73 pages • 2 hours read
The Cemetery of Untold Stories
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Summary and Study Guide
Overview
In The Cemetery of Untold Stories (2024), author Julia Alvarez raises questions about the power of storytelling and examines whose stories should or shouldn’t be told. The novel follows the life of Alma Cruz, a successful Dominican American writer, in the waning years of her career. When Alma inherits a plot of land in the Dominican Republic, she decides to turn it into a cemetery for the stories she has left unfinished. However, the characters in those stories take on lives of their own, telling their tales to each other and to any living being who is willing to listen.
This study guide refers to the 2024 Kindle Edition by Algonquin Books.
Content Warning: Both the source text and this guide discuss racism, the sexual assault of a child, child loss, death by suicide, and anti-gay bias.
Plot Summary
In the early days of Alma Cruz’s writing career, a more successful writer-friend serves as her mentor. Alma garners more success over the years, achieving tenure at a university and buying a house in Vermont. However, some of her writing angers her mother, who considers her fictionalized presentation of family life to be nothing but lies. The writer-friend suggests that Alma publish under the Unlock all 73 pages of this Study Guide Plus, gain access to 8,900+ more expert-written Study Guides. Including features:
Related Titles
By Julia Alvarez
