UpDate - Vol. 15, No. 37, Page 2
July 18, 1996
Alvina Quintana's new book published

     Alvina E. Quintana, English, is the author of a new book, Home
Girls/Chicana Literary Voices.
     In the 165-page book published by Temple University Press, she
analyzes the work of Gloria Anzaldua, Ana Castillo, Denise Chavez,
Sandra Cisneros and Cherrie Moraga.
     Referring to the term "Chicana literature," Quintana said, "The
word 'Chicana,' for example, signifies a specific ethnic or political
identity or both.
     The term also, by virtue of the final vowel, denotes female
subjectivity.... When we join the term 'Chicana' and 'literature,' we,
in fact, set the course for an interdisciplinary exploration of some
of the relationships that emerge at the linguistic rendezvous between
mainstream and marginal perceptions of literature.
     "I am primarily concerned with contemporary Chicana literature
written in English," she said.
     "My hope is that Home Girls will help bring home the point that
Chicano/a culture is the embodiment of multiplicity."
     Quintana received her bachelor's degree in sociology from Mills
College in Oakland, Calif., in 1981, and her doctorate in the history
of consciousness from the University of California at Santa Cruz in
1989.
     A member of the UD faculty since 1989, Quintana has taught a
number of English courses, including "Multicultural Studies: 'Third
World Women's Lit,'" "Introduction to the Novel: 'Chicano Literature'"
and "Women of Color in the U.S."
     Home Girls is her first book.
     She also has written a number of essays.
                                                          -Gerry Elter