Patricia Engel Books

For readers of Valeria Luiselli and Edwidge Danticat, this urgent and lyrical novel explores the struggles of a Colombian family fractured by deportation, providing an intimate perspective on a shared experience. At the turn of the millennium, Colombia is ravaged by decades of violence. Elena and Mauro meet as teenagers, their love blossoming amid the brutality of Bogotá. With the birth of their first daughter and bleak economic prospects, they set their sights on the United States. They move to Houston, sending wages back to Elena’s mother while grappling with the decision to overstay their tourist visas or return home. As their family grows and they relocate repeatedly, their choice to ignore exit dates plunges them into the precarious world of undocumented status, with the constant threat of discovery looming over their strained lives. When Mauro is deported, Elena faces a difficult decision that eases her burdens but further fractures the family. Award-winning author Patricia Engel, a daughter of Colombian immigrants, gives voice to Mauro, Elena, and their children—Karina, Nando, and Talia—each navigating a divided existence. Rich in Bogotá’s urban life and steeped in Andean myth, this story reveals the complexities of a mixed-status family, where every triumph is intertwined with regret and each dream pursued carries the weight of dreams deferred.

From Patricia Engel, whose novel Infinite Country was a New York Times bestseller and a Reese's Book Club pick, comes an exquisite collection of ten haunting, award-winning short stories set across the Americas and linked by themes of migration, sacrifice, and moral compromise. Two Colombian expats meet as strangers on the rainy streets of New York City, both burdened with traumatic pasts. In Cuba, a woman discovers her deceased brother's bones have been stolen, and the love of her life returns from Ecuador for a one-night visit. A cash-strapped couple hustles in Miami, to life-altering ends. The Faraway World is a collection of arresting stories from the New York Times bestselling author of Infinite Country, Patricia Engel, "a gifted storyteller whose writing shines even in the darkest corners" (The Washington Post). Intimate and panoramic, these stories bring to life the liminality of regret, the vibrancy of community, and the epic deeds and quiet moments of love.

A collection of ten haunting short stories linked by themes of migration, sacrifice, and moral compromise bring to life the liminality of regret, the vibrancy of community, and the epic deeds and quiet moments of love.

Edited by Penelope Banou, Georgios Boudalis, Patricia Engel, Stephen R. Hill, Joseph Schirò, and Jedert Vodopivec Tomažic, this volume explores the question of why artists select specific papers for their creations. It examines whether this choice is influenced by availability and cost or driven by artistic motivation. The book features examples from artists such as Nikolai Astrup, Micheline de Bellefroid, Auguste Beuret, Johann Martin Schmidt, and Henri Cueco, alongside insights from Danish and Belgian artist groups, as well as traditions from India, Turkey, Japan, and the Aztecs. It also presents both traditional and cutting-edge methodologies for analyzing paper as a medium. The research highlights how a scribe's or printer's choice of paper reflects the local paper-making craft, availability of materials, trade practices, and cultural habits, while also incorporating the artist's intent. This comprehensive examination is significant for both art history and conservation, emphasizing the relevance of paper selection from the Renaissance to the present. The insights aim to encourage further interdisciplinary studies that merge conservation research with art history.