Page 29 - ARUBA TODAY

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PEOPLE & ARTS Saturday 1 February 2020
Author Sandra Cisneros digs in

on support of 'American Dirt'

By RUSSELL CONTRERAS before its Jan. 21 release mins, 45, would reach a
Associated Press and was chosen by Oprah different audience who
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) Winfrey for her book club. "would be a little suspicious
— Celebrated Mexican But Mexican American of a Latino surname."
American author Sandra writers have been among Cisneros' endorsement of
Cisneros is refusing to back those strongly criticizing Cummins and her refusal
down from her support for "American Dirt" for stereo- to retract her praise of the
the novel, "American Dirt," typical depictions of Mexi- novel drew heated criti-
despite outcry from other cans. cism from Latinos on social
Latino writers amid charges Latino critics say "American media who called one of In this July 27, 2016 file photo, acclaimed Mexican American
author Sandra Cisneros points to a photograph by Cecil
of stereotypes, and is telling Dirt" contains stereotypes, the nation's most known McDonald, Jr., at the National Hispanic Cultural Center in
critics they should just calm incorrect regional slang, U.S. Latino writers a "ven- Albuquerque, N.M. at an exhibit based by her 1984 novel "The
down and write "poetry." and cultural inaccuracies. dida," or sell out. House On Mango Street."
Cisneros told Latino USA They also blasted promo- "I don't need folks in rar- Associated Press
host Maria Hinojosa on tions at book release par- efied, remote, hermetic,
Wednesday that she ap- ties that had floral art cen- hermit-like bubbles telling turn to writing poetry to story that amounted to a
preciated the work by terpieces with barbed wire me how I should respond ease their minds. "minstrel show."
Jeanine Cummins and mimicking the border wall. to #AmericanDirt," Mexi- Hinojosa also interviewed On Wednesday, Flatiron
didn't understand the criti- But Cisneros dismissed can American writer David author Luis Alberto Ur- Books publisher of "Ameri-
cism the novel is facing. claims of inaccuracies and Bowles tweeted. rea, whose books Cum- can Dirt" announced it was
The "House on Mango generalizations as irrele- Asked about the criticism, mins credited with helping canceling the remainder
Street" author said many of vant. Cisneros said detractors her craft the novel. Urrea of Cummins promotional
the places in Mexico that "A novel is different from should think about why called "American Dirt" a tour, citing concerns for her
Cummins mentioned were a piece of journalism or a they dislike the book and mishandled and cartoonist safety.q
places she'd investigated piece of nonfiction," said
herself and she found the Cisneros from her home
immigration elements of in San Miguel de Allende,
the story "believable." Mexico. "It has its own en-
The novel about a Mexican gine and it's got to roar
mother and her young son from page one, and it did
fleeing to the U.S. border that for me."
had been praised widely Cisneros said she felt Cum-
UK's health chief slams Gwyneth

Paltrow's lifestyle brand

LONDON (AP) — The chief
executive of Britain’s
National Health Service
has criticized Gwyneth
Paltrow’s lifestyle brand
Goop and her new Net-
flix series, warning it car-
ries “considerable risks
to health.” At an event
in Oxford on Thursday,
NHS chief Simon Stevens In this Monday, Oct. 14, 2019
slammed Paltrow’s brand file photo, Gwyneth Paltrow
for giving prominence to arrives at the 26th annual
“quacks, charlatans and ELLE Women in Hollywood
cranks” in promoting un- Celebration in Los Angeles.
tested treatments like Associated Press
vampire facials and un- recently made available
usually scented candles. on Netflix in the U.K.
“Gwyneth Paltrow’s Stevens warned about
brand peddles ‘psychic the potential of misin-
vampire repellent,’ says formation to undermine
‘chemical sunscreen is a public health, citing the
bad idea,’ and promotes recent surge in measles
colonic irrigation and across Britain. Scientists
DIY coffee enema ma- have attributed the dis-
chines,” he said, adding ease’s rise in part to fall-
British health authorities ing vaccination rates, first
have issued advice stat- prompted by skepticism
ing there is no scientific about the vaccine sug-
evidence to support such gested in a discredited
claims. Paltrow’s six-part scientific study in a 1998
series, “The goop lab with medical study that linked
Gwyneth Paltrow,” was the shot to autism.q