Valeria Luiselli is a truly International author . She was born in Mexico City , but grew up in parts of the United States , Costa Rica , South Africa , and South Korea as her father worked as a diplomatist . She is mayhap best known as the author of the award-winning novel , Faces in the Crowd . When she was 16 she moved back to Mexico City with her mother , but ended up stop high school in India . She initiate college at the University of Mexico and worked on her degree in Spanish and France as well . on her degree in Spanish and France as well. After graduation, Luiselli moved to New York where she has stayed since as she feels it is a nice balance between being foreign and at home.