Sandra Cisneros is a novelist and short story author of Mexican-American descent, who was published several acclaimed works including The House on Mango Street and Woman Holler Creek and Other Stories.. She was born into a large family in Chicago in 1954. While her father worked various jobs, the family relocated many times between Mexico and America, a reocurrence which would have a profound effect upon Cisneros. Eventually the family settled down in Chicago permanently and Cisneros graduated from Josephinium Academy. It was during this time that she began to write poetry, and the practice continued as she attended Loyola University. There she received a Bachelor of Arts Degree. She continued her writings at the Iowa Writers Workshop where she received a Masters of Arts Degree in 1978.
After finishing her schooling, Cisneros began teaching in various capacities, including at the University of Michigan. In 1980 she published her first novel, Bad Boys, yet her first major success came with The House on Mango Street in 1984. As with much of Cisneros' work, the novel would tell the stories of Latinas inspired by the author's own life. The novel was a major success both critically and commercially, and established Cisneros as one of the most prominent Latina voices of her time.
After the less successful, My Wicked, Wicked Ways, in 1987, Cisernos released Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories in 1991. The collection of stories continued Cisneros investigations into Latinx identity, nationality, sexuality and religion. The title of the novel derives from the Woman Hollering Creek in Texas, which is itself named after a myth in which a woman drowned her baby in water and now haunts the area. The stories are brief snippets into a variety of situations, including spousal abuse, poverty, and love. Like The House on Mango Street, Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories was an incredible success, and it received the PEN Center West Award.
In recent years, Cisneros has continued to publish works of fiction, with the most recent being A House of My Own 2015. She now lives and works in Texas.
