High Spirits

Pura Belpré Honor Book
Best of the Year
Chicago Review of Books – Kirkus – Los Angeles Public Library

Publishers Weekly Flying Start

High Spirits is a collection of eleven interconnected short stories from the Dominican diaspora, from debut author Camille Gomera-Tavarez.

It is a book centered on one extended family—the Beléns—across multiple generations.

It is set in the fictional small town of Hidalpa—and Santo Domingo and Paterson and San Juan and Washington Heights too.

It is told in a style both utterly real and distinctly magical—and its stories explore machismo, mental health, family, and identity.

But most of all, High Spirits represents the first book from Camille Gomera-Tavarez, who takes her place as one of the most extraordinary new voices to emerge in years.

For fans of Elizabeth Acevedo, Sandra Cisneros, Angie Cruz, and Yaa Gyasi.