On Monday, 28 July 2014, US President Barack Obama will present the National Medal of Arts to Dominican novelist, poet and essayist Julia Alvarez in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the excellence, growth, support, and availability of the arts in the United States. This is the highest award given to artists and arts patrons by the US government. Julia Alvarez is being honored for her “extraordinary storytelling”. Alvarez rose to prominence with the novels “How The Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents,” “In the Time of the Butterflies,” and “Yo!”
Her writing explores themes of identity, family and cultural divides and illustrates the complexity of navigating two worlds and the human capacity for strength in the face of oppression. Alvarez will be honored in the East Room of the White House in a ceremony that will also be attended by the First Lady, Michelle Obama.
http://arts.gov/news/2014/president-obama-award-2013-national-medals-arts
http://arts.gov/audio/julia-alvarez#file_audio_default_group_audio_transcript