The fallout over Jeanine Cummins’ controversial novel American Dirt continued over the weekend, with actress Salma Hayek apologizing for praising the book without having read it, NBC News reports.
Hayek issued the mea culpa on Instagram in a post written in Spanish and English. “I want to say to all of you that I got very excited when Oprah shared with me her pick for her book club because in the description of the book I learned that it was the story of a Mexican woman, so I rushed into sharing with my excitement with you,” she wrote. “I confess, I have not read it and was not aware of any kind of controversy…I apologize for shouting out something without experiencing it or doing research on it.”
Cummins’ novel, about a Mexican mother and son who flee to the United States, has been accused of cultural appropriation, with some readers criticizing what they see as stereotypical portrayals of Mexicans. The uproar over the book was stoked after the publication of two negative reviews of the novel, one by author Myriam Gurba and another by New York Times book critic Parul Sehgal. The controversy hit a fever pitch last week when Oprah Winfrey announced she had chosen the book as her latest book club pick.
Publisher Flatiron Books has said they’re standing by the novel, but at least one bookstore isn’t. Over the weekend, Left Bank Books in St. Louis announced that it was canceling an event with Cummins scheduled for Sunday, citing safety concerns. The store will continue to sell the book, however.
Michael Schaub is an Austin, Texas–based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.
