“L.A. Weather” tells the story of one very tumultuous year in the life of the Alvarado family. Successful Mexican-Americans living and working in Los Angeles, the three adult daughters maintain a commitment of meeting their parents for weekly family dinners to share their passion for food, and commitment to family.  

Author Maria Amparo Escandon joins the podcast to talk about the narrative technique she uses in the novel: taking the reader through the dramatic year that changes each character profoundly, month my month, and who in her own life inspired the patriarch’s unsettling preoccupation with the weather. Escandon discusses writing the book in what is not her native tongue, her love for Los Angeles, and what she calls “transcreation.”

“L.A. Weather” is a New York Times Bestseller, a Reese’s Book Club Pick, and named to the Best Books of 2021 by Harper’s Bazaar.

Inspired  by the vibrant story showcasing a Latino family that defies common fictional stereotypes, Margaret and Olivia discuss “Mexican Gothic” by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Ericka Sanchez’s “I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter.”