Selenidad

“[T]his invigorating example of interdisciplinary Latina/o scholarship goes beyond Selena and models a methodological and theoretical technique that embraces and enunciates the melancholy, joy, and intellectual integrity of its subject(s).” - Priscilla Peña Ovalle, Theatre Journal

“Deborah Paredez’ study on Selena’s posthumous importance is well written, engaging, and timely. She reveals the cultural, political, and economic dynamics of some commemorations of Selena. She further explores the reactions of Latinos and mainstream Americans after Selena’s death. Selenidad enables—if only for a moment—a sense of belonging to communities of the living. A great and easy read coupled with a selection of interesting photographs.”
- Anna Hamling, Feminist Review blog

“The present reviewer . . . comes to Selenidad as neither sociologist nor adept with the at-times clinical and cold loupe and tweezers of the deconstructionist's toolbox, neither Latino nor expert in Hispanic life and culture in the Estados Unidos himself, but merely as a knowledge-thirsty Selena devotee. . . . [M]y posting of this review on SelenaForever.com is directed primarily at other Selena devotees. Should y'all run out and buy Selenidad? Unquestionably, without any hesitation, absolutely. . . . Selenidad is about us, the living, not Selena, the beloved departed; it is about what we (although focused on the Latino/a community) thought and think about Selena, the brilliant star who passed so quickly over the Texas plains.“ - Bernard Greenberg, SelenaForever.com

“What is certain and undeniable about Corpus Christi's most famous daughter is this: What we can now never know about Selena's rising star reveals other truths after her death. . . . For the decade-long project, Paredez . . . did painstaking research, including interviewing the young women who auditioned for the title role in the biopic and stage versions of her life story. She looked as well into the ways in which young girls still adopt the ‘everyday ways’ of Selena's style.” - Yvette Benavides, San Antonio Express-News

“In this outstanding book, Deborah Paredez teaches us important lessons about the politics of Latinidad. She makes insightful connections between Selena’s memorialization and contemporary issues including U.S. policy toward Latinos, the continued relevance of Texas’s colonial and conquest history, the political economy of NAFTA, and even strategies for containing urban popular expression.” - Arlene Dávila, author of Latinos, Inc.: The Marketing and Making of a People

“Selena, as Deborah Paredez compellingly shows, functions as a cultural hinge figure: issues pertaining to economics, ethnic identity, music, body language, sexuality, and politics are all negotiated around and through her body. More than that, Paredez demonstrates that the mourning around the star’s death—the outpouring of grief by Latinos and the reluctant observance by mainstream audiences—enacts the troubled relationship of Latinos and the mainstream generally.” - Diana Taylor, author of The Archive and the Repertoire: Performing Cultural Memory in the Americas