Family Resemblance

Barrientos' growth as a novelist is apparent in this, her follow-up to Frontera Street. Family Resemblance is strongly paced and very well-written. Its themes are nearly universal, as so many people have had to deal with their own "family secrets." The characters in Family Resemblance seek to find the truth of their own histories and to learn - is it the parts we know or the parts that are missing that matter most?

Nita is trying to pull her life back together after divorce, while also caring for her father who she just moved to a nearby nursing home after a devastating stroke. Her parents never encouraged much interest in their past in Guatemala. So when Nita finds a mysterious letter from her aunt, whom she thought was long dead, her curiosity springs to life. With the help of some old friends and a new friend, Juno, she uncovers some of her family's heritage and even more family secrets. She finds comfort in her needlework and in her job as a therapist, but will her fragile new relationship with Juno survive the turmoil of an unexpectedly dramatic history coupled with her father's illness? Barrientos does an excellent job creating complex characters and interactions. I really cared about the people in Family Resemblance and laughed and cried with them. This is a touching story about love, loss, and relationships. I really liked Nita's strong character and the way the author delves into her heritage without dealing in stereotypes. Universal themes of dealing with grief, the importance of family ties and lifelong friendships, and the insecurities of new love all make this book easy to relate to.

I loved this book! Tanya Maria Barrientos manages to bring details to life, from the sights, sounds and smells of an open air market to the cutout paper moons hanging from the nursing home where her father is recovering from a stroke. At the same time she weaves a story of grief, loss, love and life. She's a great writer whose storytelling gifts are getting better by the book.

I was delighted to find this new book by Barrientos, whose first novel Frontera Street I added to my growing shelf of titles by favorite Latina writers. I especially liked how Family Resemblance explored the main characters' roots - in this case Guatemalen - as a family mystery was solved. I also very much like how Barrientos has continued to create strong female characters, whatever their nationalities.