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Why It Matters: Héctor Tobar in Conversation with Karen R. Lawrence
Event
Thu., Nov. 5, 2026
Free with reservation
THIS LAND IS...
Rothenberg Hall
Thu., Nov. 5, 2026
Free with reservation
THIS LAND IS...
Rothenberg Hall
Celebrating The Huntington’s unparalleled opportunities for cross-disciplinary exploration of human culture and history, the Why It Matters series features Huntington President Karen R. Lawrence in conversation with distinguished guests about the enduring relevance of the arts and humanities.
Héctor Tobar is the author of six books, including the novels The Tattooed Soldier, The Barbarian Nurseries, and The Last Great Road Bum. His most recent book is Our Migrant Souls: A Meditation on Race and the Meanings and Myths of “Latino”; it won the Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction and was listed as a best book of the year by the New York Times. His nonfiction book Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of Thirty-Three Men Buried in a Chilean Mine and the Miracle that Set Them Free was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and a New York Times best seller; it was adapted into the film The 33. The Barbarian Nurseries was a New York Times Notable Book and won the California Book Award Gold Medal for fiction. Tobar’s fiction has also appeared twice in The Best American Short Stories. He earned an MFA in fiction from the University of California, Irvine, where he is currently a professor. As a journalist, he was the Los Angeles Times bureau chief in Buenos Aires and Mexico City, and a member of the reporting team that won a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the 1992 L.A. riots. Tobar has also been an op-ed writer for the New York Times and a contributor to The New Yorker, Harper’s, National Geographic, and other publications. He has received a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Harvard Radcliffe Fellowship. Born and raised in Los Angeles, he is the son of Guatemalan immigrants.
THIS LAND IS … is a sweeping multiyear initiative that invites visitors to reflect on the American story through the lens of land. Anchored by the tagline “Reflections for America at 250,” the initiative draws on The Huntington’s library, art, and botanical collections to spotlight relationships between land, United States history, and American identities. Discover a season of exhibitions, experiences, and conversations across the campus: www.huntington.org/this-land-is
THIS LAND IS … is made possible through major support from The Fletcher Jones Foundation and Stewart R. Smith, Robin A. Ferracone, Logan Smith, and Tracy Beetler through The H. Russell Smith Foundation. Generous support for this initiative is also provided by LeeAnn and Ronald Havner through the JCS Foundation.
