with fiction, one in which both the reader and the author can construct together. “There is no definitive Sofía del Valle. But we, you and I, can say something about Sofía.” As he constructs a complex portrait of his protagonist, he humanizes himself as a fallible historian, thus breaking “the spell of historical objectivity” (xvi). He shares with readers the mysteries and vagaries of the research process: meeting by happenstance del Valle’s surviving family leads to a series of unexpected interviews with a group of distinguished women (viejitas, the author calls them). Among them was the mother-in-law of Mexican president Felipe Calderòn. These fortuitous twists and turns shape the narrative as much as the events in Sofía del Valle’s life do, perhaps more so.

中文翻译：

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哥斯达黎加 - 进步圣徒：咖啡、移民和哥斯达黎加民族认同的历史。卡门·科迪克。塔斯卡卢萨：阿拉巴马大学出版社，2019 年。Pp。xv, 268. 缩写。插图。笔记。参考书目。指数。49.95 美元的布。

小说，一种读者和作者可以一起构建的小说。“没有确定的 Sofía del Valle。但我们，你和我，可以谈谈索菲亚。” 当他为主人公构建复杂的肖像时，他将自己人性化为一个容易犯错的历史学家，从而打破了“历史客观性的魔咒”（xvi）。他与读者分享了研究过程的奥秘和变幻莫测：偶然会见了德尔瓦莱幸存的家庭，导致对一群杰出女性（viejitas，作者称她们）进行了一系列意想不到的采访。其中包括墨西哥总统 Felipe Calderòn 的岳母。这些偶然的曲折与索非亚德尔瓦莱生活中的事件一样，塑造了叙事，也许更是如此。