Extended Family - by Rafael Reyes-Ruíz (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Francisco, a Colombian-American New Yorker, embarks on a quest to uncover the truth about his family's past, unearthing long-forgotten secrets that compel him to question his identity and embrace an unpredictable future. As Francisco reconstructs his family's history, he writes a hybrid of fiction and nonfiction that may hold the key to his future: either as an anthropologist committed to studying the lived experience of immigrants, or as a novelist nurtured by it.

This is Reyes-Ruiz's most personal work to date: a tapestry of taracea marquetry intricately woven with threads of adventure, travel literature, and family saga. Embarking on a journey across diverse worlds and languages, Extended Family evokes the ancient patina of precious objects.

Héctor Hoyos, Stanford University. Author of Things with a History

Reyes-Ruiz continues to explore in depth the inner lives of expatriates and bicultural people. This time, without the exoticism of Thailand, Japan, or Dubai, we move to the streets of Manhattan and Queens, as well as graduate programs in anthropology. The result is a work of great refinement and subtlety.

Patrick O'Connor, Oberlin College.