Tucson Festival of Books

Dora Rodriguez (She/Her)


In a life-saving attempt to flee El Salvador’s civil war in 1980, Dora Rodriguez traveled north and almost died in the Arizona desert. She has spent much of her life since trying to help people facing the same challenges she did. A vocal advocate for migrant rights, she also heads Salvavision, a Tucson nonprofit that provides a variety of support services to migrants and deportees. The mother of five and a grandmother, Rodriguez reflects on her remarkable life in a new memoir titled "Dora: A Daughter of Unforgiving Terrain."  

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Scheduled events:
Carrying Home: Migration Memories
Examine the history and impact of immigration in the U.S. and hear the stories from three authors who look at the phenomenon from distinct perspectives in their groundbreaking books. The authors all have personal ties to immigration, either as immigrants themselves or as children of immigrants.

Nuestras Raíces Stage (Seats 150)  View this venue on the Festival map
Sat, Mar 14, 1:00 pm - 1:55 pm
Nuestras Raices
Signing area: Pima County Public Library/Nuestras Raíces/Craft Tent & Signing Area (following presentation)  View this venue on the Festival map

Authors: Daisy Hernández, Gerardo Iván Morales, Dora Rodriguez
Moderator: Carlos Parra
Seeing the Southwest
In this session, the authors of four Southwest Books of the Year will discuss the role that landscape and culture played in the development of their work.

UA Library/Special Collections (Seats 110)  View this venue on the Festival map
Sun, Mar 15, 2:30 pm - 3:25 pm
Southwest Books of the Year
Signing area: Sales & Signing Area - Integrated Learning Center (following presentation)  View this venue on the Festival map

Authors: Craig Childs, E.A. Hanks, Ann Hedlund, Dora Rodriguez
Moderator: Gregory McNamee

Book:
Dora
A Daughter of Unforgiving Terrain
Nuestras Raices
Resiliencia Publishing
July 2025
ISBN 9781967254057
170 pages
The author will make this book available for sale at the Author Pavilion during the Festival.