Episode 21: Author Interview - Daniel Olivas, 'Chicano Frankenstein', and Immigration

<p>In this episode, we are joined by Daniel Olivas, who - as well as having a successful career as a lawyer in California - is an acclaimed author of several works of prose fiction, poetry, dramatic texts, and non-fiction.</p><p>Our conversation with Daniel draws on his perspective as an attorney within the American legal system, writer, and grandson of Mexican immigrants. Central to this chat is a discussion of his novel <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/chicano-frankenstein-daniel-a-olivas/f0e30497edbf23ff?ean=9781942436591&next=t&ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F&source=IndieBound&title=Chicano+Frankenstein" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><em>Chicano Frankenstein</em></a> (2024), a dystopian novel that imagines a future in which corpses are reanimated, have their memories and identities wiped, and are used to supplement America&#39;s labour force. Although clearly dystopian, <em>Chicano Frankenstein</em> is, at its heart, a tender, funny novel that explores how we find or make meaning in our lives.</p><p>As we discuss in our interview with Daniel, his reanimated characters can be seen as stand-ins for immigrants - or indeed any marginalised figure in modern society - and as such our conversation oscillates between a close literary discussion and broader social commentary, particularly with reference to American politics.</p><p>As a guest, Daniel is equal parts profound and entertaining, and we feel lucky to count him among the podcast&#39;s close friends, as he&#39;s been following along since our inception!</p><p>You can find out more about Daniel on his website <a href="https://www.danielolivas.com/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">here </a>and you can follow him on Bluesky at @danielolivas@bsky.social. You can also read his article, &#39;Howling Into the Wind: On 41 years of Writing About the Abuses of the Immigration System&#39; <a href="https://lithub.com/howling-into-the-wind-on-41-years-of-writing-about-the-abuses-of-the-immigration-system/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">here</a>.</p><p>If you enjoyed this episode, please let us know! You can follow and rate the podcast, leave us a comment, or email us on <a href="utopiananddystopianfictions@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠utopiananddystopianfictions@gmail.com</a></p>