About this item
Big Familia follows Juan Gutirrez, a self-employed single father, as he navigates a tumultuous year of inescapable change. His daughter, Stella, is on the verge of moving away to college; his lover, Jared, is pressing him for commitment; and his favorite watering hole - a ramshackle dive presided over by Bob the Bartender - is transforming into a karaoke hotspot. The story is set in a neighborhood that is also changing, gentrification inciting the ire of the established community. Upon the unexpected death of one of the bar's regulars, Juan is sent reeling, and a series of upheavals follow as he both seeks and spurns intimacy, pondering the legacy of distant parents and a failed marriage and grappling with his sexuality - all the while cycling and dating, drinking at Nicks Lounge, and parenting a determined and defiant child-become-woman.
About the Author
TOMAS MONIZ's debut novel, Big Familia, was a finalist for the 2020 PEN/Hemingway, the LAMBDA, and the Foreward Indies Awards. He edited Rad Dad and Rad Families. He's the recipient of the SF Literary Arts Foundation's 2016 Award and was awarded the 2018 SPACE Ryder Farm residency in NY. He has stuff on the internet but loves penpals: PO Box 3555, Berkeley CA 94703. He promises to write back.
