Xochitl Gonzalez

Xochitl Gonzalez
Born1977 (age 48–49)
Brooklyn, New York
Education
Notable worksOlga Dies Dreaming

Xochitl Gonzalez (/ˈsoʊtʃiːl/, SO-cheel;[1][2] born 1977) is an American writer. In 2022, she published her debut novel Olga Dies Dreaming which became a New York Times Best Seller on January 30, 2022.[3]

In 2021, she began writing the newsletter "Brooklyn, Everywhere" for The Atlantic.[4] In 2023, she joined The Atlantic as a staff writer and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for her work there.[5]

Early life and education

Gonzalez was born in New York City to a second-generation Puerto Rican mother and Mexican-American father and raised by her grandparents[6] in the area between Bensonhurst and Borough Park.[7] Her parents were activists in the Socialist Workers Party, where her mother was a union organizer who ran for office in the Socialist Workers Party.[8]

Gonzalez attended Edward R. Murrow High School in Brooklyn and earned a scholarship to Brown University.[9] At Brown she intended to study creative writing but ultimately majored in art history.[10] Reflecting on her time at the university, Gonzalez wrote, "Brown was only four hours by car, a lifetime by way of cultural journey. I had dreamt for years of escaping the concrete of Brooklyn for reasons I couldn't really ever put my finger on."[8] Gonzalez graduated from Brown with a Bachelor of Arts in 1999.

Gonzalez was inspired to become a professional writer after the death of her grandmother in 2017, with the sale of her grandmother's home helping to fund her writing efforts.[11]

Gonzalez worked as an entrepreneur and consultant for a number of years before earning her MFA from the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop in 2021.[12] In June 2022, Gonzalez was elected a trustee of Brown University.[13]

Gonzalez was named a 2023 Pulitzer Prize finalist for commentary for her work writing the newsletter Brooklyn, Everywhere.[11]

Career

Olga Dies Dreaming

Main article: Olga Dies Dreaming

In 2022, Gonzalez published Olga Dies Dreaming, her debut novel. The novel was in part inspired by her past career as a wedding planner for the ultra-rich in New York City following the 2008 recession.[10] The book was received positively in reviews by Ron Charles for The Washington Post and Shannon Melero for Jezebel.[14][15] Kirkus Reviews called the book "atmospheric, intelligent, and well informed: an impressive debut."[16] Gonzalez is currently writing and co-executive producing[17] alongside filmmaker Alfonso Gómez-Rejón, a pilot for a drama based on the novel produced by Hulu and starring Aubrey Plaza and Ramon Rodriguez.[18][19]

Other works

In 2024, her follow-up novel Anita de Monte Laughs Last was published. NPR wrote that "Gonzalez's second novel brilliantly surpasses the promise of her popular debut Olga Dies Dreaming".[20] The novel follows college student Raquel Toro as she discovers the art of Anita de Monte, a character based on the Cuban artist Ana Mendieta.[21] Gonzalez claimed that she visited a location supposedly haunted by Mendieta, and was visited by a spirit of the artist, who posthumously encouraged her story to be told.[11]

Her 2022 seminal and viral essay "Why Do Rich People Love Quiet?" on Gentrification of Noise explores the relationship between class and noise and the desire of the wealthy to impose their norms on others.[22] It was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and it inspired a study at the University of Connecticut that tracked the movements of Latine and white students on campus to measure their preference for noise.[23] In 2025, Gonzalez coined the phrase "Comfort Class," a term to describe "people who were born into lives of financial stability" whose "disconnect from the lives of the majority has expanded to such a chasm that their perspective—and authority—may no longer be relevant."[24] 

Bibliography

Novels

  • —— (2022). Olga Dies Dreaming (hardcover 1st ed.). Flatiron Books. ISBN 9781250786173.
  • —— (2024). Anita de Monte Laughs Last (hardcover 1st ed.). Flatiron Books. ISBN 9781250786210. [25]
  • —— (2026). Last Night in Brooklyn. Flatiron Books.[26]

References

  1. ^ "Xochitl Gonzalez". www.xochitlgonzalez.com.
  2. ^ "In Conversation with Xochitl Gonzalez". June 20, 2022. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  3. ^ ""Olga Dies Dreaming" and "War Against All Puerto Ricans" are the same book". April 10, 2023.
  4. ^ "The Atlantic Introduces Suite of Newsletters for Subscribers". The Atlantic. November 2, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2023.
  5. ^ "Commentary". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  6. ^ Gonzalez, Xochitl (April 12, 2024). "Xochitl Gonzalez, class of 1999". Pembroke Center Oral History Project (Interview). Amanda Knox and Mary Murphy. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  7. ^ Gonzalez, Xochitl (August 26, 2014). "Made In Brooklyn: What's the Essence of the Borough That's Become an Adjective?". Medium. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Gonzalez, Xochitl (September 11, 2020). "Good-bye to Century 21, the Store Where I Grew Up". The Cut. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  9. ^ Gonzalez, Xochitl (2022). Olga dies dreaming (1 ed.). New York. ISBN 978-0-349-72668-7. OCLC 1246141315.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  10. ^ a b "From poor kid to elite wedding planner to debut author: Xochitl Gonzalez feels 'divine'". Los Angeles Times. January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  11. ^ a b c González-Ramírez, Andrea (March 4, 2024). "Xochitl Gonzalez's Ghost Story". The Cut. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
  12. ^ "Read The First Pages Of A Rising Literary Star's First Novel Before Its Release". Bustle. April 29, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  13. ^ "Brown Corporation elects two new fellows, eight trustees". Brown University. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  14. ^ "Review | Say 'I do' to Xochitl Gonzalez's 'Olga Dies Dreaming'". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  15. ^ "Xochitl Gonzalez's Debut Novel Is a Pivotal Examination of Puerto Ricanness". Jezebel. January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  16. ^ OLGA DIES DREAMING | Kirkus Reviews.
  17. ^ Zorrilla, Mónica Marie (April 29, 2021). "Hulu Orders Nuyorican Sibling Drama Pilot 'Olga Dies Dreaming' With Xochitl Gonzalez and Alfonso Gómez-Rejón Producing". Variety. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  18. ^ Otterson, Joe (August 2, 2021). "Aubrey Plaza to Star in Hulu Drama Pilot 'Olga Dies Dreaming'". Variety. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  19. ^ Goldberg, Lesley (August 4, 2021). "Ramon Rodriguez Joins Aubrey Plaza in Hulu's 'Olga Dies Dreaming'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  20. ^ Bell, Carole V. (March 6, 2024). "'Anita de Monte Laughs Last' is a complex dissection of art, gender and marriage". NPR. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
  21. ^ Korelitz, Jean Hanff (March 4, 2024). "Inspired by a Real Mystery, This Novel Skewers the Art World". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
  22. ^ Gonzalez, Xochitl (August 1, 2022). "Why Do Rich People Love Quiet?". The Atlantic. ISSN 2151-9463. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
  23. ^ Phillips, Kimberly (December 23, 2024). "'Let's Get Loud:' New Study Says Latine Individuals Seek Noisier Experiences Based on Culture". UConn Today. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
  24. ^ Gonzalez, Xochitl (April 6, 2025). "What the Comfort Class Doesn't Get". The Atlantic. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
  25. ^ Korelitz, Jean Hanff (March 4, 2024). "Inspired by a Real Mystery, This Novel Skewers the Art World". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  26. ^ Spratford, Sam (June 6, 2025). "Flatiron Picks Up Two New Books by Xochitl Gonzalez". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved December 23, 2025.
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