Lowrider Blues: Cantando, Gritando, y Llorando, a Compilation of Short Stories and Observations from My Inner Barrio

By Marie Romero Cash

This collection of short stories and prose chronicles events observed by the author during her lifetime in Northern New Mexico. Family, relatives, friends and strangers (real or imaginary) are caught off guard in everyday occurrences that evoke laughter, tears, or memories of the past. The names have, of course, been changed, and much embellishment has been added to stories which may or may not be true. Stories of innocence, family dynamics, relationships and injustice combine to bring a tongue in cheek narrative to the reader. The author adds: “My inner barrio is full of observations, whether from the neighborhood where I grew up in Santa Fe or from watching ordinary people interact with each other. I try to see the humor in whatever life throws at us and hope some of these stories will bring a chuckle or a hearty laugh to anyone willing to let their guard down as they read on.” Born in Santa Fe, MARIE ROMERO CASH is an award-winning folk artist/santera who has been exhibiting her colorful works for over thirty years. She is also a writer, having authored several books on Northern New Mexican culture, shrines, saints and churches including: BUILT OF EARTH AND SONG: A GUIDEBOOK TO NORTHERN NEW MEXICO’S VILLAGE CHURCHES; LIVING SHRINES: DEVOTIONAL SPACES IN NORTHERN NEW MEXICO HOMES; SANTOS, A COLORING BOOK OF NEW MEXICO SAINTS (also from Sunstone Press); and her memoir about growing up in Santa Fe, TORTILLA CHRONICLES.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sunstone Press
• Release date: Apr 25, 2012
• ISBN: 9781611390773

Marie Romero Cash

Marie Romero Cash was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to a family that would eventually number seven children, and has lived there most of her life. After graduating from Santa Fe High School, she took a job as a legal secretary, a field that would provide a lifetime of employment. But then, in her mid-thirties, she discovered the traditional arts of northern New Mexico. After twenty years of creating award-winning art, she began to write about it, but decided she needed a higher education to do so. At fifty she enrolled in college and, five years later, graduated with a degree in Southwest Studies. In 1998, she received the prestigious Javits Fellowship to pursue her education. Since then Marie has written several books about the art and culture of the southwest, including a memoir about growing up in Santa Fe. This novel, her first mystery, is based on the ranch where she spent a lot of time during her marriage to a cowboy. “Don’t get me wrong,” she says, “I’m the last person you would ever picture on a ranch. The alligator boots I purchased in 1987 still look like new!” You can find Marie on the Web at MarieRomeroCash.camelpress.com.