La Paradoja de Mara-A

When this self-help book first came out in 1996, Latinas in the United States had a new word with which to analyze themselves: marianismo. The word marianista, derived from the Virgin Mary (Virgen Maria), describes a woman who is self-sacrificial, subservient, ridden with guilt, and ready to put everyone's needs, especially those of the men in her life, before her own. Marianismo is the counterpart to the infamous Latin American male behavior widely known as machismoa marianista thinks she should behave like a saint. Through their work as New York psychotherapists surveying the lives of new immigrants as well as second- and third-generation Latinas, Gil and Inoa Vazquez pull marianismo out of academic texts and further explore the phenomenon through real-life cases, helping women to leave behind old expectations and customs. This sure-to-be-classic handbook aimed at Latinas who want to become part of North American culture without shedding their Hispanic traditions offers exercises, warning lists, and before-and-after cases of women who have gotten out of the shadows of their patriarchal male figures and forged independent, self-fulfilling lives. This translation retains the ease of a one-to-one counseling style and its Spanish will be widely understood by all readers. This book is essential for all public libraries and bookstores with self-help or Hispanic women's studies sections. Adriana Lopez, ""Criticas""