The Inheritors

by Judith Kirscht

Raised in Chicago's Latino working class community during the Sixties, Alicia Barron uncovers her mother's Caucasian roots when she inherits a time-worn mansion, the remnant of the estate of a Chicago industrialist who, she discovers, is her grandfather. Her search of the house takes her into the lives of past generations of women whose love carried them across forbidden boundaries, and into the conflict of class, nationality, and race that is the history of the city itself. The identity she finds there, however, leads to increasing conflict with her first great love, Ricardo Moreno, who wants Alicia to reject her gringo roots.

252 pages, Paperback

First published June 3, 2012

About the author

Judith Kirscht was born and raised in Chicago, raised her family in Michigan, taught writing at the Universities of Michigan and California, Santa Barbara, before moving to Washington State to devote herself to her first love, writing fiction. She is now celebrating the publication of two novels: NOWHERE ELSE TO GO, about a college town torn apart by the turmoil of the Sixties, and THE INHERITORS, about an ethnically mixed woman whose search for her heritage in an abandonned Chicago mansion threatens her first great love.

Reviews

[Gaele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not familiar with either the feel of the 1960’s or Chicago: most of my information is gleaned from books and film of the times. Fortunately, neither is needed to understand the characters in this book, in fact, this story could be set anywhere in any country, nearly at any point in modern history. Tackling the sensitive issues of discrimination and racism, Kirscht has taken the standard box from which those stories are most often gleaned and turned it on its end. While everyone is familiar with racism and discrimination in a big picture sort of way: majority group uses their power to constrain a minority. Unless you are a member of a minority group, you are probably unaware of, or less aware of the subtle and not so subtle tensions that occur within those minority groups,

As this story progresses you will become highly aware of those subtle distinctions and slights that are used within communities that are nothing short of senseless discrimination. The contrast in attitude and acceptance in her childhood neighborhood in the intervening 20 years is glaring: the acceptance of others seems to have been replaced with insularity and mistrust with a distinctive conflict arising for those of mixed heritage. Pushing her to ignore or deny her white heritage is Ricardo, a fellow teacher and her love interest. Interestingly, his extreme reactions to her mixed racial heritage arrived when she decided to explore her mother’s family, and discovered that she too was a woman with a blended history. As Alicia delves deeper into her own family history, she finds answers and acceptance in the fact that these women overcame difficulties, crossed borders and loved despite differences, not similarities.

Throughout the story we are treated to several different views on national and cultural pride, all giving rise to the ultimate lessons about what it means to be American, with or without a distinct mixed heritage. Plausibly laying the groundwork for misunderstandings that created these tensions, Kirscht has managed to provide a story that while it deals with Latinos in the specific, could be applied to any subset of any town, and provides plenty of food for thought about your own perspective on your own cultural ties and associations.

I received an eBook from the author for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

[Debra Borys · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a former resident of Chicago and someone who’s written two novels set in that city, I was really excited to start reading The Inheritors by Judith Kirscht . One of the neighborhoods I lived in was Wicker Park, which has, or at least had at that time, a large Hispanic population.

The Inheritors is set in a different neighborhood than I lived in and a different era (the 80’s) but still made me nostalgic for the Windy City. The book takes sort of an upside-down look at racism that I haven’t ever seen before. Many books have been written about the injustices imposed upon minorities by the “ruling” class. This book shows that minorities can be just as disdainful of the majority. A sort of reverse prejudice.

Alicia’s journey is to accept her white Anglo bloodline, something she has always rejected in the past. Her love interest, Ricardo, not only discourages her from making this effort, but is very adamant about how abhorrent he thinks her white lineage is.

I found myself disliking Ricardo from the outset and was encouraged by Alicia’s individuality and willingness to go her own way even though a part of her, like him, wants to pretend there is only Latino blood running through her veins. In an early scene at the school where she works, Alicia reflects on how the educational focus was only on the children’s Mexican heritage, despite the fact that most of them had never been to Mexico and many of the parents did not even come from that country. She feels a longing for her own childhood when the school and the neighborhood accepted themselves as more of a melting pot, an eclectic and lively mix of many races and hard working laborers.

It seems to me that the Chicago Alicia grew up in was a microcosm of the America I think we should be, and that we once were. Her slowly developing embrace of the diversity of her forebears is like a call for us to learn more about those who have different backgrounds and cultures than ours and incorporate them into our own lives. That is how we can build the richest, most fulfilling experience and future for ourselves and our children.

[Acacia Awai · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Inheritors by Judith Kirscht is a novel about Alicia Barron a half white half Chilean woman raised as a Latino by her white mother, who left the luxury of her prestigious family to raise Alicia. Set in the working class community of Chicago Alicia takes us on her self-realizing journey.

The Inheritors was not something I would normally be drawn to, but I found Judith’s story thought provoking and sincere. I really enjoyed it.

[Heidi Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alicia epitomizes the struggle anyone might have, feeling that she doesn't belong in either the Hispanic or the white world. This is a well-written book, a page-turner, well researched and well thought out. I was hooked into Alicia's story and hung on to the very end, wanting things to turn out good for her. Judy is a good writer. I've enjoyed both her books, The Inheritors, and Nowhere Else to Go.