<DIV><p>“Powerful. . . . A redemptive and absorbing work.”—<i>The New York Times Book Review</i>, on <i>Spidertown</i></p><p>“Scary, sexy, exuberant. . . . Rodriguez has seized a truth of our times . . . and given us a crackling good read.”—<i>Los Angeles Times Book Review</i>, on <i>Spidertown</i></p><p>“Rodriguez uses the repetitiveness of life in the ghetto itself to make the tension and desperation of Spidertown achingly palpable.”—<i>People</i>, on <i>Spidertown</i></p><p>“A joy to read! Rodriguez's writing has never been more accomplished, more lyrical, more trenchant, or more humane. In these pages you will find marvels, but also a young man writing with the ferocity of life itself.”—Junot Díaz, on <i>The Buddha Book</i></p><p>When Puerto Rican ladies' man Alex awakes one morning to find a mysterious woman in his bed, he assumes he's suffered another embarrassing blackout. He soon learns, however, that Ava is no one-night stand—in fact, he's never met her before. As her story begins to unfold and her reason for appearing in his bed emerges, it is not just Alex's life that she risks, nor her own, but the entire character of the South Bronx.</p><p><b>Abraham Rodriguez, Jr.</b> was born and raised in the South Bronx. His first book, <i>The Boy without a Flag</i>, was a 1993 <i>New York Times</i> Notable Book of the Year. His novel <i>Spidertown</i> won a 1995 American Book Award and was optioned by Columbia Pictures. His most recent novel, <i>The Buddha Book</i>, was published by Picador in 2001. He currently lives in Berlin, Germany.</p></DIV>