A Feather on the Breath of God: A Novel: 9780060171513

The novel "In this luminous debut novel about a young woman of mixed race, Nunez writes with fierce clarity, rare empathy and sharp humor of immigrant dreams and frustrations." is a poignant and thought-provoking exploration of identity, family, and the immigrant experience.

Through the eyes of a young woman growing up in a Brooklyn housing project in the 1950s and '60s, we witness the complexities of her Chinese-Panamanian father and German mother's marriage, and the ways in which their past experiences shape their daughter's imagination and sexuality.

As she grows older, the narrator begins an affair with a Russian immigrant, only to be bound to him by his articulate expressions of feeling, but also frightened by every new revelation about his troubled past.

This is a powerful and moving portrayal of the immigrant experience, told with rare empathy and sharp humor.