Award-winning Grant County author Catalina Claussen announces the release of her third young adult novel Holding on to Hope with Progressive Rising Phoenix Press. The Southwest Word Fiesta will hold a virtual reading with Claussen on Tuesday, March 30, 6:00-7:00pm. No registration is required. The free event will be at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/4092162808 . The evening will feature special guest Xochitl Hernandez Moctezuma, whose story inspired Holding on to Hope.
The church doors swing wide just as the padre is giving his blessing. Analicia Rosario Menéndez is fifteen when her brother, Junior, is arrested in the middle of her quinceañera. Soon after, her Spanish teacher Ms. García disappears, leaving behind her five-year-old son. During a routine check-in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Ana’s father, Dr. Menéndez, is detained.
Paralyzed against government forces as her world falls apart, Ana is tired of feeling powerless. Living in a small town along the southern border of New Mexico, someone has to know something, don’t they? Ana, desperate to find the truth, reaches out to those around her. Will her friends, Rose and Imani, help, or will they turn their backs?
This book explores the complex realities facing families and community members living under constant deportation threats.
Catalina Claussen is a southwestern storyteller, young adult novelist, and poet whose works include young adult novels Diamonds at Dusk (2016), Diamonds at Dawn (2018), Holding on to Hope (2020), and the humorous short story collection Being Home: A Southwestern Almanac (2020). Born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and now a long-time resident of the Mimbres Valley, Claussen has gained a deep appreciation of the people and the land. Her work has been recognized by the Arizona-New Mexico Book Awards, Wishing Shelf Book Awards (in the UK), and the New Apple Book Awards for Independent Publishing.
A podcast interview with Catalina with KSJE, Farmington, NM, is available at https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-dyfqp-f8ee00. Visit Catalina on the web at www.catalinaclaussenbooks.wordpress.com. Follow Catalina on Instagram @catalinaclaussen or on Facebook.
