Family Lore

Family Lore (2023) is a multi-perspective magical realism novel by National Book Award-winning author Elizabeth Acevedo. It details a Dominican American family—the Martes—attending the elder Flor’s living wake, while contemplating their respective gifts and histories. It has been shortlisted for the Center for Fiction 2023 First Novel Prize and was picked for the Good Morning America book club. Acevedo boasts seven publications, one of which—her critically acclaimed debut novel, The Poet X—won the 2018 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. In 2022, she was named the year’s Young People’s Poet Laureate and also won the Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Fiction, the CILIP Carnegie Medal, and the Boston Globe-Hornbook Award. As a staunch supporter of portraying Latine culture, she was also honored with the 2019 Pure Belpré Author Award. In her works, Acevedo explores the complexity of family, the impact of diaspora, and ways to show love.

This guide refers to the HarperCollins e-book edition published in 2023.

Content Warning: Family Lore and this guide include references to infertility, miscarriage, gang-related violence, postpartum depression, verbal abuse, alcohol addiction, and attempted sexual assault.

Plot Summary

Family Lore primarily takes place in New York but often references the Marte family’s life in Santo Domingo (in the Dominican Republic).