"In Troubled Memories, Oswaldo Estrada traces the literary representations of several iconic Mexican women in the midst of neoliberalism, gender debates, and the widespread commodification of cultural memory. Specifically, Estrada examines recent fictionalizations of Malinche, Hernán Cortés's indigenous translator during the Conquest of Mexico; Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, the famous baroque intellectual of New Spain; Leona Vicario, a supporter of the Mexican War of Independence; the soldaderas (women soldiers) of the Mexican Revolution, popularly known as Adelitas; and Frida Kahlo, the tormented painter of the twentieth century. Long associated with gendered archetypes and symbols, these women have achieved mythical status in Mexican culture and continue to play a complex role in Mexican literature. Focusing on contemporary novels, plays, and chronicles, Estrada interrogates how and why authors repeatedly recreate the lives of these historical women from contemporary perspectives, often generating hybrid narratives that fuse history, memory, and fiction. In so doing, he reveals the innovative and, sometimes, troublesome ways in which authors can challenge or perpetuate gendered conventions of writing women's lives. Consequently, this study highlights not only the central place of historical women in contemporary Mexican culture, but also the malleability of cultural memory, the role of affect in commercializing iconic figures, and the persistence of gender norms and violence in Mexico"-- Provided by publisher.