Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories [Hardcover]

Sandra Cisneros (Author), Niva Gonzales (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 1991 | ISBN-10: 0394576543 | ISBN-13: 978-0394576541 | Edition: 1st

These stories, breathtaking in their precision and filled with unending moments of infinite and intimate wisdom, depict the variety of life around the Mexican border while bringing us to an awareness of the commonality of our fears, desires and dreams. From the award-winning author of The House on Mango Street.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ranging from prose lyrics of less than a page to much lengthier (but still lyrical) fictions, these stories are eloquent testimonials to the status of Mexican-American women. Cisneros ( The House on Mango Street ) introduces a cast of Chicanas from the environs of San Antonio, Tex., letting us eavesdrop on a series of interior monologues as well crafted as they are expressive. She begins with the self-conscious yet spontaneous effusions of young girls ("You laughing something into my ear that tickles, and me going Ha Ha Ha Ha"), then turns to preadolescents and young women; her speakers evince a shared, uneasy awareness that their self-worth depends on a loyalty to Mexico strained, all the same, by the realities of their lives up North. The restless vamp of "Never Marry a Mexican" feels "ridiculous" as "a Mexican girl who couldn't even speak Spanish," and cultivates a contempt for her white lover ("nude as a pearl. You've lost your train of smoke") and his wife ("alive under the flannel and down, and smelling like milk and hand cream")--but she is not sure just what she is envying. In this sensitively structured suite of sketches, however, Cisneros's irony defers to her powers of observation, so that feminism and cultural imperialism, while important issues here, do not overwhelm the narrative. Author tour.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

In this collection of Mexican-American stories, Cisneros addresses the reader in a voice that is alternately buoyant, strong, funny, and sad. The brief vignettes of the opening piece, "My Lucy Friend Who Smells Like Corn," are tiles in a mosaic. Taken together, these vignettes give a vivid, colorful picture of life on the Texas/Mexico border. Family ties are strong: aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents are all present. The stories are often about the romantic dreams of young girls longing to escape stifling small-town life who discover that things are not much different on the other side of the border. Cisneros has an acute eye for the telling detail that reveals the secrets and the dreams of her characters. She writes with humor and love about people she knows intimately.
- Marcia Tager, Tenafly, N.J.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 165 pages
• Publisher: Random House; 1st edition (April 3, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394576543
• ISBN-13: 978-0394576541
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #778,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sandra Cisneros was born in Chicago in 1954. Internationally acclaimed for her poetry and fiction, she has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Lannan Literary Award and the American Book Award, and of fellowships .

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars . These delicious, poetic stories are full of pain and joy., October 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Woman Hollering Creek: And Other Stories (Paperback)

Sandra Cisneros, the author of "Woman Hollering Creek" gives us a vibrant variety of stories which reveals some of the strength, true love, and wisdom within women. Cisneros, as a gifted writer and a storyteller, shares stories filled with moments of pain and joy. Women Hollering Creek, offers the life experiences of women who have lived both the Mexican and American life. These delicious, poetic stories bring alive beautiful characters (multifaceted women) who experience true life situations. Each character portrayed in this book, go throughout a catharsis full of pain, anguish, love, hope, and ecstasy. Cisneros is a brave author who shows a unique vision of a women's heart. Her wise work constructed by her poetic style, shows her power as a woman and a writer. In this book, she takes you down a river of sadness, with a long ribbon of laughter. An example of her style is this passage that captivated me, "Your eyes are beautiful, you said. You said they were the darkest eyes you'd ever seen and kissed each one as if they were capable of miracles. And after you left, I wanted to scoop them out with a spoon, place them on a plate under these blue blue skies, food for the blackbirds." It is very fortunate that I read this book, because it has given me so much inspiration. Cisneros as a Latina women, has inspired me (another Latino) to continue on my long journey of becoming a writer. Her beautiful prose gives the reader a sense of the world she brings alive. For example, "The laughing sound of the river and canals, and the high melancholy voice of the wind and the branches of the tall pine." I suggest that every writer should read this book. Another reason why I recommend this book is because it has shown me the astonishing perspective of a woman which no matter what, a man can not have. Me, as a man, would never experience what a women experiences. This book is very valuable to me, since it provides the opportunity to see the inner beauty and strength of a Latina women. A third reason why I recommend this book, is because it invites you to imagine and taste the Mexican culture through a woman's eyes. Woman Hollering Creek, served me especially and can be a great resource for others to learn about Mexican lifestyle. This book informed me more about that romantic, joyful, and traditional Mexican life. The rating I give this book is a ten, because it has helped me understand where women are coming from a little better. I have gained more respect for women who are writers because she gives her heart to her readers.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Poetically written exploration of women's experiences, June 10, 2002

By 

studentofislamichistory "studentofislamichistory" (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Woman Hollering Creek: And Other Stories (Paperback)

This is the book which made me a feminist during my undergraduate years, and on which I subsequently wrote my senior English thesis. No author of short stories can turn a phrase the way Cisneros can, and her poetic evocations of different stages of life from young girl to mature young woman shed a multi-faceted light on Hispanic women's experiences in which every paragraph becomes thought-provoking.

In addition, read as a whole thematically, this anthology can be seen as similar to the sort of artistic coming-of-age novels such as Hermann Hesse's Peter Camenzind. The key turning point in this development may be the story "Little Miracles, Kept Promises," which is a series of letters left at the shrine of La Virgin de Guadelupe. This reveals the many layers of the shrine, which is the site of an old Aztec goddess with whom Cisneros identified, and who allows for a new revelation of feminine power in the Mexican heritage which comes out for the rest of the work.

However you choose to read it, this is a collection which will both delight and challenge all who come prepared.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Short stories that sparkle, October 31, 2001

By 

arye orona - See all my reviews

This review is from: Woman Hollering Creek: And Other Stories (Paperback)

Woman Hollering Creek is a powerful collection of short stories from Sandra Cisneros. One of the main strengths of her writing is her ability to make her characters (especially her first person narrators) very accessable. She is able to get into the minds of, and portray, many of her characters in a very lifelike way. She seems especially adept at dealing with the children in her stories. For instance, the story "Eleven" (one of the many gems in this collection) is the account of a little girl on her eleventh birthday. It deals with helplessness of a child in the face of an authoritive adult. It also looks at a childs preoccupation with the opinion of his/her peers. Cisneros manages the tale in such a way that it seems inevitable that the reader will identify with the girl. That, in itself, is a sort of mastery of craft.

These stories range from impressionistic, two-page shorts that read like poems, to longer, more detailed accounts of relationships. As with any collection of short stories, there are those that are more successful than others (in other words those that you'll relate to better than others). However, all of the tales have a sort of vivid life to them; and, in all, I think that this is a very well rounded collection.

Perhaps the only real point of difficulty that readers may face in this collection is Cisneros' use of spanish phrases throughout the book. However, don't let such things discourage you. Many of these phrases can be understood within the context in which they are written (so they aren't too much of a stumbling block). Also, these stories are too good to let a few words discourage you from reading this book. I would recomend this book to anybody who is interested in the struggles of childhood (especially that of minority children), as well as the pains and pleasures of intimate relationships. I would also recomend this book to lovers of good, colorful short stories.