The Collected Stories of Maria Cristina Mena is a collection of short stories written in the early 20th century by Chicano author Maria Cristina Mena. The publication was undertaken by the US Hispanic Literary Heritage as an initiative to recover works of literature by Chicano authors. The collection was curated by Amy Doherty and published in 1997 by Arte Publico Press. Doherty brought together Mena’s short stories originally published in magazines like Century and Cosmopolitan.
In the Short Stories, Mena explores life in Mexico in the early 20th century and the issues that face them like politics, race, gender, and capitalism. She also highlights how political revolutions by Mexican leaders played a significant role in the amount of influence that came from the United States of America and Europe. Mena’s commentary on Mexico’s social hierarchy remains relevant to this day. A lot of issues Mexicans were faced with a century ago remain prevalent in society.
Mena was the first Mexican-American woman to be published in notable American magazines. The Vine Leaf was also incorporated into the collection and it’s regarded as her magnum opus. The introduction of the collection was penned by Doherty who pays homage to Mena’s life and works as an author.
