Writing with Authenticity
Do creativity and imagination give us the write to tackle any viewpoint? Jeanine Cummins and her comeback novel
Hello and happy Sunday!
Do you remember Jeanine Cummins, the most hated writer by Latinx minorities back in 2020? I wrote about it at the time, and focused on the question of who gets to say what writers have the right to write about. Do you have to have climbed the Everest to write from the perspective of someone who has? By this token then, can you not write historical fiction because you haven’t lived in medieval times? How are we to ever expand our point of view if we truly take the “write what you know” ad literam?
To recap: the author faced intense backlash for her novel American Dirt from critics, especially Mexican-American writers, who accused her of cultural appropriation, exploitation, and misrepresenting the Mexican migrant experience.
American Dirt tells the harrowing story of Lydia Quixano, a woman whose life is shattered when a cartel murder squad attacks her family during a backyard celebration in Acapulco, killing nearly everyone except her and her eight-year-old son, Luca.
Realising they are still in danger, Lydia and Luca flee Mexico, joining the perilous journey of migrants heading north to the United States. Along the way, they encounter other migrants with their own stories of trauma and survival, facing violence, exploitation, and the constant threat of capture as they attempt to cross the border.
Many felt Cummins, who identifies as white but has Puerto Rican heritage, did not authentically capture the humanity of her characters and reduced their suffering to “trauma porn”. The controversy was amplified by the book’s high-profile marketing, a seven-figure advance, and support from Oprah’s Book Club.
The backlash against Jeanine Cummins for American Dirt began in earnest in January 2020, with the book’s official release on January 21. The controversy intensified in the following weeks, with widespread criticism from Mexican-American and Latinx writers, and by January 29, 2020, the publisher had cancelled Cummins’s book tour due to the backlash. The debate and media coverage continued throughout the year, making it one of the biggest literary controversies of 2020.
The controversy around American Dirt was amplified by public relations missteps, including misleading claims about Cummins’ background and a book launch featuring floral arrangements reminiscent of barbed wire, echoing the novel’s cover imagery. Threats of protests and violence led to the cancellation of Cummins’ book tour, and an online petition by over 130 writers urged Oprah Winfrey to remove the book from her book club. Winfrey chose not to retract the selection but acknowledged the criticisms during the book club discussion. Despite the backlash, American Dirt became a commercial success, selling over 3 million copies and remaining popular among mainstream readers, many of whom were unaware of or indifferent to the controversy.
I remember thinking a lot about the author at the time. I wanted to let some time pass between the scandal that was created and reading the book. Still, this is not a book review; I still haven’t read the book. I know myself and I tend to be susceptible and look for confirmation if there is a strong opinion about something. I thought a lot about her and the work she put in the novel, the faith she must have had in it when she first published it. I wondered if she would ever write again and how traumatic writing has become for her, after the months of criticism and vitriol she received from most people.
I thought about what she must be feeling; unless the media attention was the stunt all along, which I highly doubt, I wondered what she would choose to write about, if she ever did pick it up again.
The negative press she got opened her up for all sorts of criticism. Most notably this article, which goes beyond the main issue with her writing and brings other shortcomings to the light.
I wonder if her writing would have been so heavily scrutinised if the topic hadn’t inflamed so many people.
All of this preamble to say that she has a new book out.
Slate.com writes about Cummins’ latest novel, Speak to Me of Home, which is seen as a response to the critiques levelled at American Dirt. The new book shifts focus to a Puerto Rican family, directly inspired by Cummins’ own heritage. The story centers on Rafaela, a daughter of a prominent Puerto Rican family who marries an American and moves to St. Louis, where she faces racism, and her daughter Ruth, who grapples with mixed identity and belonging. The narrative explores intergenerational relationships, identity struggles, and the experience of racism in America, themes that resonate, Slate.com says, with popular women’s fiction like Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club.
Speak to Me of Home addresses issues of authenticity and representation more subtly than a direct rebuttal could. For instance, Ruth’s college experience at a Puerto Rican group, where she is called a “blanquita” (a term for a white woman), highlights the complexities of racial identity and the shifting perceptions of belonging. The novel also touches on the commercialization of identity, as Ruth’s “The Widow’s Kitchen” Instagram account becomes a successful business, raising questions about authenticity and curated self-presentation.
Speak to Me of Home arrives in the midst of a putative vibe shift, under a presidential administration hell-bent on characterizing diversity initiatives as “racist.” It also comes at a time when the dominance of Twitter among media professionals has dissipated. But no one ever really forgets or forgives the barbs launched at them by people hiding behind social media handles—a truth of human nature more keyboard warriors ought to bear in mind. As a novel, Speak to Me of Home didn’t make much of an impression on me. It belongs to a genre of commercial women’s fiction that generally leaves me cold. But as a riposte, skillfully mounted while at the same time well shielded from the counterattacks typical of its targets, this book earned my respect.
Slate.com, Wriggling Out of the Authenticity Trap, Laura Miller
Ultimately, Cummins’ new work demonstrates a thoughtful engagement with her critics, acknowledging the nuances of mixed heritage and the reality of racism, while also reflecting on the author’s own experiences of public scrutiny. The book stands as a dignified and graceful follow-up, suggesting that Cummins has learned from the controversy surrounding American Dirt, even as the broader cultural conversation about identity and representation continues to evolve.
I know many readers in real life who prefer to read books without looking into context or much info about the writers, but I believe the experience of reading Jeanine Cummins without the context would take something away from her merit. I appreciate her resilience and the courage with which she faced all the criticism, even on Oprah’s stage. This comeback speaks volumes about her character, and I want to read both her books with that view in mind.
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Photos source: google.com