quiara alegría hudes

On this week's 51%, we speak with author and playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes about her debut novel, The White Hot. Hudes is the Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright of Water by the Spoonful and the musical In the Heights, which she also adapted for the screen. The White Hot takes the form of a letter written by a mom to her 18-year-old daughter, explaining — but not apologizing for — why she suddenly abandoned her nearly a decade prior. WAMC’s Sarah LaDuke speaks with Hudes about why she decided to write the tale, an unflinching exploration of one mom’s rage and journey toward self-discovery.

Quiara Alegría Hudes is the Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright of “Water by the Spoonful” and the musical “In the Heights,” which won the Tony Award for Best Musical, and which she adapted for the screen. Her memoir, “My Broken Language,” was longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Cut, The Nation, and American Theater Magazine.In her debut novel “The White Hot,” published last month by One World, April Soto writes a letter to her 18 year-old daughter, Noelle, explaining what happened - and why - she abandoned her 10 years prior.