PositiveThe New York Times Book ReviewAn antidote for the hard-line essentialism that has made this world an intolerant, violent place. Fuentes humanizes seemingly insoluble conflicts, both generational and cultural, with imperfect characters who are just doing their best, even when they know they are screwing up. She gives them something that many of us nonfictional people living and messing up in the world could use, and give back — grace.
Susan Straight
RaveThe New York Times Book ReviewThe novel’s scope is vast...But Straight also delves into the intimate, often unseen recesses of a hidden California — old canyon homes that remain as the last traces of citrus labor camps, a courtyard community of Oaxacan families that thrives behind a curtain of morning glory in one of Los Angeles’s densest neighborhoods ... Through the interwoven narratives of Johnny, Matelasse and Ximena, Straight showcases intricate intersections of personal and familial histories to create a wide and deep view of a dynamic, multiethnic Southern California ... One of the most notable aspects of Mecca is Straight’s attention to how characters negotiate their racial identities through language ... Straight is an essential voice in American writing and in writing of the West, and Mecca is a meaningful addition to this canon. She heralds important ways of storytelling that shift how we see the land and one another. The numerous catastrophes over the past few years, including climate crises and racial conflict, have demanded that Americans re-evaluate our relationships to nature, to the environment, to history. With unflinching courage and grace, Straight pushes deeper into these difficult territories and transforms us in the process.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay[/caption]
