Murray, Yxta Maya by Locas

New York. 1997. April 1997. Grove Press. 1st American Edition. Very Good in Slightly Worn Dustjacket. 0802116051. 248 pages. hardcover. Cover: M.L. Lincoln/Peter Casolino. Signed by the Author. keywords: Literature America Women Latina Los Angeles. FROM THE PUBLISHER - Locas tells a violent and poignant story set in the heart of the rough L.A. neighborhood Echo Park. Lucia and Cecilia are the girlfriend and sister of the rising young loco whose gun trade is about to explode into the big business of drugs. When their world starts to split apart under the vicious pressure of gang warfare, Lucia seizes her chance: she builds her own private cadre of Fire Girls and rises to become a gangster in her own right. Cecilia, devastated by a miscarried pregnancy and bittersweet love for another woman, leaves the gang for the Catholic church. Yxta Maya Murray has created a richly textured story from the tragedies of Lucia and Cecilia's loves, rages, and betrayals, never once avoiding the larger tragedy of their entrapment in a feudal and dangerous world. Equally beautiful and wrenching in its authenticity, Locas is a rhythmic, breathless and terrifyingly raw plunge into East L.A. gang life. With the potent voices of two teenage girls, Murray has created a compelling, richly textured story from the intricate tragedies of their loves, rages and betrayals--never once avoiding the larger tragedy of their entrapment in this tiny, feudal, senselessly violent world. inventory #31721 ISBN: 0802116051.