Flor has a gift: she can predict, to the day, when someone will die. So when she decides she wants a living wake--a party to bring her family and community together to celebrate the long life she's led--her sisters are surprised. Has Flor forseen her own death, or someone else's? Does she have other motives? She refuses to tell her sisters, Matilde, Pastora, and Camila.
But Flor isn't the only person with secrets. Matilde has tried for decades to cover the extent of her husband's infidelity, but she must now confront the true state of her marriage. Pastora is typically the most reserved sister, but Flor's wake motivates this driven woman to solve her sibling's problems. Camila is the youngest sibling, and often the forgotten one, but she's decided she no longer wants to be taken for granted.
And the next generation, cousins Ona and Yadi, face tumult of their own: Yadi is reuniting with her first love, who was imprisoned when they were both still kids; Ona is married for years and attempting to conceive. Ona must decide whether it's worth it to keep trying--to have a child, and the anthropology research that's begun to feel lackluster.
Spanning the three days prior to the wake, Family Lore traces the lives of each of the Marte women, weaving together past and present, Santo Domingo and New York City. Told with Elizabeth Acevedo's inimitable and incandescent voice, this is an indelible portrait of sisters and cousins, aunts and nieces--one family's journey through their history, helping them better navigate all that is to come.
Flor has a gift: she can predict, to the day, when someone will die. So when she decides she wants a living wake--a party to bring her family and community together to celebrate the long life she's led--her sisters are surprised. Has Flor forseen her own death, or someone else's? Does she have other motives? She refuses to tell her sisters, Matilde, Pastora, and Camila.
But Flor isn't the only person with secrets. Matilde has tried for decades to cover the extent of her husband's infidelity, but she must now confront the true state of her marriage. Pastora is typically the most reserved sister, but Flor's wake motivates this driven woman to solve her sibling's problems. Camila is the youngest sibling, and often the forgotten one, but she's decided she no longer wants to be taken for granted.
And the next generation, cousins Ona and Yadi, face tumult of their own: Yadi is reuniting with her first love, who was imprisoned when they were both still kids; Ona is married for years and attempting to conceive. Ona must decide whether it's worth it to keep trying--to have a child, and the anthropology research that's begun to feel lackluster.
Spanning the three days prior to the wake, Family Lore traces the lives of each of the Marte women, weaving together past and present, Santo Domingo and New York City. Told with Elizabeth Acevedo's inimitable and incandescent voice, this is an indelible portrait of sisters and cousins, aunts and nieces--one family's journey through their history, helping them better navigate all that is to come.
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Find Family Lore A Novel Elizabeth Acevedo in PDF, EPUB, ebook, audiobook, print, or library editions.
Find Family Lore A Novel Elizabeth Acevedo in PDF, EPUB, ebook, audiobook, print, or library editions.
2 books in catalog
Contemporary verse novels and young adult literature received a defining contribution with the publication of The Poet X, a celebrated novel in verse exploring adolescence, faith, and self-expression. Author Elizabeth Acevedo built on her background as a National Poetry Slam Champion to craft a narrative rhythm that brought spoken-word poetry directly to young adult fiction. Her work expands into adult fiction with Family Lore, broadening her exploration of Afro-Dominican heritage and multi-generational family stories.
Born and raised in New York City's Morningside Heights neighborhood by Afro-Dominican parents, Elizabeth Acevedo grew up immersed in musical and oral traditions ranging from boleros to hip-hop. She earned a BA in Performing Arts from The George Washington University and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Maryland. Early in her creative path, Acevedo honed her craft through fellowships with Cave Canem and Cantomundo, as well as participating in the Callaloo Writer's Workshops. Before publishing her novels, she established a prominent presence in performance poetry as a National Poetry Slam Champion. In September 2022, the Poetry Foundation appointed her as the Young People's Poet Laureate. She resides in Washington, DC.
Acevedo's literary style bridges spoken-word verse, music, and prose narrative. Rooted in the rhythms of hip-hop and traditional Afro-Dominican music, her writing frequently examines themes of identity, bodily autonomy, family dynamics, and cultural heritage. In her young adult novels, she uses verse and distinct narrative voices to address the complexities of adolescence and grief, while her adult fiction incorporates magical elements to explore ancestral history and women's relationships across generations.
2 books in catalog
Contemporary verse novels and young adult literature received a defining contribution with the publication of The Poet X, a celebrated novel in verse exploring adolescence, faith, and self-expression. Author Elizabeth Acevedo built on her background as a National Poetry Slam Champion to craft a narrative rhythm that brought spoken-word poetry directly to young adult fiction. Her work expands into adult fiction with Family Lore, broadening her exploration of Afro-Dominican heritage and multi-generational family stories.
Born and raised in New York City's Morningside Heights neighborhood by Afro-Dominican parents, Elizabeth Acevedo grew up immersed in musical and oral traditions ranging from boleros to hip-hop. She earned a BA in Performing Arts from The George Washington University and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Maryland. Early in her creative path, Acevedo honed her craft through fellowships with Cave Canem and Cantomundo, as well as participating in the Callaloo Writer's Workshops. Before publishing her novels, she established a prominent presence in performance poetry as a National Poetry Slam Champion. In September 2022, the Poetry Foundation appointed her as the Young People's Poet Laureate. She resides in Washington, DC.
Acevedo's literary style bridges spoken-word verse, music, and prose narrative. Rooted in the rhythms of hip-hop and traditional Afro-Dominican music, her writing frequently examines themes of identity, bodily autonomy, family dynamics, and cultural heritage. In her young adult novels, she uses verse and distinct narrative voices to address the complexities of adolescence and grief, while her adult fiction incorporates magical elements to explore ancestral history and women's relationships across generations.
