Las Historias Prohibidas de Marta Veneranda

Originally published in Cuba, this winner of the Casa de las Am ricas award for Hispanic literature in the United States in 1997 is now available in both this original Spanish version and an English translation from a U.S. publisher. Rivera-Vald s, a Cuban American resident of New York since the 1960s, has previously published short stories in anthologies in the United States and Latin America and is a professor of Latin American and Hispanic Literature at York College, CUNY. Her book is a series of separate confessions related to a fictive listener and transcriber, Marta Veneranda. After a brief introduction, Veneranda recedes into the background, and firsthand accounts from Cuban American New Yorkers whose lives are interconnected come to the fore. Although Rivera-Vald s writes that these stories represent distinct human conflicts, they all deal with sexuality or gender issues, and most are narrated by female characters. Almost half concern romantic relations between women. While Hispanic and immigrant issues also surface throughout, this will mostly appeal to those interested in women's sexuality and gender relations. Entertaining and light reading, particularly recommended for readers interested in Latina or lesbian themes; for public libraries and bookstores. [The English translation is available from Seven Stories Press, ISBN 1-58322-047-X. $21.95. Ed.] Anna Youssefi, Rice Univ. Lib., Houston