Bitita's Diary: The Childhood Memoirs of Carolina Maria de JesusAn autobiographical memoir of a 20th-century black Brazilian author who surmounted obstacles of poverty, class, and color, revealing details about a world virtually unknown to contemporary educated Brazilians. Her work as a domestic servant in the homes of prominent figures in Sao Paulo, allowing her access to books and further learning, came to an end when she became pregnant by a white foreigner. Living in a shantytown, she kept a diary on scraps of paper sewed into notebooks. (And what is your excuse for not doing any creative writing today?) With the help of a journalist who "discovered" her, her diary became a best-seller in 1960. She received little money, however, and after an unsuccessful attempt to settle in a middle-class neighborhood, she bought a small piece of land and continued to write poetry, short stories, and fragments of plays and novels. The chapters that comprise this autobiography were originally written in the early 1970s. Includes an afterword offering historical context. No index. Paper edition (unseen), $19.95. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR |
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Bitita's Diary: The Childhood Memoirs of Carolina Maria de Jesus Carolina Maria de Jesus Limited preview - 1997 |
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already Araxá arrived Artur asked Aunt Ana black woman born bought Brazil Brazilian brother Cabinda Carolina Maria coffee cook countryside cried crying cursed dance daughter Diário de Bitita Dona Maria Doutor Brand dream dress drink farm farmer farmhands father favela felt fifty thousand réis fight gave Getúlio Getúlio Vargas godmother going Grandpa happy heard hundred thousand réis Inconfidência Mineira João José do Patrocínio kill knew land leave little black girl live looked Mama Manoel Nogueira Maria de Jesus married military policeman mistress mother mulatto never nigger o'clock Paulo pinga plant police poor Portuguese prayed réis a month Ribeirão Preto rice rich Rio de Janeiro Rui Barbosa Sacramento Saint Santa Casa São Paulo Siá Maruca sick sister slaves sleep smiled someone talk things thought Tiradentes told Uberaba uncle wife women