Books and Justice

New Books

Beautiful María of My Soul
Oscar Hijuelos
Hyperion, June 2010

The Pulitzer Prize–winning The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love is a contemporary American classic, a novel that still captures the imagination twenty years after its first publication. And now, in Beautiful María of My Soul, Oscar Hijuelos returns to the story, but tells it from the point of view of its beloved heroine, Maria.

She’s the great Cuban beauty, the woman who stole musician Nestor Castillo’s heart and broke it, inspiring him to write the Mambo Kings’ biggest hit, “Beautiful María of My Soul.” Here, in Hijuelos’s dazzling new stand-alone novel, she finally takes the spotlight. Now in her early sixties and living in Miami with her pediatrician daughter, Teresa, Beautiful María still turns heads. Having left Cuba decades before, she has gone on with her life, but has never forgotten Nestor, and as she thinks back to her days—and nights—in Havana, an entirely new perspective on the Mambo Kings story unfolds.

Beautiful María of My Soul is a stunning feat of reimagination, another contemporary classic from an extraordinarily talented writer.

Reviews
“I fell instantly in love with the glorious soul of Beautiful María of My Soul. Hijuelos has created and brought to life two beloved characters, a heart-stealing heroine and Havana during an epoch of changing fate.”
--Amy Tan, bestselling author of The Joy Luck Club and The Kitchen God’s Wife

“Beautiful María is the Queen of the Mambo Kings! Oscar Hijuelos brings this magnificent character to life in this lyrical novel.”
--Gay Talese, author of A Writer’s Life

Bloody Twist.
Carolina Garcia-Aguilera
Miramar, July 2010

Carolina Garcia-Aguilera is a unique figure in the mystery-writing world. In addition to being an award-winning author, Garcia-Aguilera has taken on the role of private investigator to enhance her literary career. She is the Cuban-born author of the popular Lupe Solano Series, featuring Solano, a wealthy, sultry and quick-witted Cuban-American private investigator who lives and works in Miami. After a seven year hiatus, Garcia-Aguilera has now published her long-awaited new book Bloody Twist (eBook; available on Kindle, iPad, Google and Nook).

Two years after having been shot in Bitter Sugar, fiery heroine Lupe Solano is back on the job. Tommy MacDonald, Miami's premiere criminal defense attorney and Lupe Solano's sometimes lover, needs help with a case involving his new client, the mysterious Madeline Marie Meadows. Twenty-two-year-old Ms. Meadows is Miami's highest paid call-girl. Although Ms. Meadows has not been charged with any crime, she hires MacDonald as a result of the murders of two men she has relationships with. Although Tommy is drawn to Ms. Meadows, he is skeptical of her story and asks Lupe to begin an investigation.

Garcia-Aguilera's critically-acclaimed writing has shattered stereotypes and expanded boundaries for Hispanic women throughout her career. Her books are celebrated for their rich and detailed portrayal of the Cuban community in South Florida, while exploring its unique culture, and the clashes and conflicts between the generations.

Garcia-Aguilera's experience running a successful private investigation agency adds another unique dimension to her writing and gives it a realism not found in other mystery novels. Her writing has received numerous awards, including the Shamus for Havana Heat (Best Private Eye novel of 2000), and the Flamingo for A Miracle in Paradise (Best Florida Mystery of 1999). Garcia-Aguilera's novel, One Hot Summer, a love story set in Miami, was made into a feature film for Lifetime Television and anchored the network's Hispanic Heritage Month celebration. The film recently received a 2010 Imagen Award nomination.

Visit the author's website: www.carolinagarciaaguilera.com

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to visit DU Law

Justice to engage in Q & A with Colorado students
DENVER — United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor will be visiting the University of Denver Sturm College of Law on Aug. 26, 2010, to speak with Colorado high school and college students about her life experiences. The event is co-hosted by the College of Law and the Colorado Campaign for Inclusive Excellence (CCIE).

Working together, the University and the CCIE are partnering with a host of agencies, corporations and schools with the goal of reaching young people from diverse backgrounds and encouraging them to pursue careers in law. In the end, the program aims to make Colorado’s legal community more diverse, inclusive and representative of the state and region.

Justice Sotomayor will speak to more than 200 high school and college undergraduates and an array of legal scholars, community leaders, and members of the public. “All of us in the DU Law community are thrilled by the Justice's visit and by this opportunity to host a forum with her for area students,” says Sturm College of Law Dean Martin Katz. “Not only will students learn from this opportunity to hear the Justice speak, they also will be invited to ask her questions about her experiences on the bench and in life.”

“Justice Sotomayor is such an inspirational figure to young people who dream about becoming lawyers and having a positive impact in their communities,” says Kathleen Nalty, an attorney and executive director of the CCIE. “It is so exciting that she accepted our invitation to speak with young people in the Denver community who will be inspired to follow her lead – to go to college and law school and become attorneys and judges one day.”

Tickets will be extremely limited. For more information contact Chase Squires at University Communications, (303) 871-2660 or at Chase.Squires@du.edu.