2011 Issue - Santa Fe Community College

AQ: I noticed that my students were having difficulties making the
transition from the basic grammar classes to the literature courses. I
thought they needed something to bridge the gap, so I wrote this novel.
Mendiburo was actually the name of the street in Lima where my grandparents
used to live. In the novel, it is the name of the town where Marifer,
the main character, lives with her grandparents and the rest of her
family.
TM: How did you go about achieving your goals; what kind of research
did it take
AQ: It took me three years to write this novel because I wanted to
make sure I used the most commonly used words in Spanish. I researched
many words to make sure they were familiar to native Spanish
speakers in Spain, Mexico, Central and South America and the
Caribbean. At the same time the vocabulary had to be easy enough for
non-native Spanish speakers. Liliana Valenzuela, an excellent editor
and translator, proof read my novel and helped me with some words so
that the Spanish could be as “universal” as possible.
TM: Is there anything else you would like to tell us about your book
AQ: Grupo Santillana, the educational giant for Spain and Latin
America, bought the rights for La chica de Mendiburo for four languages
and my book is now published abroad by this company. I went to Lima,
Peru this past April invited by Grupo Santillana. In the week that I was
there, I visited 17 schools where middle school and high school students
were reading “La Chica”. I didn’t have enough time to visit more schools
but La chica is even read in schools in remote places like the Andes and
the Amazon. The book is doing very well in South America. The students
love learning literature and culture while, at the same time, having
fun with the multicultural fictional characters. I am very happy that La
chica is reaching such wide and diverse audiences and also helping students
in the process of learning a language.
TM: Thank you, Adalucia. I congratulate you on all the hard work
and your awards for your book.
You can find out more about “La Chica de Mendiburo” at
www.adalucia.net
Santa Fe Literary Review 147