High Spirits

Pura Belpré Honor Book  BEST OF THE YEARChicago Review of Books · Kirkus · Los Angeles Public Library  Publishers Weekly Flying Start  High Spirits is a collection of eleven interconnected short stories from the Dominican diaspora, from debut author Camille Gomera-Tavarez.   It is a book centered on one extended family – the Beléns – across multiple generations.   It is set in the fictional small town of Hidalpa – and Santo Domingo and Paterson and San Juan and Washington Heights too.   It is told in a style both utterly real and distinctly magical – and its stories explore machismo, mental health, family, and identity.   But most of all, High Spirits represents the first book from Camille Gomera-Tavarez, who takes her place as one of the most extraordinary new voices to emerge in years.  For fans of Elizabeth Acevedo, Sandra Cisneros, Angie Cruz, and Yaa Gyasi    P R A I S E  ★ “Authentic and immersive…A labor of love imbued with dedication to family.”—Kirkus (starred)  ★ “Deeply personal and relatable. Steeped in nostalgia and harsh but fierce love, this is a memorable family saga in its own right.”—Booklist (starred)  ★ “Full of vivid and poetic imagery… settings worthy of drinking in, and thematic material ripe for contemplation about identity, intergenerational memory, and patriarchy and toxic masculinity, Gomera-Tavarez’s soulfully crafted debut is a sensitive, intrinsically feminist work.”—Publishers Weekly (starred)   “A magical and unflinching look at the Dominican Diaspora.”—Dominican Writers Association