Author │ Chicana Writer│ Poet

“An always skilled storyteller, [Castillo] grounds her writing in . . . humor, love, suspense and heartache–that draw the reader in.”

–Chicago Sunday Sun-Times

In novels, short stories, poems, and essays, Castillo explores what Ibis Gomez-Vega has called “those segments of the American population often separated by class, economics, gender, and sexual orientation.” Castillo’s works nevertheless transcend boundaries of politics, class, and gender, making her “one of a few Mexican American writers who have attracted the attention of the mainstream reading public” (Ibis Gomez-Vega). Castillo’s prose blends elements of oral history and established literary tradition with innovation and experimentation: she has been called “the most daring and experimental of Latino novelists” (Ilan Stavans).

Raised in a working-class neighborhood in Chicago, Castillo credits the powerful storytelling tradition of her Mexican heritage as the foundation and inspiration for her writing. By the time she graduated from college, Castillo had already begun to establish herself as a dynamic poetic voice: she published poems in anthologies and magazines as a college student, and three volumes of poetry followed shortly thereafter. In the mid-1980’s, Castillo turned to fiction. So Far From God, her first novel to be widely read, was published in 1993. Blending aspects of magical realism with a powerful family narrative and strong feminist undertones, So Far From God marked Castillo as one of the country’s most gifted and engaging Latina writers.

Castillo’s most recent novel, The Guardians, traces the lives of Mexican immigrants who illegally cross the border into the United States. Combining crushing realism with mystical transcendence, The Guardians centers on a family devastated by deaths and disappearances. Ultimately, “Castillo’s incandescent novel of suffering and love traces life's movement toward the light even in the bleakest of places” (Donna Seaman, Booklist starred review).

Susan Straight, author of A Million Nightingales, says that The Guardians "gives America exactly what it needs - her vision of a border that most people never see...and a story that will not let us go. Her voice is singular, and her talents are on full display here. Everyone needs to visit her world." Julia Alvarez, author of Saving the World, calls The Guardians "a brave, unflinching novel" and its author "a fearless storyteller."

Castillo is currently working on a screenplay of So Far From God with director Linda Mendoza.

Selected Writings

• The Guardians (Random House, 2008)
• Psst...I Have Something To Tell You, Mi Amor (Wings Press, 2005)
• Loverboys (W.W. Norton, 1996)
• Goddess of the Americas: Writings on the Virgin of Guadalupe (Riverhead Books, 1996)
• So Far From God (W.W. Norton, 1993)

Media