At a time when filmmakers turned actresses into the idols of modern times, a brilliant woman from Mexico emerged by the name of María Félix. She had a sober and proud beauty that exempted celluloid heroines from the burdens of ambitious scenarios. She satisfied masses of fans, who transformed her into a goddess rivaling Garbo and Dietrich. But it was her life - both private and public - that comprised the best melodrama. Destiny is a fine screenwriter. Félix excelled in creating an image of the doña, both forceful and rebellious, and as indestructible as the jewels she displayed on her feminine body, where a man's heart would beat. AUTHOR Filmmaker, novelist, songwriter, and movie and theater lover, Pierre Philippe has written lyrics for the Argentinean composer Astor Piazzolla, directed major television shows, and is the author of L'Aire et la chanson, a novel about music-hall life, published by Grasset in 2003. His love for the seventh art inevitably led him to a love for actresses. ILLUSTRATIONS 60 colour & b/w photographs

María Félix (1914-2002) left her mark on Mexican and European film as well as fashion, art and jewellery design. Cartier created one-of-a-kind pieces; Leonora Carrington and Diego Rivera painted portraits; Carlos Fuentes wrote a play; Agustín Lara, a bestselling song. But she was nobody's muse.María Félix (1914-2002) left her mark on Mexican and European film as well as fashion, art and jewellery design. Cartier created one-of-a-kind pieces; Leonora Carrington and Diego Rivera painted portraits; Carlos Fuentes wrote a play; Agustín Lara, a bestselling song. But she was nobody's muse. Did Félix really bring baby crocodiles to the Cartier boutique to request lifelike copies in a necklace? The story may be apocryphal, but it perfectly encapsulates her powerful, independent and unconventional persona. This book first examines Félix's life and work, reviewing her films and acting style and considering what they say about gender norms and a woman's place on screen. It then turns to her role as curator and benefactor, exploring how art, literature and song sustained her image. It concludes by exploring the persistent interest in her life story and evaluating her significance for contemporary audiences.enefactor, exploring how art, literature and song sustained her image. It concludes by exploring the persistent interest in her life story and evaluating her significance for contemporary audiences.enefactor, exploring how art, literature and song sustained her image. It concludes by exploring the persistent interest in her life story and evaluating her significance for contemporary audiences.enefactor, exploring how art, literature and song sustained her image. It concludes by exploring the persistent interest in her life story and evaluating her significance for contemporary audiences.

In this inspirational and unflinchingly honest memoir, acclaimed author Reyna Grande describes her childhood torn between the United States and Mexico, and shines a light on the experiences, fears, and hopes of those who choose to make the harrowing journey across the border. Reyna Grande vividly brings to life her tumultuous early years in this “compelling...unvarnished, resonant” (BookPage) story of a childhood spent torn between two parents and two countries. As her parents make the dangerous trek across the Mexican border to “El Otro Lado” (The Other Side) in pursuit of the American dream, Reyna and her siblings are forced into the already overburdened household of their stern grandmother. When their mother at last returns, Reyna prepares for her own journey to “El Otro Lado” to live with the man who has haunted her imagination for years, her long-absent father. Funny, heartbreaking, and lyrical, The Distance Between Us poignantly captures the confusion and contradictions of childhood, reminding us that the joys and sorrows we experience are imprinted on the heart forever, calling out to us of those places we first called home. Also available in Spanish as La distancia entre nosotros.

One of the earliest known autobiographies by a woman, this is the extraordinary tale of Catalina de Erauso, who in 1599 escaped from a Basque convent dressed as a man and went on to live one of the most wildly fantastic lives of any woman in history. A soldier in the Spanish army, she traveled to Peru and Chile, became a gambler, and even mistakenly killed her own brother in a duel. During her lifetime she emerged as the adored folkloric hero of the Spanish-speaking world. This delightful translation of Catalina's own work introduces a new audience to her audacious escapades.

Explores issues of representation and rebellion in Mexican and Mexican American cinema.

These essays trace the femme fatale across literature, visual culture and cinema, exploring the ways in which fatal femininity has been imagined in different cultural contexts and historical epochs, and moving from mythical women such as Eve, Medusa and the Sirens via historical figures such as Mata Hari to fatal women in contemporary cinema.