The House of Broken Angels

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Luis  Alberto Urrea is a gorgeous, empathetic, and playful writer. In this expansive portrait of a Mexican American family celebrating the lives and deaths of two of their oldest and most beloved members, Urrea's generosity, vision, and humor are fully revealed. Recommended By Jill O., Powells.com

From a Pulitzer Prize finalist comes a powerful and unforgettable portrait of one Mexican American family and the American dream.

"One of the most vivid and engrossing family epics of the last twenty years." — Dave Eggers

One of the Most Anticipated Books of 2018: Entertainment Weekly, Southern Living, The Millions, Chicago Review of Books, Bustle, Nylon, Book Riot, BookBub, San Francisco Weekly

"All we do, mija, is love. Love is the answer. Nothing stops it. Not borders. Not death."

In his final days, beloved and ailing patriarch Miguel Angel de La Cruz, affectionately called Big Angel, has summoned his entire clan for one last legendary birthday party. But as the party approaches, his mother, nearly one hundred, dies herself, leading to a farewell doubleheader in a single weekend. Among the guests is Big Angel's half brother, known as Little Angel, who must reckon with the truth that although he shares a father with his siblings, he has not, as a half gringo, shared a life.

Across two bittersweet days in their San Diego neighborhood, the revelers mingle among the palm trees and cacti, celebrating the lives of Big Angel and his mother, and recounting the many inspiring tales that have passed into family lore, the acts both ordinary and heroic that brought these citizens to a fraught and sublime country and allowed them to flourish in the land they have come to call home.

The story of the de La Cruzes is the quintessential American story. This indelible portrait of a complex family reminds us of what it means to be the first generation and to live two lives across one border. It takes us into a world we have not known, while reflecting back the hopes and dreams of our own families. Teeming with brilliance and humor, authentic at every turn, The House of Broken Angels is Luis Alberto Urrea at his best, and cements his reputation as a storyteller of the first rank.

"The House of Broken Angels has everything we demand of a great novel — sweep, ambition, generosity, myth, intimacy, and, above all, humanity. Luis Alberto Urrea just gets better and better." Richard Russo, Pulitzer Prize-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Everybody's Fool

"Luis Urrea is a mythmaker with the heart of a poet. He is that paradox, a gentle, kind writer who can hurt you deeply with honesty and beauty. I'm glad we have him." Neil Gaiman, New York Times bestselling author of The Ocean at the End of the Lane

"This, the most personal book by the great American novelist Luis Alberto Urrea, is one of the most vivid and engrossing family epics of the last twenty years." Dave Eggers, National Book Award finalist and New York Times bestselling author of The Circle

A finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for his landmark work of nonficiton The Devil's Highway, Luis Alberto Urrea is also the bestselling author of the novels The Hummingbird's Daughter, Into the Beautiful North, and Queen of America, as well as the story collections The Water Museum, a PEN/Faulkner Award finalist. He has won the Lannan Literary Award, an Edgar Award, and a 2017 American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature, among many other honors. Born in Tijuana to a Mexican father and American mother, he lives outside of Chicago and teaches at the University of Illinois-Chicago.