Sunday, September 20, 2009

Color Online's Community HHM Recommended Reading List

Hispanic Heritage Month runs Sept. 15th-Oct. 15. To celebrate, Doret has provided the following recommended YA list. But this list is short, we want your input. Tell us your favorite YA Latino/a titles. How many of these have you read? Would love to have links to reviews. And let's add non-fiction. Feel free to ask questions or leave comments about the titles listed.

Yes, we will post an adult title list, too. Happy reading.

1.Rogelia's House of Magic by Jamie Martinez Wood
2.The Holy Tortilla and a Pot of Beans by Carmen Tafolla
3.Voices in first person edited by Lori Marie Carlson

4.The Smell of Old Lady Perfume by Claudia Guadalupe Martinez
5.White Bread Competition by Jo Ann Yolanda Hernandez
6.I Wanna be Your Shoebox by Christina Garcia
7.Invisible Touch by Kelly Parra
8.Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez
9.Who's Your Daddy? by Lynda Sandoval
10.Mexican White Boy by Matt de la Pena
11.Dark Dude by Oscar Hijuelos
12.The Brothers Torres by Coert Voorhees
13.Gringolandia by Lyn Miller Lachmann
14.Down To The Bone by Mayra Lazara Dole
15.The Meaning of Conseulo by Judith Ortiz Cofer
16.The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
17.Journey of Dreams by Marge Pellegrino's
18.The Tequila Worm by Viola Canales
19.Leaving GloryTown by Eduardo F Calcines
20.Petty Crimes by Gary Soto
21.Sammy & Juliana in Hollywood by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
22.Haters by Alisa Valdes Rodriquez
23.Honey Blonde Chica by Michele Serros
24.Sofia Mendoza's Guide to Getting Lost in Mexico by Malin Alegria
25.Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork
26.La linea by Ann Jaramillo
27.The Poet Slave of Cuba by Margarita Engle
28.Adios to My Old Life by Caridad Ferrer
29.Amor and Summer Secrets by Diana Rodriguez Wallach
30.Gamma Glamma by Kim Flores
31.Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa
32. Becoming Naomi Leon by Pam Munoz (MG)
33.Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz (MG)
34.So Hard to Say by Alex Sanchez
35.Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez
36. Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles
37.Jaguar by Michele Dominguez-Greene
38.The Whole Sky Full of Stars by René Saldaña Jr
39
.Cubanita, Riding the Universe by Gaby Triana

32 comments:

Ana S. said...

I really want to read Dark Dude. I hadn't heard of Return to Sender, but I have In The Tome of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez on my tbr, and I'll make sure I read it this month.

Monica said...

Thanks for a great list of books! I've read a lot of these (even some of the adult ones - but don't tell anybody!) But I have to say my favorite is Amor and Summer Secrets by Diana Rodriguez Wallach. It's a great story about a teenage girl discovering her Puerto Rican routes through a trip to her father's home town. I'd recommend it anyone. Plus - Diana seems like such a nice person on youtube.

Kelly said...

Wonderful book list! Thank you. I know you're featuring YA, but I wanted to mention two great middle-grade books -- Becoming Naomi Leon and Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan.

Zetta said...

What an amazing list! I've almost felt like boycotting HHM b/c I wouldn't "celebrate" Black History Month--we're on an all-year program, right? But this list has got me excited again. I'd add Mayra Santos-Febres' Sirena Selena.

rhapsodyinbooks said...

Thanks to Doret for all the work in putting together this list!

Anonymous said...

This is a stellar list. I haven't heard of about half of these titles, which is abysmal considering how close a topic it is to my heart. I definitely plan on adding most of these to my list!

Doret said...

I feel like such a duh for forgetting Pam Munoz Ryan - Thank you Kelly

I've read 16 of the books. I loved Dark Dude

One YA author I forget is Alex Sanchez. I haven't read him yet but I plan to start with
So Hard to Say or Rainbow Boys.

Susan, this post looks great. The Poet Slave of Cuba as such a beautiful cover.

Where is the image on top from?

Color Online said...

The top image is from The Smell of Old Lady Perfume by Claudia Guadalupe Martinez.

Friends, please let me know if your titles are adult lit so I can add them to that list when I post it (give me a couple of days).

Zetta, I hear you. We are brown all year. Think of this like celebrating a birthday. :-)

Doret said...

No, the image on the left. Right next to Hispanic Heritage Month.

Celebrating a birthday, I like that.

Color Online said...

Doret, I searched for Hispanic Heritage Month images and this is what I found.

Kelly, will add. We are about inclusion at Color Online. We make room. We want MG and children.

I hope to have adult titles up by Wednesday.

Ms. Edith Campbell said...

Trying yet another post...this time a link to review on my blog.
http://campbele.wordpress.com/2009/09/20/book-review-the-whole-sky-full-of-stars/

Ms. Edith Campbell said...

OK, Susan. It seems my Wordpress OpenID isn't working on your blog, but I can post with my Google ID. Unfortunately, it doesn't like to anything useful! I just posted a review of A Whole Sky Full of Stars.
http://campbele.wordpress.com/2009/09/20/book-review-the-whole-sky-full-of-stars/
I'm looking at Useful Fools, Goal and Slapboxing with Jesus.

Steph Su said...

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles is far from literary, but it's a love story between a white girl and a Latino boy that's really popular with lots of teens. Probably a good one for a light read. And you should also add Junot Diaz on that list. Not a YA author, but his writing is incredible and teens will be able to appreciate it as well! :)

MissA said...

What an amazing list!
I'm with Steph on adding The Brief and Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao to the adult list. That book is incredibely fantastic!
I would also add Mexican WhiteBoy by Matt de la Pena, Chasing the Jaguar by Michele Dominguez-Greene and Cubanita, Riding the Universe by Gaby Triana

Icedream said...

What a great list. I've only read a couple that are on it so I'm going to make a copy for future reference.

Color Online said...

I've only read four on this list. Hope my adult titles are higher.

How many have you read?

Color Online said...

Edi,

Whois the author for Useful Fools, Goal and Slapboxing with Jesus? Can't find this.

I need links, people.

Doret said...

LOL @ I need links people

Goal is by Mal Peet
I haven't read it but I did enjoy The Keeper, another novel by Peet.

susan said...

I had a funny, great manager. He used to say, "Call, people." He said it with a smile but he was serious and we knew to get dialing when he said it. We'd do anything he ask.

Keri said...

Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez.

Pubbed for adults, but certainly great for 10th-12th graders: In the Time of the Butterflies and How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents also by Julia Alvarez

susan said...

In The Time of the Butterflies is one of my favorite books.

Diana Rodriguez Wallach said...

Thanks for posting this blog and thanks for including me! This is a fabulous list, and I'm thrilled to be in the company of these amazing authors.

And Monica, I'm so glad you liked "Amor"! Utuado is my father's hometown in real life too, so it was fun setting the book there.

Happy Reading!
-Diana

Hoarders Extraordinaire said...

What a wonderful list of books!

I found your blog through BBAW...It's great!

Marta
Marta’s Meanderings

Alyssa Kirk said...

One of my favorites was Esperanza Rising but I see it is already on the list. Great group of books!

Anonymous said...

This list is making my head spin, too many great sounding choices. I rarely ever read YA fiction, but I want to read it a bit more. Is there an adult list?

Anonymous said...

maybe How to Salsa in a Sari???

He Forgot to Say Goodbye by Benjamin Saenz

¡Aplauso! Hispanic Children’s theater Joe Rosenburg

Reaching out Francsco Jimenez (Houghton Mifflin, 2008 )

Latino Chronology D. H. Figueredo (New York Library Association Best Reference 2007)

and the wonderful No way home: A dancer’s journey from the streets of Havana to the stages of the world Carlos Acosta

Color Online said...

Salsa in a Sari. We have this in our library or the Prize Bucket.

Will update shortly.

LynML said...

I am honored that you have included my Gringolandia on the list. Thank you! Another one to look at (and I think Edi reviewed it recently) is Call Me Henri, by Lorraine Lopez.

The author of Useful Fools is C.A. Schmidt. I reviewed the book for MultiCultural Review and thought she did a good job of capturing what the Shining Path guerrillas were like--and why a teen whose mother was a victim of their terror might still be attracted to them.

I have copies of both Call Me Henri and Useful Fools if anyone needs them.

Unknown said...

I am extremely appreciate of this list!

I would like to add one more book to the your list.

"The Time It Snowed in Puerto Rico" by Sarah McCoy.

I discovered this book while looking for debuts. I hope your readers find interest in this one.

Anonymous said...

I am so late!!!!! Excuse me Folks. I was sick.
Thank you for including me and don't forget my other book, The Throwaway Piece.
Also Coert Voorhees is white. He said that the reason he wrote this book is because he lived in New Mexico.

I would really like the opinion of the person who recommended Perfect Chemistry. That book met so much controversy about stereotyping. It was really talked up.

Two books:
Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez. She's a San Antonio Author and I reviewed her book. I think Edi has the review or you can read it at http://amindsmaze.blogspot.com

yes Matt de la Pena is a honey. His Balls Don't Lie was made into a movie. Mexican WhiteBoy made the Best Teen Pict of the Year, in the top ten out of the hundred.

I didn't care for Dark Dude. I think the author was having a bad hair day. and ditto for diaz's book. didn't like all the swearing. didn't finish it.

Then the one I recomnmend to all the kids in my writing class is:
Juliana and Sammy in Hollywood. Took me the whole book to figure out that it was Hollywood in New Mexico. duh! I listened to it on CD and cried at the end. The reader was Latino and had the right accent for all the words and made it feel even more like listening to family. Talks a lot about kids in a gone era. very good book. and yes adults would like this one too.

Thanks to everyone for including my book in all this fine company.
Jo Ann Hernandez
BronzeWord Latino Authors
http://authorslatino.com/wordpress

bj neary said...

In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez

bj neary said...

In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez