María de Sanabria: The legendary expedition of women who crossed the Atlantic in the 16th century

Voted one of the best Spanish-language books of 2007 by the newspaper El País, the novel "María de Sanabria" tells the story of the young Spanish noblewoman who led an expedition to the Río de la Plata with other women in the 16th century. To tell this fascinating and little-known story, writer and historian Diego Bracco undertook extensive research. It's especially interesting to read a story from this era from a woman's perspective, since almost all the documentation from that time was written by men who narrated the exploits of men for other men. María had strong disagreements with her father. When she learned that the Crown needed women to populate the Río de la Plata territory to prevent the Spanish conquistadors from interbreeding with the Indians, she saw a chance to escape the fate society had imposed on her. Departing from the beach at Sanlúcar de Barrameda, the noblewoman María de Sanabria commanded three vessels to South America. Accompanied by other women—among them her mother and sister—the young woman had the support of the famous conquistador Cabeza de Vaca. Strong prejudice against an all-female expedition and her alliance with the legendary Cabeza de Vaca would be some of the difficulties she faced. Throughout the Atlantic crossing, illness and pirates would test the Spanish woman's resilience. But this was only the beginning of the perilous journey. A mysterious German soldier marked a new twist in the fate of María de Sanabria, a woman determined to fulfill her life's greatest dream.