Hispanic Heritage Month / Mes de la Herencia Hispana: Part 2

Each year, we observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15 by celebrating the histories, cultures, and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. During National Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate Hispanic and Latino Americans who have positively influenced and enriched our nation and society.

We’ve put together a selection of adult books and stories in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. Reunimos una selección de libros e historias para adultos en honor al Mes de la Herencia Hispana.

In the Dream House: A Memoir

by Carmen Maria Machado

In this memoir Machado tackles difficult and dark subjects with wit and a bold attitude. Using her lyrical writing skills, Machado articulates the complexities of abuse in queer relationships. She embeds cultural criticism and theory into her story, by explaining the ways in which abuse especially among women and lesbians are not represented.

This Thing Between Us

by Gus Moreno

Moreno writes an original horror novel about grief, loneliness and the creepy intrusiveness of technology. Thiago Alvarez suffers the loss of his wife in a tragic murder. The story reads like it’s a letter to his deceased wife Vera, a story recounting their life together and the strange paranormal experiences that ignored. He moves to a remote cabin to escape everything except, he can’t escape the evil that’s chasing him.

How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents

by Julia Alvarez

Alvarez writes a fictional novel of four sisters in a autobiographical account of Alverez’s early childhood in the Dominican Republic and immigrating to New York due to the dictatorship of Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina. The book gives an in depth look at the immigrant experience and the strong family ties that these sisters and their parents go through from 1989 to 1956.

Passions and Impressions

by Pablo Neruda

100 short prose writing by Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. The essays and prose poems cover many topics; Chilean history, politics and geography. This is a sequel of Neruda’s memoirs and mostly a testament for his love for Chile.

Postcolonial Love Poem

by Natalie Diaz

Winner of the 2021 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry Natalie Diaz, Diaz shares her indigenous heritage and observations of human nature through her second collection of poetry, Postcolonial Love Poem. She speaks on the issues of justice, race, and the environment.

Open Veins of Latin America

by Eduardo Galeano

Uruguayan journalist Galeano explores political and economic conflict in Latin America through a Marxist perspective. He discusses centuries of Latin American history focusing on the genocide, abuse and exploitation that began with Spanish conquistadors and colonization. He discusses in depth how dictators were imposed and supported by the CIA during the 20th century.

Once I Was You: A Memoir of Love and Hate in a Torn America

by Maria Hinojosa

Emmy award winning journalist Maria Hinojosa’s memoir relates history of US immigration policy and her intimate experience growing up on the south side of Chicago. Hinojosa describes the behind the scenes of intersectional and humanized storytelling.

Mexican Gothic

by Silva Moreno-Garcia

This novel takes places in 1950’s Mexico. Socialite, Noemi Taboada is sent off to a small mountain mining town to check up on her ill cousin who has been married to a mysterious and handsome Englishmen. Noemi investigates the town and dig deep as she unearths stories of violence, madness and death

Bless me, Ultima

by Rudolfo A. Anaya

Six-year-old Antonio meets Ultima a curandera, a woman who heals using herbs and magic. Together they try to end the war between good and evil that is getting out of control in their village during World War two.

Like Water for Chocolate: A Novel in Monthly Installments with Recipes, Romances, and Home Remedies

by Laura Esquivel

This novel takes place during the Mexican revolution and centers around the La Garza family. The story is told through recipes and home remedies, using metaphors, figurative language and magical realism. The book takes place over a twenty-year period.

Want more recommendations?

 

You can check out all of our online booklists (for kids and for adults), or reach out to us! Our staff is ready and willing to make reading, listening, or viewing recommendations to you! Email us at reference@benlib.org or contact us via our online form!

Parish’s Picks: Activity Fun — Part 1

Hey hey… Parish is back with a new booklist! This time he’s selected some of his favorite activity and DIY books for kids and teens.

With school back in session and the weather turning a little bit cooler, we’re in the mood for crafting and activities! Crafting and hands-on projects (for kids or the entire family!) can be a great way to relieve stress and to let your imagination and creativity run wild. Parish’s booklist includes his personal recommended activity books that crafters of any level will find enjoyment in.

Show Me Cool Magic: A Guide to Creating and Performing Your Own Show

by Jake Banfield | Grade: 2nd and up

This book takes the reader from knowing zero about magic to being able to do a whole show for their family and friends. Along the way they will learn some cool tricks to show their friends in school, find out how to do a PR stunt, film their own tricks, develop their unique magician persona, and all the other secrets to making magic amazing.

From Parish: Who doesn’t love seeing a magician display unbelievable card tricks! I know I do! This book does a good job teaching readers with no experience how to do all kinds of unbelievable magic tricks to impress their friends!  I highly recommend this book for readers who are looking for new skills or something to impress their peers.

My First Rock Painting Book: 35 Fun Craft Projects for Children Aged 7+

by Emma Hardy | Grade: 2nd and up

In My First Rock Painting Book, craft expert Emma Hardy shows how to take a simple rock and transform it into something truly amazing.

From Parish: I was inspired to try rock painting a try thanks to Miss Penny and Miss Diane’s rock painting program. If I had to pick any book to give me inspiration for painting rocks, this is the book to pick! It is filled with tons of creative ideas and instructions. You can definitely find something to make; my favorite is the rock cactus. 

Crayola Create It Yourself

by Crayola LLC | Grade: 1st and up

Crayola: Create It Yourself includes fifty-two of the most popular and fun craft projects, organized by the four seasons: fall, winter, spring, and summer. Kids will create DIY gifts like Mother’s Day picture frames and Valentine’s Day Lanterns, they’ll decorate the house with Haunted Halloween Decorations and Melted Crayon Ornaments, and they’ll make timeless paper spinners and CIY terrariums for use all year round. 

From Parish: Crayola is one of my favorite brands and the book lives up to the Crayola name! Readers who are a fan of card making, any type of decorations, and have a box of crayons laying around (either Crayola or not!) will enjoy this book!

Writing a Letter

by Cecilia Minden | Grade: 3rd and up

Writing is an important skill that kids use almost every day. The goal of the Write it Right series is to make kids writing experts. Writing a Letter is full of tips and tricks to help kids craft an engaging letter, from constructing an introduction to labeling the envelope.

From Parish: Now, I know what you’re thinking, “Mr. Parish, why are you recommending a letter writing book when we’re trying to de-stress?” Hear me out! Who doesn’t enjoy receiving a handwritten letter in the mail? Especially from a loved one? I know I do, and if you’re interested in our PenPal Exchange program, why not brush up on some new letter writing skills! With the holidays approaching, after crafting a beautiful homemade card, why not write a lovely letter with it? 🙂 

Recycle and Remake

by DK | Grade: 1st and up

This gentle, but empowering book is full of creative making activities, information, and ideas that give young eco-warriors (like you!) the know-how to really help the environment.

From Parish: Recycle and Remake is a must read and craft because it shows you how to give old things new life. This is perfect for readers who like to discover fun ways to turn cardboard into a piñata or turn straws into a bee hotel! 

Ultimate Slime

by Alyssa Jagan | Grade: 1st and up

DIY tutorials for crunchy slime, fluffy slime, fishbowl slime and more than 100 other oddly satisfying recipes and projects.

From Parish: SLIME! I highly recommend this book to any one and I mean ANY who loves SLIME! Every page in this book explains different ways to create awesome, slimy, gooey slime that everyone will enjoy!

Let’s Get Crafty With Cardboard and Paint

by CICO Kidz | Grade: 1st and up

These fun, colorful crafts are designed to bring out a young child’s creative side. The inventive ideas include a super space rocket, colorful rainstick, and cardboard castle.

From Parish: I just love any type of crafting that utilizes cardboard! Cardboard is so easy to obtain you can create any type of craft! This book is perfect for readers who have tons of cardboard lying around the house. I highly recommend the airplane craft!

A Kid’s Guide to Awesome Duct Tape Projects

Grade: 1st and up

It is a known fact of the universe that duct tape can fix anything. Now, thanks to Instructables.com, there’s one more thing duct tape can fix—boredom! These awesome DIY crafts will be sure to entertain and delight kids of all ages.

From Parish: Fun book for middle schoolers, tweens, and teens! This is a book that teaches how to make durable wallets and other projects with duct tape! Perfect for readers who enjoy creating their own gifts for family and friends. 

The Everything Toddler Activities Book

by Joni Levine | Grade: Present

Now you can play and teach your toddler at the same time with this book. Written by an experienced child-care expert, this informative and fun guide shows you how to stimulate your child’s development with age-appropriate, enjoyable, and educational activities such as:

  • Making Puppets
  • Margarine Tub Jellyfish
  • Dinosaur Eggs
  • Flower Crowns
  • Story in a Bag
  • Camping “Out”
  • Plus rhymes and songs, holiday fun, and crafts galore!

From Parish: Parents who are seeking activities for their younger kids should check this book out! Written by an experienced child-care expert, this book has tons of information to help with your child’s development. You can also have your older children tag along too. 

Want more recommendations?

 

You can check out all of our online booklists (for kids and for adults), or reach out to us! Our staff is ready and willing to make reading, listening, or viewing recommendations to you! Email us at reference@benlib.org or contact us via our online form!

Hispanic Heritage Month / Mes de la Herencia Hispana: Part 1

Each year, we observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15 by celebrating the histories, cultures, and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. During National Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate Hispanic and Latino Americans who have positively influenced and enriched our nation and society.

We’ve put together a selection of youth and teen books and stories in both English and Spanish in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. Reunimos una selección de libros e historias para jóvenes y adolescentes tanto en inglés como en español en honor al Mes de la Herencia Hispana.

Mango, Abuela, and Me by Meg Medina

Mango, Abuela, y Yo por Meg Medina

Mia’s abuela has left her sunny house with parrots and palm trees to live with Mia and her parents in the city. While they cook, Mia helps Abuela learn English, and Mia learns some Spanish, too, but it’s still hard for Abuela to learn enough words to tell Mia her stories. Then Mia sees a parrot in the pet-shop window and has the perfecto idea for how to help them all communicate a little better. Here is an endearing tale that speaks loud and clear about the love that binds families across the generations.

La abuela de Mia viene a vivir con Mia y sus padres. Cuando Mia eomparte con ella su cuento favorito a la hora de dormir, descubre que la abuela no entiende inglés. Mia la ayuda con el inglés y a la vez ella aprende algunas palabras en español. Pero la abuela no conoce suficientes palabras en inglés para compartir las historias de familia con su nieta. Un dia, Mia ve un loro en una tienda de mascotas y descubre la manera de ayudar a su abuela.

Thank you, Omu! by Oge Mora

¡Gracias, Omu! por Oge Mora

When the aroma of Omu’s homemade stew fills the air, her neighbors arrive, one by one, for a taste until all is gone except for her generous spirit.

¡Todos en el vecindario sueñan con probar el delicioso guiso de Omu! Uno por uno, siguen sus narices hacia el delicioso aroma. Y uno por uno, Omu ofrece una porción de su comida. Pronto la olla está vacía. ¿Ha sido tan generosa que ya no le queda nada?

Dreamers by Yuyi Morales

Soñadores por Yuyi Morales

Dreamers is a celebration of making your home with the things you always carry: your resilience, your dreams, your hopes and history. It’s the story of finding your way in a new place, of navigating an unfamiliar world and finding the best parts of it. In dark times, it’s a promise that you can make better tomorrows. 

Soñadores es un homenaje a los migrantes y a todo lo que traen con ellos, y aportan, cuando dejan sus países. Es una historia de familia. Una historia que nos recuerda que todos somos soñadores que llevamos nuestros propios regalos donde quiera que vayamos. Bella y poderosa en todo momento, pero especialmente de una urgente premura hoy en día en que el futuro de los dreamers es incierto, esta es una historia actual y eterna.

Be Bold! Be Brave! 11 Latinas Who Made U.S. History by Naibe Reynoso

¡Sé audaz, sé valiente! : 11 Latinas que hicieron historia en Estados Unidos por Naibe Reynoso

A bilingual book that highlights 11 Latinas who excelled in their professions and made U.S. History by accomplishing something that hadn’t been done before in various fields including medicine, science, sports, art and politics.

Un libro bilingüe que destaca a 11 latinas que sobresalieron en sus profesiones e hicieron historia en los Estados Unidos al lograr algo que no se había hecho antes en varios campos, incluidos la medicina, la ciencia, los deportes, el arte y la política.

Carmela Full of Wishes by Matt de La Peña

Los Deseos de Carmela por Matt de La Peña

When Carmela wakes up on her birthday, her wish has already come true–she’s finally old enough to join her big brother as he does the family errands. Together, they travel through their neighborhood, past the crowded bus stop, the fenced-off repair shop, and the panadería, until they arrive at the Laundromat, where Carmela finds a lone dandelion growing in the pavement. But before she can blow its white fluff away, her brother tells her she has to make a wish. If only she can think of just the right wish to make…

Hasta ahora el cumpleaños de Carmela no puede ser mejor. Hoy es lo suficientemente mayor para acompañar a su hermano en su recorrido por la ciudad. Y la tarde que pasan juntos se llena con la magia de lo que ven a su alrededor: desde el brillante sol de los campos hasta las golosinas en la vidriera de la panadería. Pero cuando recoge un diente de león que crece en el concreto, se pregunta qué otra cosa podría desear…y decide entonces salir en busca del deseo perfecto.

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal

Alma y Cómo Obtuvo Su Nombre por Juana Martinez-Neal

If you ask her, Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela has way too many names: six! How did such a small person wind up with such a large name? Alma turns to Daddy for an answer and learns of Sofia, the grandmother who loved books and flowers; Esperanza, the great-grandmother who longed to travel; José, the grandfather who was an artist; and other namesakes, too. As she hears the story of her name, Alma starts to think it might be a perfect fit after all — and realizes that she will one day have her own story to tell.

Si le preguntas, Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela tiene demasiados nombres: ¡seis! ¿Cómo acabó una persona tan pequeña con un nombre tan grande? Alma se dirige a papá en busca de una respuesta y se entera de Sofía, la abuela que amaba los libros y las flores; Esperanza, la bisabuela que anhelaba viajar; José, el abuelo que fue artista; y otros homónimos también. A medida que escucha la historia de su nombre, Alma comienza a pensar que, después de todo, podría encajar perfectamente y se da cuenta de que algún día tendrá su propia historia que contar.

Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Esperanza Renace por Pam Muñoz Ryan

Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression.

Esperanza Ortega tiene todos los tesoros que una chica pueda desear: hermosos vestidos, una linda casa llena de sirvientes en México, y la promesa de que un día llegará a presidir el Rancho como su mamá. Pero una tragedia inesperada destruye ese sueño, obligando a Esperanza y a su madre a escapar a California dónde tendrán que trabajar en una finca junto a otros mexicanos. Allí tendrá que olvidar su pasado y enfrentarse a las nuevas realidades de su vida: trabajo duro, aceptación y dificultades económicas. Esperanza descubrirá que la verdadera riqueza está en la familia y la comunidad.

Mexican Whiteboy by Matt de La Peña

Pocho por Matt de La Peña

Sixteen-year-old Danny searches for his identity amidst the confusion of being half-Mexican and half-white while spending a summer with his cousin and new friends on the baseball fields and back alleys of San Diego County, California.

Danny, de dieciséis años, busca su identidad en medio de la confusión de ser mitad mexicano y mitad blanco mientras pasa un verano con su primo y nuevos amigos en los campos de béisbol y callejones del condado de San Diego, California.

Breaking Through by Francisco Jimenez

Senderos Frontizeros by Francisco Jimenez

Having come from Mexico to California ten years ago, fourteen-year-old Francisco is still working in the fields but fighting to improve his life and complete his education.

Venido de México a California hace diez años, Francisco todavía trabaja en los campos, pero a la edad de catorce ya está luchando para mejorar su vida y para terminar su educación.

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sanchez

Yo No Soy Tu Perfecta Hija Mexicana por Erika Sanchez

Perfect Mexican daughters do not go away to college. And they do not move out of their parents’ house after high school graduation. Perfect Mexican daughters never abandon their family. But Julia is not your perfect Mexican daughter. That was Olga’s role. Then a tragic accident on the busiest street in Chicago leaves Olga dead and Julia left behind to reassemble the shattered pieces of her family. And no one seems to acknowledge that Julia is broken, too. Instead, her mother seems to channel her grief into pointing out every possible way Julia has failed. But it’s not long before Julia discovers that Olga might not have been as perfect as everyone thought. With the help of her best friend Lorena, and her first kiss, first love, first everything boyfriend Connor, Julia is determined to find out. Was Olga really what she seemed? Or was there more to her sister’s story? And either way, how can Julia even attempt to live up to a seemingly impossible ideal

Julia no es la hija mexicana perfecta. Ese era el rol de su hermana Olga. Olga no fue a la universidad, se quedo en casa para cuidar a sus padres, limpiar la casa y trabajar a medio tiempo. Julia tiene grandes suenos y no quiere formar parte del camino de su hermana mayor. Pero un solo error, que ocurre mientras enviaba un mensaje de texto al mismo tiempo que cruzaba la calle mas concurrida de Chicago, resulta en la muerte de Olga, dejando atras a Julia para ocuparse de las secuelas. Sus padres, quienes inmigraron ilegalmente a Chicago desde Mexico en busca de una vida mejor, estan inconsolables. La madre de Julia parece canalizar su dolor para senalar de todas las maneras posibles que Julia no es la hija mexicana perfecta que Olga era. Pero Julia pronto descubre que Olga puede haber tenido secretos, tambien. Con la ayuda de su mejor amiga Lorena, Julia esta decidida a descubrirlo. ¿Era Olga realmente lo que parecia? ¿O habia algo mas en la historia de su hermana? Y de cualquier manera, ¿como puede Julia incluso intentar vivir a la altura de un ideal aparentemente imposible.

Want more recommendations?

 

You can check out all of our online booklists (for kids and for adults), or reach out to us! Our staff is ready and willing to make reading, listening, or viewing recommendations to you! Email us at reference@benlib.org or contact us via our online form!