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This Is the Only Kingdom
A Novel
Contributors
By Jaquira Díaz
Formats and Prices
Price
$28.00Price
$37.00 CADFormat
Format:
- Hardcover $28.00 $37.00 CAD
- ebook $14.99 $19.99 CAD
- Audiobook Download (Unabridged) $27.99
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Growing up in Puerto Rico, Maricarmen works hard, getting good grades, and cleaning houses after school. She dreams of becoming a singer. When she meets Rey, a young Black musician, she falls in love with his dynamism, his band, and his voice. But when her mother discovers her relationship with a Black man, she puts Maricarmen out on the street. During the rise of the drug crisis sweeping their tight-knit community, Maricarmen fights to make a home for herself, for Rey, for Rey’s young brother Tito, and eventually, for her daughter Nena. When Rey is murdered, it falls to Maricarmen to raise both Nena and Tito, holding down two jobs to take care of them.
Fifteen years later, when Tito doesn’t come home after a night out, Maricarmen and Nena find themselves in the middle of a murder investigation, as the community that had once rallied to support Rey turns against them. In a moment of desperation, and struggling to protect her teenage daughter, Maricarmen gives up, leaving Nena to find her own way.
From the author of the critically acclaimed Ordinary Girls, a searing and moving portrait of a family torn apart, determined to find their way back.
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Named a Most Recommended Book of the Year by Electric Literature
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Praise for Ordinary GirlsMs. Magazine
“[Ordinary Girls] belongs on your must-read lists. Díaz is a masterful writer . . . Writing with refreshing honesty, she talks about despair, depression, love, and hope with such vibrancy that her vivid portrayal will stay with you long after the final page.”
B>O: The Oprah Magazine
“A skilled writer, Díaz is meticulous in her craft, and on page after page her writing truly sings . . . This brutally honest coming-of-age story is a painful yet illuminating memoir, a testament to resilience.”
I>New York Times Book Review
“Incredible . . . Beautiful . . . Gorgeous and propulsive prose.”
—NBC / Today (Isaac Fitzgerald)
“Outstanding. A powerful and lyrical coming-of-age story, Ordinary Girls is a candid illustration of shame, despair and violence as well as joy and triumph. Against a Puerto Rican backdrop, this debut is compassionate, brave and forgiving.”
- On Sale
- Oct 21, 2025
- Page Count
- 352 pages
- Publisher
- Algonquin Books
- ISBN-13
- 9781616209148
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