102 Contemporary Literature, 1970 to Present
Tomás Rivera (1935–1984)
Writer, teacher, and administrator born in Texas to Mexican farm laborers. He
wrote the novel.. .y no se lo tragó la tierra (1971; translated as... and the Earth
Did Not Devour Him, 1987), The Harvest: Short Stories (1989), and The Searchers:
Collected Poetry (1990).
Richard Rodriguez (1944– )
Chicano author of Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez (1982),
Days of Obligation: An Argument with My Mexican Father (1992), and Brown: The
Last Discovery of America (2002).
Esmeralda Santiago (1948– )
Puerto Rico–born author of the memoirs When I Was Puerto Rican (1993), Almost
a Woman (1998), and The Turkish Lover (2004) and the novel América’s Dream
(1996).
Cathy Song (1955– )
Chinese-Korean American poet who was raised in Hawaii. Her first poetry col-
lection, Picture Bride (1983), was selected for the Yale Younger Poet Series. Her
other works are Frameless Windows, Squares of Light (1988), School Figures (1994),
The Land of Bliss (2001), and Cloud Moving Hands (2007).
Gary Soto (1952– )
Poet who also writes fiction, plays, and children’s books. His works include The
Elements of San Joaquin (1977), The Tale of Sunlight (1978), and New and Selected
Poems (1995). His memoir, Living up the Street (1985), received the Before
Columbus Foundation’s American Book Award.
Amy Tan (1952– )
Chinese American writer whose works include the novels The Joy Luck Club
(1989), The Kitchen God ’s Wife (1991), The Hundred Secret Senses (1995), and The
Bonesetter’s Daughter (2001). She has also written the children’s books The Moon
Lady (1992) and Sagwa: The Chinese Siamese Cat (1994) and a collection of essays,
The Opposite of Fate: A Book of Musings (2003).
Piri Thomas (1928– )
Born Juan Pedro Tomás to Puerto Rican and Cuban parents in New York City’s
Spanish Harlem. He is best known for his influence in the Nuyorican literary
movement and for the autobiography Down These Mean Streets (1967). His other
works are the sequel Seven Long Times (1974) and Stories from El Barrio (1978).
He is the subject of Jonathan Robinson’s film Every Child Is Born a Poet: The Life
and Work of Piri Thomas (2002).
Luis Valdez (1940– )
Mexican American playwright whose works have been collected as Luis Val-
dez—Early Works: Actos, Bernabé and Pensamiento Serpentino (1990), Zoot Suit and
Other Plays (1992), and Mummif ied Deer and Other Plays (2005).