Queen of America, Luis Alberto Urrea
Queen of America, Luis Alberto Urrea
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Queen of America
A Novel

Author: Luis Alberto Urrea

Narrator: Luis Alberto Urrea

Unabridged: 17 hr 42 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/28/2011

Synopsis

At turns heartbreaking, uplifting, fiercely romantic, and riotously funny,this novel from a Pulitzer Prize finalist tells the unforgettable story of a young woman coming of age and finding her place in a new world.

Beginning where Luis Alberto Urrea's bestselling The Hummingbird's Daughter left off, Queen of America finds young Teresita Urrea, beloved healer and "Saint of Cabora," with her father in 1892 Arizona. But, besieged by pilgrims in desperate need of her healing powers, and pursued by assassins, she has no choice but to flee the borderlands and embark on an extraordinary journey into the heart of turn-of-the-century America.

Teresita's passage will take her to New York, San Francisco, and St. Louis, where she will encounter European royalty, Cuban poets, beauty queens, anxious immigrants and grand tycoons -- and, among them, a man who will force Teresita to finally ask herself the ultimate question: is a saint allowed to fall in love?

About Luis Alberto Urrea

Luis Alberto Urrea is one of America's most critically acclaimed authors. His previous books include The Hummingbird's Daughter, The Devil's Highway, and Across the Wire. He has received a Lannan Literary Award, a Christopher Award, an American Book Award, and a Western States Book Award. Urrea lives with his family in Naperville, Illinois, where he is a professor of creative writing at the University of Illinois-Chicago.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Kalen on November 13, 2011

I'm not entirely sure where to start here, but I loved this book and devoured it, as I do all of Urrea's books. He's definitely become one of my favorite authors and one I can always recommend without hesitation. Queen of America is a sequel to the epic Hummingbird's Daughter, and they can definitel......more

Goodreads review by switterbug (Betsey) on November 30, 2011

Dickensian in scope, this ribald novel is peopled by the humble and the haughty, the meek and the mighty--pilgrims, prostitutes, yeoman, warriors, cowboys, vaqueros, royalty, revolutionaries, financial exploiters, gamblers, tycoons, corrupt politicians, drunks, rogues, and outlaws. It's gritty, bawd......more

Goodreads review by Book Concierge on August 30, 2022

Urrea picks up where he left off in The Hummingbird’s Daughter and continues the story of his great aunt, Teresita Urrea, “The Saint of Cabora” or “Mexican Joan of Arc,” who fled the 1892 uprising in Mexico with her father, Tomas, to the relative safety of Arizona. But the Mexican government, fe......more

Goodreads review by Ann on July 23, 2024

I continue to love Urrea’s beautiful, special writing in this sequel to The Hummingbird’s Daughter. This novel continues the story of Teresita, an indigenous (Yaqui) Indian from northern Mexico, who had powers to heal and was, therefore, loved by the People and feared by the Mexican government. She......more

Quotes

Praise for QUEEN OF AMERICA:

"'Who is more of an outlaw than a saint?'" one of Luis Urrea's characters poses. The answer is this ferocious, ribald romance of the border. Jaunty, bawdy, gritty, sweet, Queen of America has a bottomless comic energy and a heart large enough to accept-even revel in-all of human folly."—Stewart O'Nan, author of Emily Alone and Songs for the Missing

"Captivating...With deft humor and a poetic lyricism that seamlessly folds one scene into another, Urrea unfolds the story of his real-life great-aunt Teresita, a teenage saint who was known for healing miracles... Each scene in Queen of America unfurls gracefully like delicate wisps of smoke. Whether Teresita is being held captive in Northern California by a band of profiteering medical professionals, or being feted like a queen in New York's social circles, this epic novel paints a portrait of America-and its inhabitants-with grace and style. It will spark fire in readers' hearts."—Megan Fishmann, Bookpage

"Urrea delights in the texture of things. Turn-of-the-century America, particularly New York, comes alive at his fingertips: He sees both the silk and the mud... In imagining the story of his great-aunt Teresita, Urrea might have chosen to make her a hero; that would have been easier. What we get is more complicated, more modern... Hers is the story of what it means to have a gift, and how a talent can also be a burden."—Carolyn Kellogg, Los Angeles Times

"Colorful [and] exuberant."—Sam Sacks, Wall Street Journal

"A magnificent work of literary alchemy, so masterfully infused with myth and history, you will feel these characters in your heart, your gut. You will grieve for their immortal souls."—Jamie Ford, author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

"A gritty, bold, and much-anticipated sequel to The Hummingbird's Daughter... Fiercely romantic and at times heart­breaking but also full of humor, Urrea's latest novel blends fairy tale, Western adventure, folk tale, and historical drama. Fans of Hummingbird and readers new to Urrea's work will surely enjoy this magnificent, epic novel."—Library Journal

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