Author Sandra Cisneros, Finding Home Space To Write, Be Barefoot & Rude- Immigrant Dad, Artist Mom

[appalachiablue]

- NPR, Code Switch, July 27, 2021. This month on Code Switch, we're talking to some of our favorite authors about books that taught us about the different dimensions of freedom. Next up, a conversation with the writer Sandra Cisneros.

Sandra Cisneros was a quiet, sensitive kid — the only daughter of a Latino immigrant — and growing up, all she wanted was some peace and quiet so she could write. So the now-famous author fixated on getting that space for herself, in the form of a house. She began what would become a life-long journey to find a place where she felt comfortable to be her fullest self: where, if she wanted to, she could "leave [her] hair uncombed, walk around barefoot, be rude." Oh, and to write stories that would resonate with readers for generations.

On a recent episode of the Code Switch podcast, I interviewed Cisneros about her 2016 memoir, A House of My Own. I'd grown up with her fiction, including the novels The House On Mango Street and Caramelo, but I wasn't sure what to expect of a memoir. It turned out to be a primer in how to live the kind of life I dreamed of: having a house, with the freedom to read and write away from the noise and expectations of family and society. And as a fellow quiet, sensitive child of a Latino immigrant, her experiences felt familiar to me in a way that I rarely come across in other books.

We talked about why she became obsessed with houses, what it was like to finally buy one, and — spoiler alert — what it felt like to fall out of love with it. Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. A House Of My Own is a collection of essays largely centered around the houses you have lived in over the course of your life. Why houses? What is special to you about them?To have a house means that you have a space in which you can retreat from society and create your own monastery or convent. And it's really the house of the imagination that you're looking for: some space that is uncensored, uninterrupted, and that inspires you to sit with yourself and have a nice, thorough conversation.

I lived in a house when I was growing up that was filled with people and noise. My mother's first thing she did in the morning was turn on the radio, and my brothers turned on television sets. And I never could understand that, filling up the silence with electronic noise. I had to have absolute quiet, and it forced me to go to bed after everyone else had gone to bed and to be a bit of a vampire as far as my schedule. And I did that because when you don't have a room of your own, you create a time of your own, a space of your own. As a child, did you have a vision of what you wanted that space to look like? You know how little girls dream of their weddings? I dreamt of houses. I would go to the public library in Chicago and get out design books, and look at houses and then think about my perfect house...

More,
https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/07/27/1020929937/how-sandra-cisneros-found-space-to-be-barefoot-and-rude

Sandra Cisneros, wiki
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandra_Cisneros

[TlalocW]

1. House on Mango Street

And a collection of short stories with a Mexican/Hispanic feminist/female point of view called, "Woman Hollering Creek," should be on your reading list.

TlalocW

[appalachiablue]

2. TY, glad to have your suggestions

[lunatica]

3. Space to be creative was always important to me

My family moved a lot so in retrospect I think I was very lucky in many ways. Now I live alone with my cat in delicious comfort with the perfect space to be creative. I do what I want which is the most important rule in my life now. No one to push me around or poke at me or demand my time and if I don’t want to do something I simply don’t.

I recommend it. If you are happy living alone then you’re obviously in good company, so pay attention to your needs! I highly recommend it!

[appalachiablue]

4. It sounds wonderful, and the best arrangement

for many people involved in creative work and art. Cisneros' story growing up I found interesting, esp. her mom who didn't really have the life she wanted..

[lunatica]

5. I think I'll read one

Can you recommend one?

[appalachiablue]

6. See #1. I haven't read her works, but

am eager to start..