¡AZÚCAR!: The Biography Of Celia Cruz by Eduardo Marceles available at major bookstores nationwide

¡AZÚCAR!: The Biography of Celia Cruz is writer/journalist Eduardo Marceless exhaustive research into the life and work of one of the worlds most beloved musical icons. The book will be released in Spanish hardcover, in stores June 12th, and English hardcover, in stores June 25th.

(PRWEB) June 18, 2004 -- Thousands of fans and onlookers took to the streets of New York and Miami on Wednesday, July 16, 2003 upon learning that Latin musics last remaining living legend, Celia Cruz, had passed away. In the five-day funeral that followed, dozens of public figures gave numerous interviews about their experiences working with her. In spite of all the testimonies and editorial articles one question remained: Who was Celia Cruz? Scheduled for release only a few weeks before the first anniversary of her passing ¡AZÚCAR! The Biography of Celia Cruz (Reed Press | June 2004 | 320pp | 40 photos | Hardcover | English 1-59429-021-0, Spanish 1-59429-011-3 | $19.95 US | $29.95 CAN) answers that question while revealing facets of the complex being that she was.

Her date of birth aside, few facts have been known about Celias beginnings in Havanas Barrio, Santo Suarez; what drew her to diverse Afro-Cuban rhythms; her successes and challenges working with some of the most important musical figures and bands of the last century; and, not the least, the affectionate but sometimes painful love story that tied her to Pedro Knight for over forty years.

¡AZÚCAR! is an investigation that, as a writer, took me well beyond the obvious questions that had become vox populi among the mass media, to the most intimate and tangible aspects of her persona as told by close friends, industry peers and family. As a journalist, I was able to make sense of that which we as humans choose to hide because we feel threatened by them or, as in Celias case, issues that at any given moment could have threatened the private life that she so vigorously protected. In the book I talk about her family relations, her political inclinations and, in terms of her music, the decisions she made both in Cuba and the United States," says Marceles.

In his search for the unknown story of Celia Cruz, Eduardo Marceles visited her intimate circle of friends and family in Cuba, Mexico and Colombia, as well as those personally and professionally closest to her in Miami, Los Angeles and New York. In his book, Marceles situates each era of the divas musical and personal transformations in a global context. Without doubt, Celia moved to the rhythm of historical change, whether it be as the Celia of Sonora Matancera, the Celia exiled in Mexico, the Celia of The Fania All Stars, or the latter-years Celia in New York. Illustrated with a wealth of previously unpublished photos, numerous mini-biographies of key Latin musicians, and the most extensive discography on record, ¡AZÚCAR!: The Biography of Celia Cruz is the in-depth account of a cherished subject, whose singing was once described by the famous Cuban writer, Alejo Carpentier, as angels float from her throat".

EDUARDO MARCELES is a writer and essayist born in Aracataca, Colombia. He studied at New York University (NYU) and the University of California in Berkeley, and has taught theater, literature and Latin American cultural history at universities in China, Spain, Colombia, and the United States. Since his tenure as multicultural curator of the Queens Museum of Art, Marceles has excelled as a journalist and editor of cultural periodicals in Latin America and the United States. As an art historian he is responsible for the following volumes: Los recursos de la imaginación: Artes visuales del Caribe colombiano (Vol 1), Artes visuales de la región andina de Colombia (Vol. 2) and Artes visuales de Oriente y Occidente (Vol. 3). As a writer he published the book of short stories, Los perros de Benares y otros retablos peregrinos (Oveja Negra, 1984) and has completed the unpublished novel, Lejos de casa.
   
¡AZÚCAR!: The Biography of Celia Cruz (Reed Press | June 2004 | 320pp | 40 photos | Hardcover, English 1-59429-021-0, Spanish 1-59429-011-3 | $19.95 US | $29.95 CAN)

EDUARDO MARCELES WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS, DISCUSSIONS AND SIGNINGS/EVENTS, FROM JUNE 16-JULY 7 IN NEW YORK CITY & MIAMI
To schedule an interview, or for more information please contact, Diana Vargas: (718) 478-1015 or (917) 658-7735 | press@dianavargas.com
To reach the publisher, Reed Press: www.reedpress.com | (646) 746-6892 | abecher@reedbusiness.com