Sandra Cisneros reads at the poetry stage (Ariel Sobel/Neon Tommy)

This should be no surprise to us, as her works center around getting it touch with the quiet vulnerability that transforms us from statistics to people. But upon the death of her mother, Sandra was exposed to an even deeper part of the human experience: grief.

She didn't want to leave her home; she felt alienated from her neighborhood and friends, and from the world in general. But when her friend's cat went missing, a kindhearted Cisneros agreed to go around her block asking to locate it, armed with a flyer and small moment. 

In her hunt she came across two sisters. The elder examined the flyer carefully, eager for an reward, then handed it over to younger who looked at it, then placed in front of her cat, to see if he recognized the lost feline. And it was at that moment that life was breathed back into the nationally acclaimed artist. 

She discovered that she could find a cure for her grief in her neighborhood, and it encouraged her to write a new book, which she called "medicine” at the Los Angeles Festival of Books. The product, “Have You Seen Marie?” is a book for adults equipped with illustrations and profound revelations about loss.

Sandra Cisneros talks to fans about her creative process (Ariel Sobel/Neon Tommy)

During both her poetry reading and her conversation with Michael Silverblatt, the host of “Bookworm” on KCRW, fans of all ages delighted in seeing Cisneros discuss her work. 

Known for her unique Mexican-American influences, she told the audience that she is currently living in Southern Mexico. She remarked how Americans can't believe she can live in some place so "dangerous," and reminded audiences that the same mentality exists in Mexico; her community can't believe she comes to the United States, infamous for school shootings and fear of terrorism. 

Reflecting the same open-mindedness in her speech as in her writing, Cisneros challenges her readers to view the world from an underrepresented perspective.

This wisdom is perhaps why Sandra Cisneros drew such a large crowds for her two events. Nearly all audience members were familiar with her work; someone who even asked Cisneros a question about the dissertation she was writing on her work. 

The simplicity of Cisneros’s vignettes have accomplished something deeply complex: tapping into the empathy of their readers. 

Contact Staff Reporter Ariel Sobel here.