Scenes from the Texas Book Festival, 2009

Although I met many awesome writers (Lucha Corpi, Carolina De Robertis, C.M. Mayo, y el mero, mero, Luis Alberto Urrea) and had the pleasure of sitting in on a dynamic panel, the highlight of the Texas Book Festival for me was meeting these chicanitas from South Texas.

After our panel, "Mama Dramas," my colleagues and I went to the Author's Tent to greet our adoring fans. Okay, our lines weren't as long as they were for Richard Russo across the tent from us, but it was a lovely morning, and we were surrounded by books and readers! As our time was up, we began to say our goodbyes when this group of chicanitas came up. The leader of the group, Yanellie (pictured holding the book) stepped forward and asked sweetly, "Excuse me Miss. Do you know where we can find Belinda Acosta?" When I responded that I was she, her eyes widened. She had read Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz and loved it. She had checked it out from her high school library (librarians rule!) and was looking forward to getting her own autographed copy at the festival. She seemed crestfallen that my autograph time was up. So, what else was there to do but walk with Yanellie and the girls to the booksellers tent so she could get her book? After which, I signed it and we took this picture. The girls were delightful, eager young women, and readers! I wish you could see their T-shirts which read: "I [heart] reading." Eso!

Pictured from left to right: Nohemi, me, Yanellie, and Melissa from Palm View High in Palm View, Texas.

For more photos from this year's Texas Book Festival, please visit my FaceBook Fan page.

DAMAS Book Release party was DA BOMB!!!!!

Oh, my goodness! The book release party was even more fabulous than I hoped it would be! Yes, there are more photos to come. Many friends brought their cameras and I'm in the process of gathering their media files and will upload a photo album asap. In the meantime, check out Mr. Michael Barnes's "Out & About" column posted this afternoon (he's the Austin American-Statesman's Social Critic). He's got some great photos, including some of the lovely quinces who graced us with their loveliness (yeah, I had on the tiara, but they charmed the crowd—and me. They were adorable).

My feet are sore and my apartment is a disaster area (did I mention that they are re-plumbing my unit, starting the week of the release party? Don't ask). But no time to whine. Must move on to the next thing on my long list of things to do. Boring things like laundry and important things like planning for my first San Antonio readings on Aug. 29 (check the events calendar elsewhere on this site).

Oh, just in case you were wondering: I have no idea why my mouth is open. Thankfully, the lovely Racheal Torres takes the attention off my goofy expression. Racheal is "la madre de Las Comadres Book Club." She's in charge of managing all the details of the bookclubs Las Comadres has—a great woman, a new friend, and best of all, a reader! What writer wouldn't love her?

Joy Castro reviews DAMAS

Joy Castro is a writer (The Truth Book), a professor, the bloggera behind joycastro.com, and an esteemed colleague through our membership in Macondo, the writers' collective created by Sandra Cisneros. I'm proud to call Joy a home girl—she lives in my home town of Lincoln, Nebraska, where she's a professor of English at the University of Nebraska.

Joy has totally blown me away with her enormously thoughtful critique of Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz. Click here to read what she has to say about the book, Latina Letters, and where Damas falls in the spectrum of popular women's literature.

Viva Las Comadres!

Is there a Las Comadres group in your city? More specifically, is there a Las Comadres Book Club near you?

Thanks to the diligence, faith, and inspiration of Austin-based Nora de Hoyos Comstock, Las Comadres groups have formed all over the nation. The basic purpose of the group is to provide a monthly meeting space for Latinas to network and support each other. Notices about jobs, conferences, events, and other information of special note to Latinas arrives in members' email daily. But Nora has pushed the group beyond a networking organization to include a variety of projects from professional development to gardening (check out the website).

Near to my heart is the Las Comadres Book Clubs. They meet all over the country once a month to read and discuss works by Latin@ writers. The book club I attend meets at Borders in the Westgate Shopping Center here in Austin. I have to say, our discussions are always eye-opening. I've learned a lot about what readers want to see in the books they read for pleasure, and what they expect from Latin@ writers in general. And being around women who are hungry for a good book? As a writer, that thrills me.

When I told Nora some friends and I were planning a book release party for Damas, Dramas, and Ana Ruiz, she immediately launched into "Nora mode," asking: how can Las Comadres help? Before I knew it, she lined up some damas (recent quinces who will be at the release party to direct visitors) and asked the North Austin Las Comadres Book Club to change their regular meeting date and time so they could all attend my book release party! Knowing Las Comadres will be there to celebrate and support me, fills me with enormous—I don't even have the words. Once again, I am touched.

Viva Las Comadres!!