx, New York, on September 23rd, 7 PM, as part of the national kickoff for this release. (The Bruckner Gallery at Bruckner Bar and Grill, One Bruckner Blvd.; corner of Third Ave. and Bruckner Blvd.)

BIO:

Lisa Alvarado is a poet, performer, and installation artist and is the author of two award-winning chapbooks, Reclamo and The Housekeeper's Diary; the latter also a one-woman performance which toured nationally. Lisa is also the co-author of the acclaimed young adult novel, Sister Chicas, written with Ann Hagman Cardinal and Jane Alberdeston Coralin. She is the recipient of grants from the Department of Cultural Affairs, The NEA, and the Ragdale Foundation, and is also a journalist, contributing reviews and interviews to La Bloga, and Blogcritics.org. If you are interested in booking Lisa to experience this groundbreaking work contact her at: lisa@lisaalvarado.net. For review copies or to purchase, contact: Roberto Cabello, Floricanto® Press 650 Castro St, Ste 120--331 Mountain View, California 94041-2055 415-552 1879 Fax 702-995 1410 http://floricantopress.com Inter American Development Inc.

ISBN: 978-1-888205-06-0

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And I'll let the dedication page say what's in my heart:

For Luis Rodriguez and Maureen Seaton,who laid the word ‘writer’ at my feet.

For Martín Espada, Odysseus de Nueva York. For the clenched fist and the lion’s heart.

For Diane Ackerman, who reminds me the divine is in every day beauty.

For Tara Betts, Sharmili Majmudar, for the flesh in the word.

To Michael Sedano, Manuel Ramos, Daniel Olivas, Rudy Garcia, Gina Sol Ruiz, René Colato Laínez, for making me bring my ‘A’ game.

For Jay and June, heart of my heart, and Rose, dear sister mine.

And lastly, for my sisters, Ann Hagman Cardinal, Jane Alberdeston Coralin, for writing that that comes from the deepest roots.

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SAD NEWS FROM ACENTOS

The crew at Acentos extends its deepest sympathies to the family and friends of novelist Edgardo Vega Yunqué. He passed away on August 25th, age 72.

The New York Times' David Gonzalez eulogizes and remembers his friend
here: http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/08/chronicler-of-new-york-leaves-the-scene/?ei=5070&emc=eta1

Mr. Vega Yunqué's writing was of the fiercest variety: uncompromising, curious, surprising. Always a proud Boricua, a chronicler of New York, as Gonzalez notes, he never succumbed to
the popular notions of Boricua writings, breaking and challenging conventions wherever he could.

For our part, it is important to note that Ed spent his childhood in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, where the Acentos series calls home. His sudden passing reminds us of the mission we share as writers to chronicle our barrios, our people, with the truest words we can pen.

Vaya Ed Vega Yunqué…and godspeed.

Paz,
The Acentos crew.