Hijas Americanas: Beauty, Body Image, and Growing Up Latina

Reaching out to a growing "new majority," Hijas Americanas highlights for the first time the nuances, complexities, and challenges of Latina femininity, sexuality, beauty and body image in this ground-breaking work

In Hijas Americanas, author Rosie Molinary sheds new light on what it means to grow up Latina. Drawing upon her own experiences, as well as interviews and surveys collected from more than 500 Latina women, Molinary provides a powerful understanding of the inner conflicts and powerful triumphs of Latinas.The women profiled in this book are Caribbean, Mexican, Central American, and South American. These first-, second-, and third-generation Latinas have all grappled with the experience of coming of age within not one but two cultures , that of the United States, and that of their familial homelands. Hijas Americanas addresses experiences that are uniquely female and Latin, focusing on themes of body image, standards of beauty, ethnic identity, and sexuality. In doing so, Molinary gives voice to the struggles and successes of Latinas across racial, sexual, and cultural identities, emphasizing that the challenges inherent in growing up between two cultures can positively shape Latinas' lives.