Permissible Narratives

In his groundbreaking new study, Permissible Narratives: The Promise of Latino/a Literature, Christopher Gonzalez examines the difficulties Latina/o writers face in writing beyond the narrow expectations of U.S. readership in the stories they tell. Gonzalez argues that a constrained conception of the possibilities of storytelling by and about Latinos diminishes the development and progression of narrative form. Through an examination of Latina/o writers against the a priori mode of engaging with nonethnic literature in the United States, Gonzalez explores the limitations and challenges Latina/o authors have confronted via the shaping power of their narratives to reach a sustainable audience.

Bringing together cultural critique, memory, narratology, cognition, and comprehension, Gonzalez examines Latina/o authors--such as Oscar "Zeta" Acosta, Gloria Anzaldua, Piri Thomas, Giannina Braschi, Gilbert Hernandez, Sandra Cisneros, and Junot Diaz--investigating how they successfully, and sometimes unsuccessfully, use the expansive canvas of narrative form to capture the imaginations of an open-minded readership. Permissible Narratives highlights both the inequitable accessibility of narrative devices and, crucially, the daring of Latina/o authors to nurture a readership to afford the same literary deference to them that is so often afforded to white, male, straight authors.