Deep in the Sonoran Desert of Mexico in the 1870s, a village of Opata
Indians is attacked by soldiers. Along with the rest of her tribe,
Concha is driven from her homeland and eventually finds her way to
Tucson, where she finds a job cleaning houses and caring for children.
When her own daughter, Rosa, is born, the legacy of Concha's
dislocation continues, as Rosa is raised far from her native culture
and struggles to find her place in a strange world. As she did in her
acclaimed, award-winning novel, Spirits of the Ordinary, Kathleen
Alcalá takes on the complexities of cultural heritage, identity, and
assimilation, and explores the mysterious nature of place,
spiritualism, and faith in the lives of these extraordinary ordinary
people.

Praise for The Flower in the Skull…

"The
Flower in the Skull and Spirits of the Ordinary are valuable additions
to a growing literature on the creation and history of American racial
and ethnic identities. . . . Rich and original stories."-The Seattle
Times
"Swirling together themes of love, family, and spirituality,
Alcalá echoes the style of Isabel Allende and Laura Esquivel. . . . She
offers a poignant tale wrapped in magic."-The Washington Post Book World