REPORT FROM SANTA FE IS MADE POSSIBLE, IN PART, BY GRANTS FROM THE NEW MEXICO MUNICIPAL LEAGUE, A BETTER NEW MEXICO THROUGH BETTER CITIES AND FROM >>LORENE: HELLO, I AM LORENE MILLS AND WELCOME TO PART TWO OF OUR WONDERFUL INTERVIEW WITH ESTEEMED AND BELOVED AUTHOR SANDRA CISNEROS.

WELCOME BACK, SANDRA.

>>SANDRA: THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME, IT'S ALWAYS GREAT TO BE ON YOUR SHOW.

>>LORENE: WELL, YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY ONE OF MY FAVORITE WRITERS OF ALL TIME AND YOUR NEW BOOK, WE HAVE TALKED IN THE PAST ABOUT THE HOUSE ON MANGO STREET AND ALL THE WONDERFUL THINGS YOU ARE DOING WITH THAT.

YOU KNOW HOW I LOVE YOUR MEMOIR, THAT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE BOOKS.

BUT YOUR NEW BOOK WHICH IS YOUR FIRST FICTION BOOK REALLY IN NINE YEARS IS CALLED, IN ENGLISH IT IS CALLED MARTITA, I REMEMBER YOU AND IN SPANISH IT'S CALLED MARTITA TE RECUERDO AND IT IS SUCH A RICH AND POIGNANT BOOK.

BUT I WANT YOU TO TELL US IF YOU WOULD ABOUT THE BACKGROUND OF THIS BOOK BECAUSE THIS IS PERHAPS THIS, YOU HAD STARTED IT 30 YEARS AGO AND HOW DID IT FINALLY GET TO SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY?

>>SANDRA: WELL, IT WAS PART OF A COLLECTION CALLED WOMAN HOLLERING CREEK, IT IS CONTEMPORANEOUS WITH THOSE SHORT STORIES, IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE PART OF THAT SHORT STORY COLLECTION AND I ONLY HAD A THIRD OF IT AND THE FIRST PART OF THE BOOK AND I THOUGHT IT WAS DONE, BUT MY AGENT AND MY EDITOR BOTH THOUGHT IT DIDN'T FIT IN WITH THE THEMATIC OF STORIES IN THE SOUTHWEST BECAUSE IT DOESN'T TAKE PLACE IN THE SOUTHWEST, IT TAKES PLACE IN PARIS.

AND ALSO THEY DIDN'T FEEL THE ENDING WAS THE ENDING, SO YOU KNOW BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD.

PUT THAT AWAY IN THE DEAD-END FILE AND WHEN I COULD GET SOME TIME, I SAID I WOULD GET BACK TO IT.

WELL, 25 YEARS LATER I STARTED DIGGING IT OUT OF STORAGE, YOU KNOW FIDDLING WITH IT OFF AND ON FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS AND HERE IT IS FINALLY, SOMETHING THAT I HAD WANTED TO WORK ON FOR A LONG TIME.

>>LORENE: AND WAS IT PERHAPS THE FACT THAT THE PANDEMIC AND BEING SHUT DOWN GAVE EVERYONE A LOT OF TIME TO LOOK AT SOME PAST PROJECTS AND REVIVE THEM?

>>SANDRA: WELL, YOU KNOW THE PANDEMIC IS A TIME OF ISOLATION AND THAT IS HOW AN ARTIST LIKES TO LIVE, NOT ALWAYS ABLE TO LIVE THAT WAY, AND ESPECIALLY IF WE HAVE PROJECTS THAT WE NEED TO GO OUT AND COMMUNITIES WE WANT TO VISIT.

SO, THERE WAS A LOT OF TRAVEL IN MY LIFE AND SUDDENLY THE PANDEMIC CLEANED MY CALENDAR AND THE MOST IMPORTANT THING FOR ME IS IT ALLOWED ME TO SETTLE DOWN AND STOP TALKING AND NOT LEAVE MY HOUSE AND LISTEN TO THIS, WHICH IS WHAT I NEED TO WRITE AND I WAS ABLE TO FINISH A COUPLE OF PROJECTS.

I FEEL A LITTLE GUILTY TO SAY THAT I WORKED REALLY WELL DURING THE PANDEMIC WHEN OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS AND FRIENDS HAD SUCH A HARD TIME.

>>LORENE: THE BARE BONES, YOU KNOW, IF YOU WERE TO JUST DO THE SKELETON SINCE IT IS ALMOST DAY OF THE DEAD, IT IS ABOUT A LETTER BETWEEN THREE YOUNG WOMEN WHO WERE FRIENDS AND HELPED SUPPORT EACH OTHER THROUGH THEIR TIME AS YOUNG, IMMIGRANT, POOR YOUNG WOMEN IN PARIS AND THEY FOUND THIS INCREDIBLE FRIENDSHIP IT IS JUST SO RICH.

AND I KNOW THE PEOPLE ARE ALWAYS ASKING YOU WHICH ONE OF THESE IS YOU, BUT IT IS WAY MORE THAN THAT.

>>SANDRA: WELL, I AM ALL OF THEM, ALL OF THEM AND I AM NONE OF THEM AND STRANDS OF MYSELF.

IT IS MADE UP OF A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT I MET WHEN I WAS TRAVELING AFTER I FINISHED HOUSE ON MANGO STREET.

I HAD A EURAIL PASS LIKE CORINA DOES AND I TRAVELED TO PARIS IN THE WORST TIME OF THE YEAR WHEN IT STARTED RAINING AND GETTING COLD IN NOVEMBER, DECEMBER AND I USED THAT AS THE BACKDROP OF BEING IN PARIS IN A VERY INHOSPITABLE SEASON.

AND THAT WAS THE BASIS OF IT, BUT OF COURSE I MET WOMEN IN EVERY COUNTRY I WENT TO WHETHER IT WAS SPAIN OR ITALY OR FORMER YUGOSLAVIA OR FRANCE AND I PUT THEM ALL TOGETHER AND A LOT OF IT IS, I REALIZED AFTER I FINISHED THE BOOK, A LOT OF IT IS STRANDS OF PEOPLE I KNOW, PEOPLE I AM RELATED TO, FRIENDS THAT I HAVE LOST AND FRIENDS THAT I HAVE KEPT IN TOUCH WITH.

>>LORENE: WELL ONE OF THE THINGS THAT CORINA IS ONE OF THE CHARACTERS, CORINA, PAOULA AND MARTITA AND THE BOOK IS PROVOKED BY A LETTER FROM MARTITA THAT PUFFINA, I'VE GOT TO CALL HER, IT'S SO CUTE.

>>SANDRA: CORINA, PUFFINA.

>>LORENE: BUT SHE GETS THIS LETTER AND IN IT, MARTITA IS SAYING, "YOU KNOW IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME, I DON'T KNOW WHO STOPPED WRITING."

BUT SHE SAYS, "I WAS THINKING ABOUT YOU AND I REMEMBERED WHAT A WONDERFUL BOND WE HAD BACK THEN."

AND SHE SAYS, "I DON'T HAVE A GOOD MEMORY, BUT I REMEMBER EMOTIONS."

AND THEN SUDDENLY THERE IS THIS WHOLE DANCE THROUGHOUT THE BOOK, A DANCE OF MEMORY AND TIME AND THE RELATIONSHIP OF THOSE TWO.

AND YOUR WRITING IS SO GOOD, YOU OPEN WITH THE VERY FIRST SENTENCE WITH THE IMAGE OF ONE OF THE CHARACTERS, POFFINA, WITH A BLOW TORCH AND SCRAPING LAYERS OF VARNISH OFF THIS FURNITURE AND SCRAPING.

AND IN A WAY THAT'S WHAT YOU DO, YOU ARE SCRAPING SOME OF THE LAYERS OF TIME OFF OF THESE MEMORIES.

AND AT THE END, YOU KNOW, SO SHE IS RESTORING SOME CABINETS, THEY ARE WORKING ON THE HOUSE AND SO SHE IS GETTING RID OF ALL THIS VARNISH AND AT THE END, IT GOES BACK TO PRESENT TIME AND SHE HAS PEELED A CABINET AS "CLEAN AS AN ALMOND."

AND THAT FOCUSING AND GETTING TO THE ESSENCE OF LIFE, TIME, AND MEMORY IS WHAT YOU ACCOMPLISH IN THIS, THAT IS ONE OF THE REASONS I AM SO MOVED BY IT.

>>SANDRA: WELL I NEED YOU TO TELL ME WHAT I MEANT, BECAUSE I JUST DREAM THE DREAM AND YOU TELL ME WHAT I DREAMT AND I AM FINDING FROM FRIENDS AND PEOPLE LIKE YOURSELF WHO READ IT MORE THAN ONCE, YOU KNOW, WHO I WAS WRITING ABOUT.

I THINK THAT THAT'S THE MOST MARVELOUS THING, TO BEGIN FROM SOME PLACE IN MEMORY AND YOU PUT YOURSELF IN ANYONE YOU WRITE ABOUT, YOU HAVE TO PUT YOURSELF AND YOUR HEART AND SOUL EVEN IF IT IS SOME CHARACTER THAT ISN'T YOU.

AND THEN YOU CREATE THIS AND IT JUST RISES LIKE A PHOTOGRAPH IN THE OLD PHOTO LABS THAT YOU KNOW IS OPAQUE IN THE BEGINNING AND THEN IT GAINS CLARITY.

SO I AM STILL GAINING CLARITY BECAUSE I JUST FINISHED THE STORY LAST SPRING AND IT IS ONLY NOW, THIS SEASON, THAT I AM TALKING TO PEOPLE AND LEARNING WHAT I DID.

>>LORENE: AGAIN, TIME AND MEMORY AT WORK, AT WORK.

FOR MANY READERS, THIS WILL MAKE US THINK ABOUT OUR OWN YOUTH AND OUR OWN YOUTHFUL ADVENTURES AND THE STRUGGLES OF GOING OUT ON YOUR OWN FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THESE GIRLS WERE HUNGRY, THEY WERE AFRAID, THEY WERE TIRED, YOU KNOW, AND THEY BONDED AND THEY SUPPORTED EACH OTHER.

BUT YOU HAD SAID IN ANOTHER CONTEXT, SO IT MADE ME WISH THAT I HAD KEPT A JOURNAL AND NOTES OF MY TIME, EVEN THE HARD PARTS AND YOU HAD SAID AT ONE POINT, "IF YOU DON'T WRITE IT DOWN, IT DIDN'T HAPPEN."

>>SANDRA: THAT'S RIGHT BECAUSE MY JOURNAL FROM THIS PERIOD IS BLANK.

I HAVE A JOURNAL THAT IS IN MY ARCHIVES AND I HAD BOUGHT THIS JOURNAL BUT FOR SOME REASON THERE ARE A LOT OF BLANK PAGES AND I CAN'T FIND ANYTHING THAT EXPLAINED TO ME HOW I WAS ABLE TO BE SO PRECISE WITH THE METRO STOPS AND THE ADDRESSES.

I HAVE NO IDEA HOW I WAS ABLE TO SUMMON THAT UP, WHETHER THOSE WERE THE REAL METRO STOPS, THE REAL ADDRESSES, I DON'T KNOW, SO I AM A LITTLE MYSTIFIED BECAUSE THAT FIRST PART WAS WRITTEN 30 YEARS AGO, IT IS THE LETTERS AND THE FINALITY THAT I WROTE RECENTLY.

>>LORENE: SO AGAIN, THERE IS A SERIES OF LETTERS BACK AND FORTH AND IN THE AUDIO BOOK YOU HAVE WONDERFUL FRIENDS AND ACTRESSES READING EACH VOICE AND IN THE PRINTED VERSION, EACH LETTER OR SECTION ABOUT EACH ONE OF THE WOMEN IS IN A DIFFERENT FONT.

>>SANDRA: YES.

>>LORENE: AND SO, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE WORKING TOWARD A THEATRICAL PRESENTATION OF THIS?

>>SANDRA: WELL, THAT IS IN MY HEAD, NO ONE HAS FORMERLY SAID LET'S DO THIS.

I JUST KEEP THINKING WHEN THE WORLD HEALS, IF IT HEALS, WOULDN'T IT BE GREAT TO SEE THIS ON THE STAGE, BECAUSE IT IS JUST THE RIGHT LENGTH, YOU ONLY NEED FOUR ACTORS, ONE MAN, THREE WOMEN.

AND I THINK IT AND AFTER I DID THE AUDIO WHICH WAS A CHALLENGE FOR ME BECAUSE I READ IT IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH, WITH MY TROCHY-MOCHY FRENCH, YOU KNOW WITH THE ARGENTINE ACCENTS THAT I HAD TO FAKE.

YOU KNOW ALL OF THAT WAS CHALLENGING FOR ME, BUT IT MADE ME UNDERSTAND THE LENGTH OF IT.

AND TO HEAR IT OUT LOUD, IS DIFFERENT THAN READING IT ON THE PAGE, SO I ENCOURAGE YOUR LISTENERS, IF YOU CAN, TO LISTEN TO THE AUDIO VERSION.

>>LORENE: YEAH, I LOVED THE AUDIO VERSION, WELL I READ ALONG.

AT ONE POINT PUFFINA LOOKS AT HER LIFE WONDERING WHY SHE DIDN'T ANSWER BACK AND THEN SHE SUDDENLY SAYS, "I HAVE BEEN GOING SO MUCH AND WORKING SO HARD THAT I NEVER REALLY LOOKED AT MY LIFE."

AND THEN WHEN I DID, YOU KNOW TO WRITE A CATCH UP NOTE WHAT I AM DOING NOW.

SHE SAID, "IT JUST DIDN'T SEEM ENOUGH AND THAT IT WAS NOT WHAT SHE HAD ORDERED FROM LIFE" AND SO SHE JUST DIDN'T WRITE BACK.

>>SANDRA: SOMETIMES THAT HAPPENS, YOU KNOW PEOPLE THAT WE LOSE TOUCH WITH WE'RE EMBARRASSED ABOUT GETTING IN TOUCH WITH THEM BECAUSE WE FEEL AS IF WE HAVE GOT TO GIVE THIS GLOWING REPORT LIKE WHEN YOU GO TO YOUR HIGH SCHOOL REUNION OR SOMETHING AND YOU DON'T EXACTLY HAVE A GLOWING REPORT TO GIVE OR NOT THE ONE YOU EXPECTED.

>>LORENE: AND YOUR ADVICE TO OTHER WRITERS, BUT ALSO TO PUFFINA, WOULD BE YOU SAID IT IS BEST NOT TO WRITE ABOUT THE THINGS YOU REMEMBER BUT ABOUT THE THINGS YOU WISH YOU COULD FORGET.

WHAT A LETTER THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN, YOU KNOW WHAT FROM THE HEART AND THEN THAT WOULD HAVE STARTED THE DIALOG AGAIN.

I HAVE HEARD YOU TELL OTHER WRITERS, WRITE THE STORY THAT YOU CANNOT SHARE, THAT WRITING SHOULD BE LIKE A KNIFE AT YOUR THROAT, YOU HAVE TO WRITE THIS.

>>SANDRA: THAT'S RIGHT.

AND YOU KNOW A LOT OF DETAILS IN THIS STORY ARE THOSE THINGS THAT I WISH I HADN'T LIVED BUT I AM A LITTLE EMBARRASSED ABOUT, YOU KNOW THAT I AM PUTTING DOWN ON PAPER SO THAT I CAN LET IT GO.

AND THE FUNNY THING IS THAT YOU KNOW I HAVE ONLY TALKED TO TWO FAMILY MEMBERS AND NOBODY HAS ASKED ME LIKE, YOU KNOW, DID THAT REALLY HAPPEN, THIS SCENE OR THAT SCENE EMBARRASSING MOMENTS IN THIS BOOK?

NO ONE HAS ASKED ME YET IF THAT HAPPENED TO YOU AND I WOULD THINK THAT MY FAMILY MEMBERS WOULD WORRY ABOUT ME AFTER READING THIS STORY, NO?

>>LORENE: I THINK PART OF THE REASON YOUR READERS LOVE YOU SO MUCH IS THAT YOU TALK ABOUT THOSE HARD, UNCOMFORTABLE, NOT FLATTERING, YOU KNOW, THE HARD PARTS OF LIFE.

THEY ARE THERE AND THE PEOPLE GO "AH, I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE."

>>SANDRA: YEAH, I THINK EVERYBODY HAS THOSE MOMENTS, BUT I AM THE SHAMELESS ONE THAT WRITES AND TALKS ABOUT IT.

AND I WRITE ABOUT IT NOT BECAUSE I AM TRYING TO BE "ESCANDALOSA" OR TRYING TO GET A RISE OUT OF THE READER, I AM TRYING TO PROCESS SO THAT I CAN GO ON WITH MY LIFE AND NOT LOOK BACK AND SAY, "OH NO," OR BE EMBARRASSED OR ASHAMED, I DON'T WANT TO BE ASHAMED, SO THIS IS MY WAY OF PURGING MYSELF.

>>LORENE: WELL, WE ARE SPEAKING TODAY WITH SANDRA CISNEROS ABOUT HER WONDERFUL NEW BOOK, MARTITA, I REMEMBER YOU.

A REALLY RICH AND POIGNANT BOOK THAT REALLY HAS AFFECTED ME VERY DEEPLY.

SO, AS YOU PEEL OFF THE VENEER OF TIME FROM THESE MEMORIES BECAUSE THEY WERE REAL MEMORIES OF YOUR OWN THAT YOU CONSTRUCTED THIS CREATION OUT OF, HOW HAS TIME CHANGED THOSE MEMORIES IN YOUR REAL LIFE?

>>SANDRA: WELL, YOU KNOW, SOME THINGS THAT I LOOK BACK AND THINK, HOW DID I HAVE THE COURAGE TO LIVE THAT MOMENT IN MY LIFE WHEN I HAD NO MONEY, I WAS LIVING ON PEOPLE'S FLOORS OR WORSE IN LITTLE CANOE BEDS OR YOU KNOW JUST LIVING LIKE SOME LITTLE WAIF IN A CHARLES DICKENS NOVEL.

HOW DID I HAVE THE COURAGE TO STICK THAT SEASON OUT WITH HOPES THAT THINGS WOULD GET BETTER AROUND THE CORNER IF I JUST HUNG AROUND A LITTLE BIT LONGER.

I AM ALWAYS AMAZED AT MY OWN TENACITY BECAUSE I THINK PEOPLE THINK TO BE AN ARTIST YOU HAVE TO HAVE TALENT.

WELL TALENT YOU ARE BORN WITH, BUT THE REAL GIFT IS TENACITY.

DO YOU HAVE THE WILL TO KEEP GOING FOR THE LONG HAUL, YOU KNOW IT IS THE LONG DISTANCE RUNNER.

SO I AM ALWAYS SURPRISED AT WHERE MY LIFE HAS TAKEN ME, I AM VERY PLEASED THAT AT 66 I HAVE FINISHED THIS STORY AND NOT WHEN I WAS 46 OR ABOUT THE TIME I WAS WRITING IT, I THINK I WAS IN MY 30S.

I REALLY NEEDED TO BE A MATURE, OLDER WOMAN, TO WRITE THIS STORY AND I HOPE READERS WILL RECOGNIZE THAT.

>>LORENE: THIRTY YEARS IS A LONG TIME AND YOU HAVE CHANGED AND GROWN MUCH.

>>SANDRA: WELL NOT REALLY.

THIRTY YEARS WHEN YOU ARE WORKING ON SOMETHING YOU LOVE, YOU JUST PUT YOUR HEAD DOWN AND THEN YOU RAISE YOUR HEAD UP AND IT IS LIKE RIP VAN WINKLE, DON'T YOU THINK IT IS DREAM TIME THAT GOES BY, HAS NO LINEAR MOVEMENT, IT IS REALLY LIKE ANOTHER DIMENSION.

SO I THINK BEING AN ARTIST I AM OFTEN DISCONNECTED FROM THE REALITY AND IN MY OWN REALITY, SO YOU KNOW EVEN THOUGH IT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT, 30 YEARS, IT IS NOT REALLY NOT WHEN YOU ARE CREATING, YEAH.

>>LORENE: YEAH.

YES.

IN YOUR OWN LIFE YOU SAID THAT "I AM NOT YET THE WRITER I ASPIRE TO BE, BUT AT MY AGE, GREAT BOOKS WRITTEN BY WOMEN OVER 60 GIVE ME HOPE."

AND YOU LIST SOME OF THEM, HARRIETT DOERR, COLETTE, MARGUERITE DURAS, DIANA ATHILL.

WHAT ELSE GIVES YOU HOPE AND WHAT IS THE HOPE THAT THESE RICH, WISE WOMEN OFFER TO YOUNGER READERS?

>>SANDRA: WELL, I LOOK AT NOT JUST WRITERS, BUT I LOOK AT LIKE WOMEN WHO I THINK ARE MORE GREAT, LIKE MARIA SABINA, THE MAZATEC SHAMAN SAINT.

SHE WAS PRETTY INCREDIBLE AND I LOOK AT PEOPLE LIKE ELENA PONIATOWSKA, WHO IS STILL WRITING HER ARTICLES FOR THE NEWSPAPER EVERY WEEK AND DELIVERING THEM ON TIME, I DON'T THINK I COULD DO THAT.

YOU KNOW I SEE THESE WOMEN DOING GREATER THINGS THAN WHAT I ASPIRE TO BE AND I ADMIRE THEM SO MUCH.

I LOOK AT THEM AS PEOPLE WHO GIVE ME "ANIMA", THE ENCOURAGEMENT AND I REALLY DO THINK THAT MY BEST WORK IS IN FRONT OF ME, I DON'T THINK IT IS BEHIND ME.

MAYBE SOMEONE MIGHT LIKE OTHER BOOKS I HAVE BEHIND ME, BUT FOR ME PERSONALLY, LOOKING AT IT FROM UNDER THE HOOD AND CRAFT WISE, YOU KNOW, I AM ALWAYS MORE EXCITED ABOUT THE CURRENT MORE THAN THE NEW WORK.

>>LORENE: WELL WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR BEST WORK IS AHEAD OF YOU, YOU ARE DOING SOME PRETTY AMAZING NEXT PROJECTS, WOULD YOU SPEAK A LITTLE ABOUT THE OPERA.

>>SANDRA: YEAH, I AM WORKING WITH DEREK BERMEL, THE COMPOSER ON HOUSE ON MANGO STREET , THE OPERA, AND I AM WORKING, WELL I AM SUPPOSED TO BE WORKING ON THE LIBRETTO AND HE IS SUPPOSED TO BE WORKING ON THE MUSIC.

WE OFTEN COORDINATE AND GIVE EACH OTHER SUGGESTIONS AND WE JUST HAVE A GREAT COLLABORATION, SO THAT IS WHAT I AM TRYING TO FINISH THIS AUTUMN AND WE ARE GOING TO WORKSHOP IT NEXT YEAR AND HOPEFULLY, WE WILL HAVE IT DONE.

SO THAT HAS TAKEN ME BACK TO MY FIRST BOOK, BUT I AM GIVING IT A DEEPER PORTRAIT NOW THAT I AM OLDER AND ABLE TO FLESH OUT AND DEVELOP SCENES AND COMPRESS AND TELESCOPE.

SO IT IS CHALLENGING AND FUN, PLUS I LIKE THE IDEA OF WORKING WITH ANOTHER ARTIST.

IT IS MORE FUN THAN WORKING ALONE.

>>LORENE: SPEAKING OF YOUR FIRST BOOK, WHICH WAS PUT ALMOST 40-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF IT COMING UP, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A NEW TRANSLATION, IT IS A CLASSIC, HOW MANY MILLION HAVE BEEN SOLD, ALMOST SEVEN MILLION IN 20 LANGUAGES.

THE HOUSE ON MANGO STREET , HERE LET ME JUST SHOW IT AS A MATTER OF FACT.

THIS IS YOUR FIRST BOOK, IT IS MUCH BELOVED.

IT IS USED IN SCHOOLS, IT IS REALLY PRECIOUS, BUT WHAT WILL THIS NEW TRANSLATION BRING?

>>SANDRA: WELL, FERNANDA MELCHOR, WHO IS A MEXICAN JOURNALIST AND NOVELIST, HAS GIVEN IT A MORE INTERNATIONAL TRANSLATION BECAUSE ELENA PONIATOWSKA GAVE IT A MEXICAN TRANSLATION AND WE NEEDED TO REISSUE IT IN ALL OF LATIN AMERICA AND SO WE WERE LOOKING FOR A DIFFERENT KIND OF SPANISH THAT WASN'T ANCHORED JUST IN MEXICO.

THIS AGAIN WAS ANOTHER PROJECT DURING THE SHUTDOWN OF THE WORLD THAT SHE AND I WORKED OUT, SHE DID THE TRANSLATION BUT SHE LISTENED TO SOME OF THE TWEAKS THAT I MADE AND SO I FEEL LIKE I HAD MORE HANDS ON AND I HAD MORE THINGS TO SAY BECAUSE I AM LIVING IN MEXICO, I HAVE BEEN HERE FOR EIGHT YEARS.

I HAVE MORE TO SAY ABOUT THIS TRANSLATION THAT I DID ABOUT THE FORMER AND I AM JUST EXCITED.

IT IS A NEW TRANSLATION, AND WE WILL SEE WHAT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE BILINGUAL, WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY.

>>LORENE: WELL, JUST ONE OTHER NEW PROJECT AND THEN WE WILL GET BACK TO MARTITA .

YOU ARE FINISHING UP OR MAYBE IT'S FINISHED, YOUR FIRST NEW BOOK IN POETRY IN SO MANY YEARS AND I LOVE THE NAME OF IT, WOMAN WITHOUT SHAME , CONGRATULATIONS ON COMING BACK TO POETRY.

>>SANDRA: THE THING IS THE READERS THINK I AM COMING BACK BUT I'VE NEVER LEFT.

POETRY NEVER LEFT ME, POETRY IS VERY FAITHFUL AND YOU KNOW I WRITE POEMS ALL THE TIME.

I JUST DON'T PUBLISH THEM UNTIL I HAVE A GOOD COLLECTION AND YOU KNOW WHEN I SEE THAT I HAVE A COLLECTION THAT I AM PROUD OF, THEN IT IS TIME.

SO I WORK ON LOTS OF THINGS AT THE SAME TIME, THAT'S WHY I DON'T FEEL THAT I AM COMING BACK TO ANY OF THE GENRES I AM ALWAYS WORKING ALL AT THE SAME TIME.

>>LORENE: WELL, YOU HAVE THE SOUL OF A POET AND THE PROSE IN MARTITA IS SO POETIC AND BEAUTIFUL.

I AM WONDERING, I DON'T KNOW BUT WE DIDN'T SET THIS UP BEFOREHAND, IF YOU HAVE A COPY OF THE BOOK, YOU CAN READ THE LAST TWO PARAGRAPHS.

>>SANDRA: OKAY.

LILIANA VALENZUELA DID A BEAUTIFUL JOB CREATING IT'S TWIN.

>>LORENE: I JUST WANTED TO SET IT UP BY SAYING THAT IN THE BOOK, THE THREE WOMEN, THE OLD FRIENDS FROM LONG AGO, HAVE EXPERIENCED SOME VERY HARD THINGS AND THEY ARE VERY HONEST ABOUT IT AND PUFFINA DIDN'T GET THE LIFE SHE CONTRACTED FOR AND IT WASN'T OKAY AT THE TIME SHE GOT THAT LETTER.

BUT SHE HAS GROWN INTO THIS WISE AND RICH AND VERY SPIRITUAL PROFOUND PLACE, THAT WHEN I READ IT IT WAS LIKE A BALM, A BALM ON MY HEART, B-A-L-M. AND SO IF YOU COULD READ MAYBE THE LAST TWO PARAGRAPHS AND ONE OF THE THREADS ALL THE WAY THROUGH IS WHEN MARTITA WRITES TO PUFFINA SAYING, "DON'T FORGET ME" AND THEN THIS IS THE RESPONSE YOU WILL NOT BE FORGOTTEN.

>>SANDRA: DO YOU THINK I SHOULD READ THE VERY END, BECAUSE I THINK THAT KIND OF SPOILS IT FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK.

I AM AFRAID TO READ THE LAST TWO PARAGRAPHS BECAUSE WHAT IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET AND I DON'T WANT TO SPOIL THE ENDING.

MAY I READ SOMETHING FROM THE LAST PART BUT NOT THE LAST TWO PARAGRAPHS?

>>LORENE: OKAY, YOU READ WHATEVER YOU WOULD LIKE, IT IS A GIFT WHATEVER YOU WOULD LIKE TO READ TO US.

>>SANDRA: ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT, "WE WERE WAITING FOR SOMETHING TO HAPPEN.

ISN'T THAT WHAT ALL WOMEN DO UNTIL THEY LEARN NOT TO.

WE WERE WAITING FOR LIFE TO SWEEP US UP IN ITS ARMS, A STRAUSS WALTZ, A ROOM AT VERSAILLES LIGHTED WITH CHANDELIERS.

PAOULA WAITING FOR THAT JOB NOT JUST ANY JOB, NOT AS AN AU PAIR OR SALES GIRL, BUT ONE THAT WOULD KEEP HER FROM HAVING TO RETURN TO HER UNCLE'S HOUSE OUTSIDE MILANO.

ME, I WAS WAITING FOR A LETTER FROM AN ARTS FOUNDATION IN THE CORTE AZUL FOR MY LIFE TO BEGIN.

ALL MY EARNINGS FROM MY SUMMER JOB AT THE GAS COMPANY DISAPPEARING, MY ROOM IN A PENSION NEAR THE PLAZA A LA REPUBLIC, A FORMER BROOM CLOSET BEHIND THE RECEPTION DESK, JUST WIDE ENOUGH FOR A BED LIKE A TRAIN BERTH.

DOWN THE HALL, A TINY, SHARED SHOWER WITH A WATER HEATER THAT GOBBLED UP FRANCS, THE MONEY I SAVED FROM MY CLASSES GOING DOWN THE DRAIN.

A TINGLE IN MY CHEST WHEN I GAVE IT ANY THOUGHT, BUT I COULDN'T GO HOME, I COULDN'T, NOT UNTIL I COULD CALL MYSELF A WRITER."

>>LORENE: THANK YOU AND THAT IS JUST A TASTE OF WHAT READERS WILL HAVE WHEN THEY READ MARTITA .

SO I WANT TO THANK YOU, I AM JUST WONDERING IF YOU HAVE A LAST MESSAGE FOR OUR PEOPLE ABOUT THIS BOOK, WHY THEY SHOULD READ IT.

>>SANDRA: WELL, I THINK BECAUSE IT IS MY FAVORITE AND CRAFT WISE, I THINK IT'S A BOOK THAT I COULD NOT HAVE WRITTEN WITHOUT HOUSE ON MANGO STREET .

I THINK OF HOUSE ON MANGO STREET AND CARMELO COMING TOGETHER AND THEIR BABY IS THIS BOOK.

I THINK I REMEMBER YOU, MARTITA TE RCUERDO AND I AM SO THRILLED THAT IT IS SPANISH AND ENGLISH UNDER ONE COVER, BECAUSE I AM LIVING MY LIFE IN MEXICO NOW AND I CAN GIVE THE BOOK TO SO MANY PEOPLE, AND THERE ARE SO MANY READERS WHO ARE BILINGUAL OR WHO WANT TO BE AND THEY CAN FLIP THE BOOK OVER AND READ IT IN ENGLISH FOR THE FIRST TIME OR READ IT IN SPANISH FOR THE FIRST TIME.

SO I THINK AT THIS TIME IN THE UNIVERSE IT IS NICE THAT WE HAVE A BOOK THAT IS BILINGUAL.

>>LORENE: WELL, I JUST CANNOT THANK YOU ENOUGH.

IT IS NOW MY FAVORITE, WELL I STILL LOVE THE MEMOIR.

BUT IT IS SUCH A FAVORITE BOOK FOR ME AND I AM GLAD THAT YOU DIDN'T GIVE AWAY THE ENDING, BUT IT IS SO POIGNANT AND PROFOUND.

>>SANDRA: YEAH, REMEMBER SOME PEOPLE THINK AND THIS IS WHAT THEY HAVE TOLD ME, THEY THINK THE STORY IS GOING TO GO ONE WAY AND THEY ARE VERY SURPRISED BY WHERE IT GOES.

>>LORENE: I AM SURPRISED, TOO, BUT I AM DELIGHTED THAT YOU HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE WITH US AGAIN TODAY.

OUR GUEST TODAY IS SANDRA CISNEROS, AUTHOR OF THE HOUSE ON MANGO STREET , BUT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT MARTITA I REMEMBER YOU , A BILINGUAL BOOK, A SPIRITUAL ODYSSEY, BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN.

THANK YOU, SANDRA.

>>SANDRA: THANK YOU, LORENE.

>>LORENE: AND I AM LORENE MILLS AND I WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU OUR AUDIENCE FOR BEING WITH US TODAY ON REPORT FROM SANTA FE .

REPORT FROM SANTA FE IS MADE POSSIBLE, IN PART, BY GRANTS FROM THE NEW MEXICO MUNICIPAL LEAGUE, A BETTER NEW MEXICO