Once Upon a Quinseñera: Coming of Age in the USA

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In a study conducted by the National Coalition of Hispanic Health and Human Services Organizations (COSSMHO) titled The State of Hispanic Girls , young Latinas topped the charts in rates of teen pregnancy, suicide attempts, school dropouts, and substance abuse. It’s no wonder: as of 1996, the study notes, “more than 40 percent of all Hispanic children under the age of seventeen were living in families with incomes below the poverty line.” The results read relentlessly grim: “It is chilling…” (close to one out of every three His panic female high school students has seriously considered suicide); “Regrettably…” (Hispanic girls have school dropout rates higher than any other ethnic group: 30 percent between the ages of sixteen and twenty-four have dropped out of school without reenrolling or earning a high school equivalency degree); “It is dismaying…” (Hispanic girls lead their counterparts in the use of illegal substances); “More dire is the finding…” (His-panic female students are more likely to have started drinking alcohol before age thirteen); “Most disturbing of all…It is also disconcerting…”

Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, a “phenomenal, indispensable” (USA Today) exploration of the Latina “sweet fifteen” celebration, by the bestselling author of How the García Girls Lost Their Accents and In the Time of Butterflies

The quinceañera , a celebration of a Latina girl’s fifteenth birthday, has become a uniquely American trend. This lavish party with ball gowns, multi-tiered cakes, limousines, and extravagant meals is often as costly as a prom or a wedding. But many Latina girls feel entitled to this rite of passage, marking a girl’s entrance into womanhood, and expect no expense to be spared, even in working-class families. Acclaimed author Julia Alvarez explores the history and cultural significance of the “quince” in the United States, and the consequences of treating teens like princesses. Through her observations of a quince in Queens, interviews...