ICYMI: Rita Indiana
Como Un Dragón
Born and raised in Santo Domingo, Rita Indiana expanded her horizons through frequent visits to her father, who like so many Dominicans, had established a business in the US. Rita attended the same Catholic school for 14 years – El Colegio Calasanz; she then entered the Universidad Autononoma in Santo Domingo where she studied art history, a career which she abandoned a year later as she would subsequently abandon the School of Design of Altos de Chavon to pen her first novel, “Estrategia de Chochueca” (2000); “Estrategia de Chocueca” tells the story of a group of adolescents who steal a sound system at a rave in a particularly dark and depressing Santo Domingo. The following novel “Papi” (2004), where the pain and glory of a messianic New York Dominican street guy are seen through the eyes of his eight-year-old daughter. Both books have been absorbed into the US intellectual community and are used in literature courses in universities such as Harvard, NYU, Cornell, and others.
XO chats with Rita about her latest MANDINGA TIMES. Take a listen.