The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver

Harrison Shepherd was born in the United States in 1916.  When he was 12 years old, his Mexican mother left his American father and took him to Mexico.  His mother buys him a notebook and tells him to write down what happened in Mexico, which starts a lifelong habit of keeping a diary.  He works for Diego Rivera, first as a plaster mixer and later as a cook, and befriends Rivera's wife, Frida Kahlo.  He also works for the exiled Leon Trotsky, and later moves to the United States.  I thoroughly enjoyed this historical novel; I found it very well written and got very caught up in the story, especially the later chapters after World War II covering the Red Scare and the House Un-American Activities Committee.  It was my fourth book for the I Want More Book Challenge (other books I've read by Barbara Kingsolver are The Poisonwood Bible and Prodigal Summer).  I rate it 5 out of 5.