May is packed with exciting new releases, including a new title from our Middle Grade Work-In-Progress Fellow, Sarah Marrie Jette! Add Jette’s new book, Our Fair Share to your tbr, and then check out the rest of our list for more titles we are looking forward to picking up this month.
Hear Ye Mortals by Yamile Saied Méndez | YOUNG ADULTS
In 1976 Rosario, Argentina, brothers Daniel and Adrián Aguirre share a passion for music and a bond as best friends. However, under the authoritarian military government, artists and musicians are considered enemies of the state, even if they're just teenagers playing at home. When one of their songs unexpectedly gains popularity on the radio, Daniel and Adrián, along with their band Río Babel--comprised of children of immigrants from Spain, Palestine, and Germany--face a daunting choice.
They must decide whether to pursue their dream of becoming musicians or to remain silent to protect their families. Ready to challenge the military regime, their resolve is tested when one of their own goes missing.
This novel delves into the power of music in the fight for a better tomorrow, making it a compelling read for those who appreciate stories of courage, family, and the enduring spirit of resistance against a totalitarian regime.
The Game at the End of the World: Villainous Referees, Communist Bakers, the Secret Women's World Cup, and a Goalkeeper's Last Stand by Juan Villoro | Translated by Francisco Cantú | NONFICTION
Soccer (née football) fans will rejoice at this all-new volume of crackling essays from the author of God Is Round. Here, Juan Villoro explores the sport through the elements that make it the world's favorite pastime, from its ancient origins, near-mythic players, exhilarating matches, endemic rivalries, and the unlikely moments in which football has changed history.
As a prolific writer and chronicler of World Cup games around the world, Villoro draws on a rich cultural mosaic to inspire readers, players, and fans long after the final whistle blows. With a journalist's ear and a philosopher's outlook, he has produced a collection for curious newcomers and lifelong football buffs alike.
Please Don't Go by E. Salvador | FICTION
Josefine Resendiz is trying to survive the weight of grief while pretending her life hasn’t come to a complete standstill. She doesn’t know how to name what she’s feeling or how to fix what feels broken inside her. All she knows is that staying afloat is getting harder by the day.
Daniel Garcia looks like he has everything going for him. A gifted shortstop with a future everyone believes in, he carries himself with easy charm and quiet confidence. What no one sees is the guilt and loss he’s been carrying since his brother’s death, grief he’s learned to hide behind smiles and discipline.
That's until he stumbles upon Josefine on Christmas Day, by chance and at the wrong time, in a moment that was never meant to last. But some connections refuse to disappear. When their paths keep crossing, forgetting each other becomes impossible. Feelings surface. Defenses falter. Being together starts to feel like relief.
As they grow closer, they are forced to face the question neither of them is ready to answer: What happens when love arrives before healing does, and letting go feels just as terrifying as holding on?
Migrant Heart: Essays About Things I Can't Forget by Reyna Grande | NONFICTION
Reyna Grande has spent her career capturing the raw reality of life across borders. In this intricate and deeply intimate memoir-in-essays, the author of the landmark memoirs The Distance Between Us and A Dream Called Home again turns her gaze inward to explore the scars left by migration and the ongoing work of stitching herself back together.
With her signature blend of sophistication and raw honesty, Grande interrogates how living between two nations, two languages, and two identities has shaped the woman, mother, and writer she has become. Moving from the legacy of violence in her hometown of Iguala, Mexico, to a bittersweet family vacation in Europe spent reconciling her own impoverished past with her children’s world of abundance, she uncovers startling truths about the nature of survival.
Whether being racially profiled in the Arizona borderlands or finding unexpected wisdom from the slugs in her garden, Grande unflinchingly asks: How do we bridge the gap between who we were and who we have become? How do we turn pain into power? When memory threatens to define us, how can we use story to heal while still honoring our boundaries?
Our Fair Share by Sarah Marie Jette | MIDDLE GRADE
Seasonal work at the fairgrounds for most summers means Seraphina, James, Avory, and Cassi are all experienced in fair life. Beloved traditions keep the best friends plenty busy. For them, this is more than just a summer vacation in Knox County, Maine. These are the best months of the year. This is their fair.
But it seems like everyone is distracted. James is having trouble at his new school. Avory is feeling smaller than ever. Cassi just wants to be left alone, but that's hard when your dad is caught in a scandal that leads to more eyes on her that she's never dreamed of. And Seraphina is afraid she'll never get over the accident no one knows about. To make matters worse, there's a new fair manager - a community outsider - who seems determined to take away what is special about their fair. This summer is feeling a little too different. With two months ahead of them, the four friends need to find a way not just to survive their own inner turmoil, but to help their fair community thrive.
Tarantula by Eduardo Halfon | Translated by Daniel Hahn | FICTION
In 1984, Eduardo and his younger brother, living in exile for several years in the United States, travel back to their native Guatemala to participate in a Jewish children's camp in a remote forest of the highland mountains. They no longer know their homeland. They barely speak the language. Their parents had insisted that they spend a few days at the camp to learn not only ways of survival in the wild, but also ways of survival in the wild for Jewish children. It's not the same, they had been told. Upon their arrival, they are met with the promise of adventure. But early one morning, they are roused from bed and forced to play a sinister game they can't afford to lose.
Many years later, Eduardo, now a father himself and living in Berlin, happens upon a former campmate in Paris who connects him to Samuel Blum--the counselor who kept a snake in his pocket, had what a young Eduardo took for a tarantula crawling down his arm, and offers no apologies for the camp's disturbing methods.
The Chismosas Only Book Club by Laekan Zea Kemp | Illustrated by Heidi Moreno | MIDDLE GRADE
Cat, Sofia, Ana, and Mari are best friends. Nothing, nada, can break their bond. When Cat’s mom scolds them for their loud cackling at the bookstore, calling them a bunch of chismosas, the name sticks. Cat creates the The Chismosas Only Book Club, giving the girls a way to stay connected as they begin high school.
But ninth grade is hard, and it seems like no amount of conchas y libros y risas at Milagro’s Books, founded generations ago by Cat’s great-great-great-grandmother, can repair the ever-growing cracks in their friendship. But maybe the spirit of Milagro herself can . . .
Brimming with whimsy and heart, and woven with black-and-white graphic novel chapters, this enchanting book celebrates the magic of friendship, the embrace of ancestors, and the power of stories to hold us together.
