Latina Power

Book review: Latina Power

LATINA POWER! Using 7 Strengths You Already Have to Create the Success You Deserve was written by Dr. Ana Nogales PH.D. with the contribution of Laura Golden Bellotti in October of 2003. The publisher of this book is Simon & Schuster, Inc., a publishing house founded in New York in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Dr. Nogales immigrated to the United States in 1979 from Argentina and completed her doctorate degree in psychology at the United States International University of San Diego, California. She is the founder of the Nogales Psychological Counseling, Inc., and she is also the clinical director of the non-profit foundation, Casa de la Familia. The foundation was established for victims s of crime such as rape, sexual assault, child sexual and physical abuse, and domestic violence . She writes articles for the Spanish newspaper "La opinion " in California where she also has a TV and Radio show, and she has been interviewed for many important newspapers and magazines in the U.S. She is obviously an important woman in the Latino community in the United States, and her work shows her genuine desire to help and improve the Latino Community lifestyle.

LATINA POWER! has 240 pages from front to back. The first page is filled with reviews from newspapers and quotes by important personalities in the Latino Community. The second pages is the title page with the author and publisher information, copyright date (October 2003), and the five cities in which the book was published.

Page eight displays the table of contents which is divided into nine chapters, a bibliography, and an index with their respective page numbers. Page ten shows the names of the women referred to as an example in each chapter.

LATINA POWER!'s writer, Nogales, energetically encourages Latinas to evolve beyond their expected roles and become the women they wish to be by embracing the seven traits they inherit naturally from their Latino culture. The idea for this book came to Nogales after years of doing work in the Latino Community. She noticed how many creative, courageous Latinas have surpassed many obstacles to reach their dreams and be examples for their compeers. She specifically refers to the powerful qualities that women in general have, like unlimited love for their families. She hopes that women who read this book will discover the powerful untapped side to that "givingness" that Latinas inherit from their Latino culture to give to and nourish themselves. Having learned so well how to be giving, Nogales hopes that they can now give some of that attention, love, sacrifice and devotion to themselves.

By sharing her own experience as an example as well as telling the stories of many other successful Latinas, Nogales tries to encourage her readers to identify these innate Latina qualities. She also focuses a great deal on the concept of one's potential. In Latin cultures, women often consider the potential that men have, but never consider their own. Nogales directs her goals to encourage Latinas to be less humble and think more about their potential.

Nogales divides her book into nine chapters. The first chapter functions as an introduction. Chapters two through eight discuss the seven strengths of Latina women. Each chapter is devoted to a different strength and provides an example of an important, successful Latin female figure and how she has utilized that strength to her personal advantage. Each chapter closes with a quiz that readers can take to determine how strong each attribute is in their own personalities. The ninth and final chapter is devoted to encouraging Nogales' readers to share the knowledge and power to encourage other Latina children and women in society to succeed.

The first chapter introduces the reader to the concept of the seven strengths, or seven innate characteristics that all Latinas have. Nogales also talks about her background and what her life was like in Argentina, where she grew up. Nogales was raised in a typical South American family. Her mother had been responsible for everything regarding the home and the children and had never been given the opportunity to study or find a professional identity outside of the home.

Chapters two through eight discuss each of Nogales' seven Latina power strengths. The first , espiritu creativo or creative spirit, is the Latinas' ability to be creative and resourceful in order to deal with the many challenges that they face. For example, a mother may have to invent a way to feed her family of five with only thirty dollars per week. Nogales demonstrates how Latinas can use their creativity and intuition to attain their career goals, whether by starting a business, pursuing an artistic profession or taking risks to reach any dream of self-fulfillment.

Chapter three explores the aguantadora's (survivor's) passionate determination. Nogales is referring to the personal experiences of generations of Latinas who have had to endure hardship. Nogales says that a survivor attitude is essential for enduring life's difficulties and remaining passionately focused on your aspirations. Young Latina girls are typically raised in families of machismo, where they are often victims of physical abuse and unfair treatment. Many Latinas are also sexually abused by their partners. The women will often endure this hardship because they believe that they are somehow protecting their children somehow, and because they have learned to accept violence as part of life. Nogales writes that the survivor's passionate determination can be directed in a different, positive way; Latinas can use their natural tenacity and unstoppable passion in life when pursuing their career goals.

Chapter four identifies the comadre's networking ability ,or comother's networking ability . Latinas have an ability to form strong, and honest relationships where everybody helps and receives help from one other. For example, Latin mothers are accustomed to forming dedicated friendship in order to support and help one another families during difficult times. Nogales reminds her readers that networking is one of the keys to professional success according to career experts.

The diplomatica's discretion, or diplomacy's discretion, discussed in chapter five describes the innate ability that Latinas inherited to be diplomatic when dealing with many divergent opinions in extended families. Latinas are the often the neutral balance in the middle of many different opinions and needs in a extended family, and they are therefore responsible for maintaining the peace. Nogales relates the Latinas' negotiating and peacekeeping skills to the abilities that politicians and career diplomats have to cultivate, encouraging women to envision themselves in those professional roles.

Chapter six talks about the atrevida's courage, or ristaker's courage. Taking the easiest path is not the way that Latinas go through life because they have to be brave and take risks in order to survive. Latinas fight to never let their children suffer. For that reason , many Latins are willing to do whatever is necessary in order to provide their children with a better life than their own. Nogales proclaims that this virtue is necessary to have the strength to change something in greater society for the better.

The malabarista's balance, or multitasker's balance, in chapter seven, is the Latinas' natural ability to balance their responsibilities and manage their time and energy. In Latin cultures, women must divide their devotion between work, family, friends and their spiritual life, never taking time out for themselves. Nogales urges her readers to use their talents at balancing busy schedules in the work force, and to also push to spend more valuable time alone in order to clear their minds and refresh their spirits.

In chapter eight, Nogales discusses la reina's (a diva's) confidence and strength. In Latin America, women have inherited a cultural status as "la reina del hogar," which means "the queen of the household." Every Latino man acknowledges the status his mother holds within the family, and sons and daughters often look to their mothers for guidance and nurturing. What Nogales desires is for her readers to take the confidence and value that they feel as women in the home, and shift those feelings of strength towards the pursuit of their own personal interests.

The ninth and final chapter, titled "Sharing Your Power", was written to encourage Nogales' readers to reach out to empower other Latina children and women in society. She says that one trait that many of the most successful and talented Latina women interviewed for the book share is a spirit of generosity. Nogales writes, "Being a successful Latina involves teaching our daughters to set goals, to enjoy the process of learning, to face challenges, and to value their accomplishments." Nogales encourages her readers to be role models for the younger generations and to give of themselves for the greater good of society through their professional lives, such as through the careers of politics, art or journalism.

LATINA POWER! is an effective and successful book because of its structure, Nogales' writing style, the clear examples and the interactive element of the activities and quizzes at the close of each chapter. Nogales' organization of the book's chapters along with her use of clear and simple language make the concept of the seven strengths very easy to follow and understand. By providing case studies and examples of successful Latina women with leading roles in society, Nogales reinforces the similarities shared amongst all Latina women and demonstrates how Latinas can use their innate qualities to pave their own ways toward self-fulfillment. The activities provided at the end of each chapter bring Nogales' concepts to life by inviting each reader to consider her own personal situation and focus on the ways in which she would like to move forward.

I relate this book and the author directly to me because I have been an eye witness of all the difficulties that my mother, as Latina, has been through all her life. The first word that comes to mind when I think about my mother is "fighter". She worked fifteen hours per day running my family business, dealing with employees, buying material, selling the product and she still had time to make breakfast every morning at 5 am before I left to school. Reading it, I easily recognize these strengths that Latinas have and I agree with the necessity of exploding these qualities in Latinas.