The Hummingbird's Daughter by Luis Alberto Urrea

I just finished The Hummingbird's Daughter by Luis Alberto Urrea, an excellent piece of researched fiction telling the story of Teresita Urrea, aka the Saint of Cabora, a town in Mexico. Teresita Urrea (1873-1906) was a real person and a relative of the author, Luis Alberto Urrea.

This story of an abandoned child who grows up to have alarming power and influence is both interesting and well-told. I didn't realize that it was based on a real person until I was over half-way through; this added greatly to my appreciation of the book.

Here is a link to a more detailed and well-written review over at AmoXcalli and a link to the Luis Alberto Urrea's site. If you enjoy magical realism and/or historical fiction, you will enjoy this eloquent novel.