Elaine Castillo was born, raised and lives in the Bay Area.
There is so much to love about this book - its depiction of class, society, the search for belonging and how it feels to be a woman and an immigrant, a depiction all the more poignant in the current climate * The Pool * Castillo emerges as one of 2018's boldest new voices with this debut. * Entertainment Weekly * In this complex, nuanced novel, Castillo delves into a reality too often ignored by mainstream America, uncovering universal emotional truths along the way. * Harper's Bazaar, best April books * If peaches were the most tender fruit of 2017 thanks to Call Me By Your Name, this year prepare to have your heart melted by a persimmon. * AnOther Magazine * Elaine Castillo's full-throated debut, America is Not the Heart is quite simply one of the best first novels I've ever read. * John Freeman, Lit Hub * A sprawling tale of three generations of Filipino women, this wonderful book encompasses everything from political upheaval to familial understanding. * Stylist * This is the book I didn't know I needed. This unexpected family, this history, this embrace of the sacred and the profane, this easy humour, this deeply felt human-ness, this messy, perfect love story. * Jade Chang, bestselling author of 'Wangs vs the World' * Wondrous. A nimble, vibrant, deeply moving feat, full of heart, humour and wisdom. * Irenosen Okojie, author of 'Speak Gigantular' * Glorious... a sharp, bracing, often hilarious family epic about a young woman tormented by the relentless ghosts of her past while in search of an American Dream that is not always available to those who seek it. * Samantha Irby, New York Times Bestselling author of 'We Are Never Meeting in Real Life' * An intimate epic about immigrant women's losses, triumphs and desires. A bold, tender debut; its characters thrum with life. * Luiza Sauma, author of 'Flesh and Bone and Water' * Beautifully tender, and a powerfully crafted portrayal of intimacy and the rawness of human emotion that will linger with you long after you've finished reading it. * Otegha Uwagba, author of the Sunday Times bestseller 'Little Black Book' * Epic in its scale, sharp-as slam-poetry on the sentence level. Profound and mesmerising. * Meena Kandasamy, author of 'When I Hit You' * Epic, soaring, brilliant * Sharlene Teo, author of Ponti * Entrancing and magnificent. Don't say you were not told. Dazzling. * NoViolet Bulawayo, Booker-shortlisted author of 'We Need New Names' * This book is it: one of the best debut novels (and novels, period) of recent years * Elle * The next big thing... It has drama and tragedy in spades, but it also has so much love of every kind spilling out of it pages that I closed it each night with a huge, warm smile * The Paris Review * Critical and compelling * New York Times * Radical... I was startled at how moved I was -- Rowan Hisayo Buchanan * Guardian * Blazingly fearless... Castillo is hugely talented * Observer *