June 2025 Latinx Releases

On Sale June 3

Dan in Green Gables: A Modern Reimagining of Anne of Green Gables by Rey Terciero | Illustrated by Claudia Aguirre | GRAPHIC NOVEL

Despite a life on the road with his free-spirited mother, fifteen-year-old Dan Stewart-Álvarez has always wanted to settle down. He just didn’t think it’d be like this: with his mother abandoning him in rural Tennessee with two strangers—his gentle grandmother and conservative, rough-around-the-edges grandfather. Here, he is forced to adjust to working the farm, entering high school, and hardest yet—reckoning with his queerness in a severe Southern Baptist community.

But even as Dan grows closer to his mawmaw, befriends fellow outsiders at school, and tries to make a new life for himself in Green Gables, he has to discover whether he can contend with intolerance and adapt to change without losing himself in the process.

From award-winning author Rey Terciero and Eisner Award nominee and illustrator Claudia Aguirre comes a new retelling of Anne of Green Gables about unconventional families, queer identity, and finding the meaning of home in the most unlikely of places.

Paradise Once by Olive Senior | ADULT FICTION

Paradise Once is a sweeping historical novel that brings to life the resiliency of the indigenous Taíno people of the Caribbean, whose culture was virtually destroyed within two generations of their "discovery" by Christopher Columbus in 1492.

In 1513 in Cuba, an entire village is wiped out by Spanish forces for no discernible reason. Had the villagers offended their spiritual guides--the cemíes--as one faction claimed, by incorporating foreign practices?

Four youthful survivors escape the massacre--three indigenous and one African runaway. They start off on separate perilous paths, not knowing they have been chosen by the cemíes to carry out a sacred mission--to ensure the survival of a Sacred Bundle that will enable a Taíno revival in future generations. But first, an epic spiritual battle must be played out.

In this love song to the Caribbean, Olive Senior authentically evokes the physical and spiritual worlds of its First Peoples and the survivors—indigenous and African—who will become the resistance fighters known in history as Cimarrones or Maroons.

The Extraordinary Orbit of Alex Ramirez by Jasminne Paulino | YOUNG ADULT

Seventh grader Alex's favorite things to do are watching YouTube videos of rocket launches with his Papi and spending hours on the NASA website reading about astronauts and planets. He even dreams of going to space one day himself, and knows he'll have to study hard in order to get there.

But Alex is in his grade's SC (self-contained) classroom, which means doing the same dull worksheets every day and reading books his sister read back in the third grade. Worst of all, being in SC means nobody thinks he's ready to join Ms. Rosef's mainstream science class—the class Alex knows will be the first step on his path to NASA.

When his teacher says "not yet" for the millionth time, Alex decides it's time to make a change. Now he's ready to try everything he can to get the people in his life—his teachers, his parents, and the kids at school—to understand that he, Alex Ramirez, is capable of the extraordinary.

We Are Green and Trembling by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara | Translated by Robin Myers | ADULT FICTION

Deep in the wilds of the New World, Antonio de Erauso begins to write a letter to his aunt, the prioress of the Basque convent he escaped as a young girl. Since fleeing a dead-end life as a nun, he's become Antonio and undertaken monumental adventures: he has been a mule driver, shopkeeper, soldier, cabin boy, and conquistador; he has wielded his sword and slashed with his dagger. Now, caring for two Guaraní girls he rescued from enslavement, and hounded by the army he deserted, this protean protagonist contemplates one more metamorphosis, which just might save the new world from extinction...

Based on the life of Antonio de Erauso, a real figure of the Spanish conquest, We Are Green and Trembling is a queer baroque satire and a historical novel that blends elements of the picaresque with surreal storytelling. Its rich and wildly imaginative language forms a searing criticism of conquest and colonialism, religious tyranny, and the treatment of women and indigenous people. It is a masterful subversion of Latin American history with a trans character at its center, finding in the rainforest a magical, surreal space where transformation is not only possible but necessary.

On Sale June 10

Latina Superheroes (Volume 1) by Kayden Phoenix | GRAPHIC NOVEL

Jalisco, a spirited girl from the outskirts of Guadalajara, finds her life shattered when her mother mysteriously disappears. Brushed off by authorities, Jalisco's quest for truth leads her to the Adelitas, a clandestine group fighting against the sinister forces behind the femicides plaguing their community. Determined to uncover the fate of her beloved mother, Jalisco embarks on a journey of self-discovery and empowerment, guided by the unwavering strength of sisterhood.

Santa is from Wexo, a town on the Texan/Mexican border. The upcoming elections are threatening to put a corrupt politician in power: Ilena Chavez-Estevez AKA ICE. Santa joins the other candidate's campaign and fights. Racial tensions begin to rise within the town. And when citizens of Wexo begin to disappear one by one, Santa must raid the detention camps and take down ICE.

Join Jalisco and Santa on their riveting journeys of courage, resilience, and justice in these two stories from Latina Superheroes, the groundbreaking new young adult full-color graphic novel series.

Otra Cucarachita Martina: Basado en un cuento folclórico caribeño by Yanitzia Canetti | Illustrated by Mariana Ruiz Johnson | CHILDREN’S

Acompaña a Cucarachita Martina, famosa en el folclore cubano y caribeño, por su belleza e ingenio, mientras supera a sus pretendientes con retos astutos.

Ahora Martina

se ve animada

con su libro favorito

en su silla colorada.

The Potency of Ungovernable Impulses by Malka Older | YOUNG ADULT

The next entry in the multi-award-nominated cozy space-opera mystery series The Investigations of Mossa and Pleiti!

When a former classmate begs Pleiti for help on behalf of her cousin—who’s up for a prestigious academic position at a rival Jovian university but has been accused of plagiarism on the eve of her defense—Pleiti agrees to investigate the matter.

Even if she has to do it without Mossa, her partner in more ways than one. Even if she’s still reeling from Mossa’s sudden isolation and bewildering rejection.

Yet what appears to be a case of an attempted reputational smearing devolves into something decidedly more dangerous—and possibly deadly.

On Sale June 17

The Cost of Being Undocumented: One Woman's Reckoning with America's Inhumane Math by Antero Garcia & Alix Dick | NONFICTION

An inhumane math pervades this country: even as our government extracts labor and often taxes from undocumented workers, it excludes these same workers from its social safety net. As a result, these essential workers struggle to get their own basic needs met, from healthcare to education, from freedom of association to the ability to drive to work without looking for ICE in the rearview mirror.

When Alix Dick's family found themselves in the crosshairs of cartel violence in Sinaloa, Mexico, she and her siblings were forced to flee to the U.S. Many of the scenes that she shares are difficult and unforgettable: escaping from a relationship in which her partner threatened to report her to immigration; getting root canals done in an underground dental clinic. But there are moments of triumph, too: founding her own nonprofit; working on films that tell important stories; and working with her co-author Dr. Garcia to tell her story in a framework that lays bare the realities of structural oppression.

As Alix and Antero tally the costs of undocumented life, they present a final bill of what is owed to the immigrant community. In this way, their book flips the traditional narrative about the economics of immigration on its head.

The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery by Clarence A. Haynes | ADULT FICTION

To be a client of Gwendolyn Montgomery—New York's most powerful publicist, at Sublime Creative—is to be infused with a certain oomph, a mysterious glamour. She seems to have created the ideal life with her handsome new boyfriend, the perfect match. But Gwendolyn has a legion of long-buried secrets that could unravel everything.

After a grisly, bizarre incident at the Brooklyn Museum, Gwendolyn begins to realize that something nefarious is happening tied directly to her past, right as Fonsi Harewood comes back into her world. Fonsi is a queer Latinx psychic from the South Bronx who's caught up in a love triangle with a ghost and his mortal ex. He's able to communicate with the dead, and he comes with a dire warning for Gwendolyn, that the barrier between humans and spirits is weakening.

Gwendolyn would prefer not to have anything to do with ghostly drama. Yet in order to get to the bottom of the spookiness derailing her life and threatening the world, she must face the demons she'd long left behind. The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery is a sensuous, funny, mystical adventure that will leave you spellbound as you keep the pages turning.

You've Awoken Her by Ann Davila Cardinal | YOUNG ADULT

Gabi should be thrilled to be visiting his best friend for the summer. But with its mansions, country clubs, and Ruth’s terrible new boyfriend, Frost Thurston, the Hamptons is the last place he wants to be. And then Gabi witnesses a woman being dragged under the ocean by what looks like a tentacle . . .

When no one—not the police or anyone else—seems to care, Gabi starts to wonder if maybe the beachside town’s bad vibes are more real than he thought. As the number of “accidental” deaths begins to climb, the Thurston family name keeps rising to the top. And what’s worse is that all the signs point to something lurking beneath the water—something with a hunger for blood.

Can Gabi figure out how the two are intertwined and put an end to the string of deaths . . . before becoming the water’s next victim?

If We Survive This by Racquel Marie | YOUNG ADULT

Flora Braddock Paz is not the girl who survives. A colorful creative who spends as much time fearing death as she does trying to hide that fear from her loved ones, she’s always considered herself weak. But half a year into the global outbreak of a rabies mutation that transforms people into violent, zombielike "rabids," she and her older brother, Cain, are still alive. With their mom dead, their dad missing, and their Los Angeles suburb left desolate, they form a new plan: venture out to the secluded Northern California cabin they vacationed in growing up—their best chance at a safe haven and maybe even seeing their dad again.

The dangers of the world have changed, but so has Flora. Still, their journey up the state is complicated by encounters with familiar faces, hidden truths, new allies, and painful memories of the whole family’s final time making this trip the previous year. And for Flora, one thing inevitably remains: No matter how far you run, death is never far behind.

Elena Camps/Elena va a acampar: A Dual Edition Flip Book by Juana Medina | CHILDREN’S

The big box has arrived, and Elena is so excited! Tent parts fly everywhere as she empties the contents and dives right in. This job will be done in no time! GA-BUNK! Oops! Elena forgot the poles! Now it’s under control . . . GA-BAM! A little tug here might help . . . GA-BOING! Now Elena is stomping mad! What’s that her bird buddy’s saying? Something about that folded paper that came with the tent? In a charmingly comic follow-up to Elena Rides, the determined elephant shows young fans that some things are hard—and some tents cow the best of campers—but with patience you can conquer them, if you slow down and try, try again.

This dual-language edition contains the story in both English and Spanish: read it from the Elena Camps side for the English text, then flip the book over to the Elena va a acampar side to read it in Spanish.

Not a Dog by Claudia Guadalupe Martinez | Illustrated by Laura Gonzalez | CHILDREN’S

A Mexican prairie dog may look like a dog, but it is certainly not a dog. This adorable mammal is actually part of the rodent family.

Not a Dog explores the life cycle of the Mexican prairie dog, the species' contribution to a healthy ecosystem, and the ways farming has destroyed their habitat and made them an endangered species.  

Perfect for preschoolers and pre-readers, this charming and informative read-aloud introduces curious kids to one unique animal that is NOT a dog!

On Sale June 24

AJ Torres and the Treasure of Captain Grayshark by José Pablo Iriarte | MIDDLE GRADE

When AJ and Jayden discover a gold coin washed up on the shore of Miami after a hurricane, they think it might be the answer to all of their problems.They suspect the dingy old coin may be part of the long lost treasure of Captain Grayshark, whose loot was valued in the millions. That much money could help the Torres’s sinking family business and more importantly, allow Jayden to stay in Miami with his mom, instead of moving miles away from his best friend. The boys set out on a quest, along with resident ghost expert, Andrea Wade, to unearth the pirate’s treasure on a nearby haunted island.

But the pursuit of treasure might prove more perilous than they could ever imagine—with treacherous waters and a crew of angry ghost pirates waiting for them on Scream Island . . .

Wildcats: Volume 1 by Crystal Velasquez | Illustrated by Eva Cabrera | GRAPHIC NOVEL

As Mina struggles to navigate the cliques of her new school she is taken under the wing of Miss Benitez, a mysterious but kind history teacher. She tells Mina and three other girls—Lin, Ana, and Shani—that their families gifted the priceless objects housed in the school's museum. Ms. Benitez thinks it's important that the girls understand their ancestry.

It turns out that Ms. Benitez is the curator of the museum, and it sits on top of a mysterious temple, the ancient meeting place of a dangerous group called the Brotherhood of Chaos. When one of the priceless objects is shattered, the girls find out exactly why their heritage is so important: it gives them the power to turn into wildcats. Now, in the form of a jaguar, a tiger, a puma, and a lion, they must work together to fight the chaos spirits that were unleashed when the object was shattered...and uncover the terrifying plans of those who want to resurrect the Brotherhood of Chaos.

Wildcats is full of adventure, heart, and friendship. This full-color graphic novel is ripe for fans of mythology, superheroes, and, of course, cats!

Red Flag Warning: Mutual Aid and Survival in California's Fire Country Edited by Dani Burlison & Margaret Elysia Garcia | NONFICTION

When warm temperatures, low humidity, and strong winds combine they produce an increased risk of fire danger called a "red flag warning"--a common event in Northern California. Through essays and interviews, Red Flag Warning sheds light on how wildfire impacts our communities and offers wisdom on living with fire from Indigenous Californians, community organizers, mental health care workers, environmentalists, fire analysts, sustainable loggers, parents, and more.

The collection explores the ways these fires take root and impact rural and urban Northern California, it examines our relationships to place and community and to understand the importance of mutual aid, organizing, community care, land stewardship, and resilience.

Red Flag Warning covers the stories not frequently found in the often disaster-porn obsessed media and exposes what is lost in the news written by parachute journalists. Readers are invited to examine what fire can and does mean to them, what it means for us to reimagine the world, to prepare for the worst, and to examine flames through different lenses. Contributors include Manjula Martin, Hiya Swanhuyser, Zeke Lunder, Lasara Firefox Allen, Margo Robbins, Kailea Loften, Redbird Willie, and more.

Ten Sleep by Nicholas Belardes | ADULT FICTION

When Greta Molina’s old friend Tiller offered her the job, a ten-day cattle drive across the Wyoming prairie from the ranching town of Ten Sleep, it sounded like a well-paid break. Three hundred and twenty cows and calves, two guys her age she’s known since college, and a few long days on an ATV will give her time to sort out the mess in her head. The canyon along the trail has a history, sure, but nature has a tendency toward violence. Greta can accept that, even if it makes her insides squirm.

What Greta doesn’t know is the legacy of murder and rot that runs deep into the rocks of this land. As each night passes on the prairie, the trio faces mounting supernatural dangers: a ghost train of the damned, wild animals walking alongside dead ones—and evidence of a gigantic creature in the skies, one that’s supposedly been extinct for eons. And Tiller may be hiding even darker secrets the further they go. Safety is only ten sleeps away, but Greta soon realizes that may be too long for all of them to survive.

The World We Saw Burning by Renato Cisneros | Translated by Fionn Petch | ADULT FICTION

Matías Roeder, a young man with an Italian father, German mother, and a sense of stagnation he is desperate to escape from, hops a boat from Peru to New York with vague plans but a firm intention to never go home again. This familiar story of migration--the odd jobs, the romances, the Bowery bars--goes sideways when Japan bombs Pearl Harbor and he joins the US Air Force as part of a bombing crew.

Matías is now Matthew, in the belly of a B-17, remade by the vertigo and rawness of aerial warfare. But the past comes roaring back when he trains his sights on his beloved grandfather's hometown of Hamburg. Matías's reckoning unfolds in the interstices of other stories, swapped by two more Peruvians - a journalist and a cabdriver - stuck in a present-day Madrid traffic jam, whose lives in Lima are now as distant as World War II was to their homeland.

The World We Saw Burning is both a striking account of war and a reflection on identity and uprootedness in a time when everything seems on the verge of exploding or disappearing forever.

All Roads Lead to Rome by Yamile Saied Méndez | ADULT FICTION

l Stevie Choi ever wanted was a cozy life in suburbia—a loving husband, adorable kids, a dog. That simple dream shattered into a million pieces when she was only seventeen. She’s spent the years since trying to outrun the pain and make something of herself, if only to prove to her estranged family that she’s happy and successful—even though she’s secretly yearning for another chance at love. If only she believed she deserved it . . .

So, Stevie drowns herself in her job, and in the low season, “dates” new countries, leaving her Utah home-base to circle the globe, from Paris to Cairo to Cabo San Lucas, curating a gorgeous Instagram feed—while spending every New Year alone. Then one frigid January day in Rome she meets Cristian. He would be her perfect match—if they weren’t separated by continents and obligations. Unable to say goodbye, they agree that if they’re both single at seventy, they’ll marry each other if only to have a fun companion to travel with. . . . But through the years, their friendship grows into something more, and suddenly it’s up to Stevie to choose happiness…

Writers Mentorship Program Showcase: Veronica Jorge

Veronica Jorge was our Writers Mentorship Program's 2024 Adult Fiction Mentee.

The Latinx in Publishing Writers Mentorship Showcase Series features excerpts by our Class of 2024 mentees from the projects they’ve developed with the guidance of their mentors.

The LxP Writers Mentorship Program is an annual volunteer-based initiative that offers the opportunity for unpublished and/or unagented writers who identify as Latinx (mentees) to strengthen their craft, gain first-hand industry knowledge, and expand their professional connections through work with experienced published authors (mentors).

Below is an excerpt from one of our 2024 mentees, Veronica Jorge, from her project, Crushed Like Sugarcane, based on her Chinese ancestor, Zhou Zhijian, who left China to work in the sugarcane fields of Cuba where he was enslaved. In this portion, newly arrived and unwilling to accept the situation, he decides to escape:

Zhijian sat in the slave barracoon.

His bunk mate, Gong Mang, nudged him, “What’s eating away at you?

“My family’s waiting to hear from me.”

Gong Mang broke the news to him. “We are not allowed to write home.”

Incredulous, Zhijian asked why.

Gong Mang enlightened him. “To prevent us from writing about our imprisonment.

If the reality of our condition reaches China, the lies of the foreigners will be exposed.”

Zhijian bolted up, eyes open wide. “What about the pay promised in our contracts? When do we receive it? How can I send my family the money if I cannot write to them?”

Gong Mang rested a hand on Zhijian’s shoulder. “Easy brother.” He waited a moment, then whispered, “You won’t see any money.”

Zhijian stared back blankly while Gong Mang explained.

“The mighty man pays, but that crook of an overseer keeps most of it. Although sometimes Diego does give us a little to buy clothing or smokes, we have to buy from his cronies. They make us pay through the nose.”

A-Hing joined the conversation. “It’s impossible to save enough money to get back home. As if they would allow us to leave.”

“True,” added Mang Gi, once your contract is up they force you to renew it.”

Zhijian swallowed hard, afraid to even ask the next question. “How long have you been here?” He searched each man’s face. No one answered. Zhijian’s blood froze. He choked out his next words. “Haven’t any of you tried to escape?”

The men hung their heads.

“Sure,” answered Gong Mang. “Usually the Africans. We seem to prefer suicide.” He pointed to three men sitting in a corner. “Or indulging in yen shee su and smoking ourselves into opie heaven. When you die, they just toss your bones into a pit and burn them together with those of horses and oxen. They need the charred mixture to make their sugar.”

Aghast, Zhijian shuddered. “We have to get out of here! We have to warn our brothers back home. Tell the emperor what is happening.”

The other men in the compound who had been listening laughed.

“Sure. We’ll just stroll right out of here whenever you say.”

Zhijian shouted at them. “Don’t any of you want to get out?”

“We’re polite, so please, after you.”  They cackled.

“Ignore them,” urged Gong Mang. “Besides, where would we go? Even if we somehow did make it back to China, do you really think that after all the time we’ve been gone our wives will still be waiting for us?

The reply left Zhijian dumbfounded.

Gong Mang and Mang Gi moved away and joined the smokers and gamblers.

Only A-Hing remained. “I’ll go with you,” he said. “I know the lay of the land.”

Huddled together, they whispered their escape plan.

“Tomorrow, after dinner,” said Zhijian. “We’ll need our strength.”

“Remember, count thirty seconds,” said A-Hing, “then follow close behind me. We’ll go toward the railway shunting yard, cross the tracks, then head for the Yumuri River. There are many caves there where we can easily hide.”

Sleep fled from Zhijian. All night he wondered if escape was futile and questioned why  no one had ever tried. Was there something they were not telling him?

When the meal trough came, the food stuck in Zhijian’s throat. Doubt strangled his hope of success, and pulverized last night’s eagerness. “I don’t think I can go through with this,” he whispered to A-Hing.

“Like you said, Zhijian, we have to try. It’s our one chance to get home.”

Zhijian reached the building that housed the grinding machine. He heard voices approaching and ran back. Turning the corner of the building, he flattened his body against the wall.

His breath came in gasps.

His mouth dried up.

His ears pounded.

The voices faded.

Then silence.

Inch by inch, he edged his body along the wall, turned the corner, and found himself face to face with the overseer. Zhijian froze.

Diego’s arm rolled back forming a V-shape from hand to shoulder like a sling shot. His fist flew out like a rock and smashed into Zhijian’s face.

Falling backward, it seemed like a long time before he hit the ground. He was oblivious to the beating that followed.

Zhijian awoke; Diego looming over him.

Diego pointed to Zhijian on the floor of the slave compound where all could see the bloody mess. “This is what happens to those who try to escape.” His eyes bored into each man. Then, he kicked Zhijian and stomped out.

Gong Mang rushed forward to help his friend. Zhijian tried to speak; his slurred words unintelligible through his swollen mouth. Gong Mang leaned in close and made out the raspy question, “Did he get away?”

Gong Mang thought he must be delirious then he realized the question referred to A-Hing. “Yes,” answered Gong Mang.

Zhijian exhaled. “Then it is possible.” Next time I will make it, he said to himself. Next time I’ll get home to my wife and child.

Veronica Jorge is now represented by Charlotte Sheedy of Charlotte Sheedy Literary Agency, having met during one of our Writers Mentorship Program events exclusive to the mentees. Congratulations, Veronica!

---

Veronica Jorge

Manager, Educator, and former High School Social Studies teacher, Veronica Jorge credits her love of history and books to the potpourri of cultures that make up her life, and to her upbringing in diverse Brooklyn, New York. Her genres of choice are historical fiction where she always makes new discoveries; literary works because she loves beautiful writing; and children’s picture books because there are so many wonderful worlds yet to be imagined and visited. Veronica currently resides in Macungie, PA., but she’s still a Brooklyn girl at heart. How sweet it is!

Connect with her on Facebook @VeronicaJorgeauthor.

Most Anticipated May 2025 Releases

So many books to pick up this May! Here’s a list of the latest additions to our most anticipated reads. We hope you enjoy and please let us know if any of these are on your TBR!

Fridays Are for Churros by Jenny Alvarado | PICTURE BOOK

Every Friday, Emi and her Papi made churros for the entire familia. Now in their new apartment in the big city, Papi is always working, and there are no churros, and no familia, on Fridays. Until, Emi smells something sweet and delicious coming from her neighbor Señora Luisa’s apartment.

Emi has an idea! Maybe she can make churros after all, with a little help. From Señora Luisa, she can borrow flour. Tomas in 312 has sugar. Marisol in 512 has a piping tip. Soon Emi’s apartment is filled with the scent of fresh churros, new foods, and new friends! 

A story of food and community, Fridays Are for Churros celebrates old traditions becoming new, and strangers becoming friends.

The Lost Nostalgias by Esteban Rodriguez | POETRY

With a narrative voice that translates the unforgettable into something lyrical and magical, The Lost Nostalgias demonstrates Esteban Rodríguez's exploration of familial moments that move between the tragic, the trivial, and the triumphant. A mother's decaying teeth lead to questions of self-care and beauty; a quinceañera becomes a meditation on masculinity; a visit to the bank illuminates a father's existential fears; and a rave suddenly becomes a reflection on migration and survival. Because nothing is off the table under Rodríguez's tender lens, everything and everyone becomes deserving of admiration, dignity, and love.

In Theory, Darling: Searching for José Esteban Muñoz and the Queer Imagination by Marcos Gonsalez | NONFICTION

Marcos Gonsalez found his greatest source of joy when he encountered queer theory in college. As they put it, "queers and college go together like peanut butter and jelly," and for them, this was especially true. Seeing himself reflected in the work José Esteban Muñoz was life-changing: Muñoz's theory of disidentification empowered Gonsalez to reclaim their Latinx and queer identities--and inspired him to push back against the largely-white monolith of queer theory.

In the sophisticated yet intimately disarming prose of In Theory, Darling, Gonsalez takes his copy of Disidentifications to the gay bar, to the classroom, to their childhome and beyond, inviting us to go along with him as he limns the queerness of reality TV, mourns the victims of the Pulse nightclub massacre, searches for their uncle in Paris Is Burning, looks for Muñoz's legacy in the streets of New York, and situates themself in the lineage of the queer elders who have come before him.

Conversational yet deeply analytical, intimate yet wide-ranging, youthful yet sophisticated, Gonsalez's essays crackle with intellectual energy--and remind us just how life-giving theory can be.

Along Came Amor by Alexis Daria | ADULT FICTION

No strings

After Ava Rodriguez’s now-ex-husband declares he wants to “follow his dreams”—which no longer include her—she’s left questioning everything she thought she wanted. So when a handsome hotelier flirts with her, Ava vows to stop overthinking and embrace the opportunity for an epic one-night-stand.

No feelings 

Roman Vázquez’s sole focus is the empire he built from the ground up. He lives and dies by his schedule, but the gorgeous stranger grimacing into her cocktail inspires him to change his plans for the evening. At first, it’s easy for Roman to agree to Ava’s rules: no strings, no feelings. But one night isn’t enough, and the more they meet, the more he wants.

No falling in love

Roman is the perfect fling, until Ava sees him at her cousin’s engagement party—as the groom’s best man, no less! Maintaining her boundaries becomes a lot more complicated as she tries to hide their relationship from her family, but Roman isn’t content being her dirty little secret. With her future uncertain and her family pressuring her from all sides, Ava will have to decide if love is worth the risk—again.

Day of the Dead Girl, Volume 1 by A. J. Mendez & Aimee Garcia | Art by Belén Culebras |GRAPHIC NOVEL

Death is never the end of the story. Coroner Sam Castillo will learn this the hard way, when a supernatural serial killer targets her hometown just as she moves back. A skeptical woman of science, Sam butts heads with her spiritual mother Ana, a leader of a witch coven specializing in Brujeria. But when the coven's Brujas start turning up murdered, Sam and Ana must work together to find the killer and save their town's Day of the Dead festival from turning into an occult bloodbath. As if sharing a bathroom with her mom wasn't hard enough.

The writing team of New York Times bestselling author and retired professional wrestler A.J. Mendez (Crazy Is My Superpower) & writer and actress Aimee Garcia (Dungeons & Dragons: At the Spine of the World) and Spanish artist Belén Culebras take you on the journey of a skeptic coming to grips with her supernatural heritage.

May 2025 Latinx Releases

On Sale May 6

Bloodletting by Kimberly Reyes | POETRY

This is a collection of poems about how we find and cultivate love amid wars, including wars that often go ignored. Throughout Bloodletting, Kimberly Reyes considers how we define love and who gets to experience it, paying special attention to the ways that race and sex influence how we are perceived and valued by society. Through the voice of a Black woman coming to terms with her own perspectives on relationship-building, Reyes shows the damage that contemporary culture can do to women, and Black women in particular. Resisting passivity, Reyes's poetry cuts through pervasive doom scrolling, virtue signaling, and parasocial relationships, inviting readers to remember what care is really supposed to feel like.

Kiss Me, Maybe by Gabriella Gamez | ADULT FICTION

Librarian Angela Gutierrez has never been kissed. But after posting a video about her late bloomer status and ace identity, she's finally ready to get some firsts out of the way. Using her new influencer status to come up with a scavenger hunt idea in which the winner earns her first kiss, Angela realizes she may need some help to pull off the event.

Enter Krystal Ramirez, hot bartender and Angela's unrequited crush of five years. Despite vowing that romantic love isn't for her, Krystal seems awfully determined to help Angela pull off the scavenger hunt and find true love.

There's just one problem: the connection between Angela and Krystal is getting stronger and stronger the more they hang out, until Angela isn't sure she wants to go through with the scavenger hunt after all. But Krystal is convinced that she isn't capable of love and before long, Angela realizes she's falling head over heels for a woman who may never love her back.

Fridays Are for Churros by Jenny Alvarado | PICTURE BOOK

Every Friday, Emi and her Papi made churros for the entire familia. Now in their new apartment in the big city, Papi is always working, and there are no churros, and no familia, on Fridays. Until, Emi smells something sweet and delicious coming from her neighbor Señora Luisa’s apartment.

Emi has an idea! Maybe she can make churros after all, with a little help. From Señora Luisa, she can borrow flour. Tomas in 312 has sugar. Marisol in 512 has a piping tip. Soon Emi’s apartment is filled with the scent of fresh churros, new foods, and new friends! 

A story of food and community, Fridays Are for Churros celebrates old traditions becoming new, and strangers becoming friends.

The Lost Nostalgias by Esteban Rodriguez | POETRY

With a narrative voice that translates the unforgettable into something lyrical and magical, The Lost Nostalgias demonstrates Esteban Rodríguez's exploration of familial moments that move between the tragic, the trivial, and the triumphant. A mother's decaying teeth lead to questions of self-care and beauty; a quinceañera becomes a meditation on masculinity; a visit to the bank illuminates a father's existential fears; and a rave suddenly becomes a reflection on migration and survival. Because nothing is off the table under Rodríguez's tender lens, everything and everyone becomes deserving of admiration, dignity, and love.

On Sale May 13

So Many Stars: An Oral History of Trans, Nonbinary, Genderqueer, and Two-Spirit People of Color by Caro de Robertis | NONFICTION

So Many Stars knits together the voices of trans, nonbinary, genderqueer, and two-spirit elders of color as they share authentic, intimate accounts of how they created space for themselves and their communities in the world. This singular project collects the testimonies of twenty elders, each a glimmering thread in a luminous tapestry, preserving their words for future generations--who can more fully exist in the world today because of these very trailblazers.

De Robertis creates a collective coming-of-age story based on hundreds of hours of interviews, offering rare snapshots of ordinary life: kids growing up, navigating family issues and finding community, coming out and changing how they identify over the years, building movements and weathering the AIDS crisis, and sharing wisdom for future generations. Often narrating experiences that took place before they had the array of language that exists today to self-identify beyond the gender binary, this generation lived through remarkable changes in American culture, shaped American culture, and yet rarely takes center stage in the history books. Their stories feel particularly urgent in the current political moment, but also remind readers that their experiences are not new, and that young trans and nonbinary people today belong to a long lineage.

Portrait of the Artist as a Brown Man by Jose Hernandez Diaz | POETRY

The collection opens with odes to everyday images and symbols of the Latinx community. In an age of elevated racism, these odes seek to celebrate Latinx culture in the face of constant scapegoating, ridicule, and surveillance. Also, this collection explores surreal prose poetry both in the suburbs and barrios of Los Angeles and the larger American landscape. "A future prizewinner," according to former US Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera, this collection seeks to celebrate the Mexican American experience while also exploring how surrealism and absurdism can lead to wondrous discoveries about the self, community, and the imagination.

Get Real, Chloe Torres by Crystal Maldonado | YOUNG ADULT

Chloe Torres’ birthday has always marked the end of summer—but as she turns eighteen and prepares to leave for her freshman year of art school, it feels like the end of more than that. It’s the end of her adolescence, which means it’s time to leave the past behind… but can she really let go of the two estranged best friends she left there?

NOPE. Chloe decides to take one more shot at healing the friend breakup she’s always regretted: planning the bucket-list trip neither girl can say no to. She’s taken care of everything: the car, the hotels, and concert tickets to see their favorite boy band’s reunion show in Las Vegas—stage seats, so close they can fangirl right in front of the boys’ faces. But first, her ex-BFFs have to say yes.

And to say yes, they’d all have to be talking… which they haven’t done since Ramona kissed Chloe, and everything imploded. 

But with some clever finagling (and some undignified begging) Chloe gets them all on board. Of course, being in a car together for two weeks brings back old feelings… a lot of old feelings… and soon enough, Chloe wants Sienna, Ramona wants Chloe, and everything is on fireeeee. 

Bochica by Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro | ADULT FICTION

In 1923 Soacha, Colombia, La Casona—an opulent mansion perched above the legendary Salto del Tequendama waterfall—was once home to Antonia and her family, who settle in despite their constant nightmares and the house’s malevolent spirit. But tragedy strikes when Antonia’s mother takes a fatal fall into El Salto and her father, consumed by grief, attempts to burn the house down with Antonia still inside.

Three years later, haunted by disturbing dreams and cryptic journal entries from her late mother, Antonia is drawn back to her childhood home when it is converted into a luxurious hotel. As Antonia confronts her fragmented memories and the dark history of the estate, she wrestles with unsettling questions she can no longer ignore: Was her mother’s death by her own hands, or was it by someone else’s?

In a riveting quest for answers, Antonia must navigate the shadows of La Casona, unearthing its darkest secrets and confronting a legacy that threatens to swallow her whole.

Welcome Home, Esmerelda by Daniela Ramirez | Illustrated by Maribel Lechuga | PICTURE BOOK

Papa's job in the military has taken Esmerelda and her family all over the world—and yet she's never lived in the United States. Now she and her family are moving to San Antonio, Texas.

Although many of her extended family members live there, Esmerelda is unsure it'll feel like home. Even more, she's unsure she will fit in. Gradually, music and her sweet abuela spark bravery and the realization that home is not always a place—it's familia.

Heartwarming and hopeful, Welcome Home, Esmerelda will provide reassurance to any kid that while moving and change are difficult, you have the support of loved ones to help you through it.

Detained: A boy's journal of survival and resilience by D. Esperanza & Gerardo Iván Morales | NONFICTION

D Esperanza was just thirteen years old when he lost his caregivers, his beloved grandmother and uncle. Since both of his parents were working and living in the United States, D was left on his own in a small town in Honduras. He quickly realized he simply could not make enough money to survive so he made the difficult decision to head north with his cousins and hopefully reunite with his parents in el norte.

Together, the boys struggled to survive a long and treacherous journey through Central America and Mexico. Along the way, D and his cousins formed a deep bond, only for the four to be brutally separated at the border of the United States. When he is captured and processed at a facility, neither D nor his family are given an update on when he will be released or where he’ll go next. Over the next five months, he kept a journal of his experience. The pages tell a story of pain, cruelty, friendship, and resilience, a living testament to the reality of the border. Amidst the senseless inhumanity and violence of US immigration policy, D found hope in the friendship he and his fellow companions forged, and mentorship from one intrepid advocate who fought on his behalf named Gerardo Iván Morales.

Timely, powerful, and unforgettable, Detained brings the border crisis to vivid life.

On Sale May 20

Salvación by Sandra Proudman | YOUNG ADULT

Lola de La Peña yearns to be free from the societal expectations of a young Mexican lady of her station. She spends her days pretending to be delicate and proper while watching her mamá cure the sick and injured with sal negra (black salt), a recently discovered magic that heals even the most mortal of sicknesses and wounds. But by night, she is Salvación, the free-spirit lady vigilante protecting the town of Coloma from those who threaten its peace and safety among the rising tension in Alta California after the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

But one night, a woman races into Coloma, barely alive, to tell the horrifying tale of how her town was obliterated by sal roja (red salt), a potent, deadly magic capable of obliterating anything it comes into contact with, and about the man who wields it: Damien Hernández. So when Hernández arrives the next day with a party of fifty strong and promises of returning Alta California to México, Lola knows it’s only a matter of time before he brings the region under his rule—all Hernández needs is the next full moon and the stolen, ancient amulet he carries to mine enough sal roja to conquer the land. Determined to protect everything she loves, Lola races against time as Salvación to stop his plans. What she didn’t count on was the distracting and infuriating Alejandro, who travels with Hernández but doesn't seem to share his ambitions. With the stakes higher than ever and Hernández getting closer to his goals, Lola will do anything to foil his plans, even teaming up with Alejandro—who she doesn’t fully trust but can’t help but fall in love with.

The Bi Book by A. J. Irving | Illustrated by Cynthia Alonso | PICTURE BOOK

Many words that start with ‘bi’ mean two.

Bicycle. Bilingual. Binoculars. Biracial.

Sometimes, it can mean more than two. Like when it comes to people who identify as 'bi.'

Because some hearts love in a rainbow of ways.

This sweet, bold picture book is a gentle introduction to bisexual identity, by way of many different words that share the root "bi," that will become a staple for LGBTQ+ readers, parents, and educators for years to come.

In Theory, Darling: Searching for José Esteban Muñoz and the Queer Imagination by Marcos Gonsalez | NONFICTION

Marcos Gonsalez found his greatest source of joy when he encountered queer theory in college. As they put it, "queers and college go together like peanut butter and jelly," and for them, this was especially true. Seeing himself reflected in the work José Esteban Muñoz was life-changing: Muñoz's theory of disidentification empowered Gonsalez to reclaim their Latinx and queer identities--and inspired him to push back against the largely-white monolith of queer theory.

In the sophisticated yet intimately disarming prose of In Theory, Darling, Gonsalez takes his copy of Disidentifications to the gay bar, to the classroom, to their childhome and beyond, inviting us to go along with him as he limns the queerness of reality TV, mourns the victims of the Pulse nightclub massacre, searches for their uncle in Paris Is Burning, looks for Muñoz's legacy in the streets of New York, and situates themself in the lineage of the queer elders who have come before him.

Conversational yet deeply analytical, intimate yet wide-ranging, youthful yet sophisticated, Gonsalez's essays crackle with intellectual energy--and remind us just how life-giving theory can be.

Edie for Equality: Edie Windsor Stands Up for Love by Michael Genhart |Illustrated by Cheryl Thuesday | PICTURE BOOK

Growing up in the 1930s, Edie Windsor hadn't always been bold. In fact, she was someone who played by the rules and loved math. Numbers added up right every time and equal meant equal. But when the US government refused to acknowledge the loving relationship of over forty years between her and her spouse Thea Spyer, Edie made a bold move and sued the US government!

In this comprehensive picture book biography, acclaimed author Michael Genhart shares the story of LGBTQ icon Edie Windsor and the pivotal case that set the stage to take down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). In United States v. Windsor, Edie's tenacious spirit proved to the Supreme Court and the world that love is love and equal means equal.

Crocodiles at Night by Gisela Heffes | Translated by Grady Wray | ADULT FICTION

Dad died today. It was foretold, but I didn't see it coming."

Although the outcome of Crocodiles at Night does not remain a surprise beyond the first paragraph, it expands outwards in philosophical, heartfelt reverberations true to Heffes's style. Crocodiles at Night explores familial ties, memories and images of places that are no longer the same, the vagaries of the medical system, and social critique in this heartfelt, excruciating view of death and how it affects all who experience it.

On Sale May 27

A Gift of Dust: How Saharan Plumes Feed the Planet by Martha Brockenbrough | Illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal | PICTURE BOOK

This dust . . .
of what lived once
sustains what lives today
and what will be born . . .
tomorrow.

An ancient catfish becomes a fossil, and as the lake where it lived dries up, the fossil turns to dust--but this isn't ordinary dust. This dust begins in Chad, West Africa, but winds carry it across the continent, over the Atlantic ocean, to nourish and replenish the Amazon rain forest and beyond. 

A Gift of Dust takes readers on a journey that shows just how interconnected our planet is, and how something so small can have such a huge impact. With lyrical, awe-inspiring verse based in fact, and stunning art from a Caldecott honoree, this is a story for our times.

The Obscene Madame D by Hilda Hilst | Translated by Nathanaël & Rachel Gontijo Araujo | ADULT FICTION

Every month I ingested the body of God, not in the way one swallows green peas or agrostis, or swallows swords, I ingested the body of God the way people do when they know they are swallowing the More, the All, the Incommensurable, for not believing in finitude I would lose myself in absolute infinity…

The Obscene Madame D tells the story of Hillé, a sixty-year-old woman who has decided to abandon conventional life and spend the rest of her days in contemplation in a recess under the stairs. There, she is haunted by the perplexity of her recently deceased lover, Ehud, who cannot understand her rejection of common sense, sex and a simple life in favour of metaphysical speculations that he considers delusional and vain.

In a stream-of-consciousness monologue that’s part James Joyce, part Clarice Lispector, and part de Sade, Hillé speaks of her search for spiritual fulfilment from a space of dereliction, as she searches for answers to great questions of life, death and the relationship between body and soul.

Letters from a Seducer by Hilda Hilst | Translated by John Keene | ADULT FICTION

This epistolary novel tells the story of Karl, a wealthy, amoral and erudite man who records his daily life in a series of 20 letters to his sister Cordelia. She is cloistered and chaste, but the letters are wildly promiscuous – not just in their explicit sexual content, which have earned the novel the epithet ‘pornographic’, but in their form. Ranging in style and register from modernist fragments worthy of James Joyce and Samuel Beckett, to letters that could have been penned by Enlightenment libertines like Choderlos de Laclos and the Marquis de Sade, the letters make up a polyphonic text that pushes the boundaries both of fiction and of decency.

The novel – a standalone masterpiece which originally appeared as part of a Brazilian tetralogy – changes form again partway through, when the indigent poet Stamatius finds Karl’s record of his erotic adventures in a trash can, and begins to write stories based on what he reads, and then to break down those stories into even briefer fragments. Karl’s letters inspire Stamatius’ writing, and their narratives and identities become ever more fragmented, until we begin to doubt whether they are truly separate people. What unites them is an abundantly lewd imagination and a fantastically creative relationship to the greatest seducer of all: language.

Dreaming of Home: How We Turn Fear into Pride, Power, and Real Change by Cristina Jiménez | NONFICTION

Cristina Jiménez’s family fought to stay afloat as Ecuador fell into a political and economic crisis. When she was thirteen, her family came to the US seeking a better life, landing in an overcrowded one-bedroom apartment in Queens, New York. She lived in fear of deportation and ashamed of being undocumented, but eventually, Cristina discovered she was not alone. She made it into college when students and advocates won a change in the law, allowing undocumented students to access higher education. She was proud to be the first one in her family to go to college, but she felt out of place until she met professors and student activists who opened a new world where she found her calling within a community of social justice organizers.

With deep candor and humor, Cristina shows us what it’s like to grow up undocumented and the reality that being a “good” immigrant doesn’t shield you from systemic racism, danger—or even the confusion of falling in love. She invites us to acknowledge the America that never was and to imagine the America that could be when everyday people come together, build power, and fight for change, even when the world around us seems to be crumbling.

Day of the Dead Girl, Volume 1 by A. J. Mendez & Aimee Garcia | Art by Belén Culebras |GRAPHIC NOVEL

Death is never the end of the story. Coroner Sam Castillo will learn this the hard way, when a supernatural serial killer targets her hometown just as she moves back. A skeptical woman of science, Sam butts heads with her spiritual mother Ana, a leader of a witch coven specializing in Brujeria. But when the coven's Brujas start turning up murdered, Sam and Ana must work together to find the killer and save their town's Day of the Dead festival from turning into an occult bloodbath. As if sharing a bathroom with her mom wasn't hard enough.

The writing team of New York Times bestselling author and retired professional wrestler A.J. Mendez (Crazy Is My Superpower) & writer and actress Aimee Garcia (Dungeons & Dragons: At the Spine of the World) and Spanish artist Belén Culebras take you on the journey of a skeptic coming to grips with her supernatural heritage.

Along Came Amor by Alexis Daria | ADULT FICTION

No strings

After Ava Rodriguez’s now-ex-husband declares he wants to “follow his dreams”—which no longer include her—she’s left questioning everything she thought she wanted. So when a handsome hotelier flirts with her, Ava vows to stop overthinking and embrace the opportunity for an epic one-night-stand.

No feelings 

Roman Vázquez’s sole focus is the empire he built from the ground up. He lives and dies by his schedule, but the gorgeous stranger grimacing into her cocktail inspires him to change his plans for the evening. At first, it’s easy for Roman to agree to Ava’s rules: no strings, no feelings. But one night isn’t enough, and the more they meet, the more he wants.

No falling in love

Roman is the perfect fling, until Ava sees him at her cousin’s engagement party—as the groom’s best man, no less! Maintaining her boundaries becomes a lot more complicated as she tries to hide their relationship from her family, but Roman isn’t content being her dirty little secret. With her future uncertain and her family pressuring her from all sides, Ava will have to decide if love is worth the risk—again.

Cascarones: An Easter Surprise / Una Sorpresa de Pascuas by Alicia Salazar | Illustrated by Aimee del Valle | PICTURE BOOK

A young girl excitedly anticipates Easter and the confetti-filled eggs, or cascarones, she and her parents make for the holiday. As always, the preparation begins in January, and they collect eggshells for months.

Engaging illustrations by Aimee Del Valle show the family working together as the girl describes the process of making the confetti-filled eggs, from creating a hole in the shell to drain the insides, to covering the hole with colored paper, dying them bright colors, inserting the confetti and decorating the colored shells.

When Easter Sunday arrives, her dad hides the eggs at the neighborhood park, where all her aunts, uncles and cousins gather. Young Nicolás enjoys his first Easter egg hunt and quickly learns how to find the treasures. And when all 100 cascarones have been found, the boy is in for one final surprise! This bilingual picture book for children ages 4-8 is a joyous celebration of family and the Mexican-American holiday tradition of making—and cracking on each other's heads!—-eggs filled with colorful paper. Kids will want to use the recipe included in the book to make their very own cascarones.

Gecko Girl / Lagartijita by Daniel Chacón | Illustrated by Steven James Petruccio | PICTURE BOOK

Young Lizzy fell asleep while her dad was telling her a story. When she wakes up, she's shocked to see she has tiny legs and weird little feet! She looks in the mirror and wonders what she has become. Her father is dancing while brushing his teeth and nearly steps on her! So she crawls into the living room and asks their cat if he knows what she is. The feline decides she must be a fun toy! Running outside, she finds their dog, who thinks she looks like a tasty snack!

As Lizzy continues wandering, she encounters an assortment of animals—spiders, a beautiful butterfly, an army of ants—all of whom have different, confusing opinions about her. Later, when she opens her eyes, she's very happy to see her daddy—and he knows exactly who she is: his "sweet, precious girl!"

This whimsical bilingual picture book for children ages 4-8 contains Steven James Petruccio's beautiful illustrations of the gecko girl and the creatures she meets on her journey of discovery. This lively story is sure to encourage young children to tell—and write—their own tales about identity and the world around them.

¿Qué Es Un Poema? / What Is a Poem? by Jovi de la Jara | PICTURE BOOK

In this playful bilingual picture book for children, the author describes all the things a poem can do, like: “Puppies can be / planets / and flowers / can be kittens” and “the moon can be / square / and rain can be / laughter.”

Simple text describes the endless possibilities available in writing poetry; words can rhyme, run off the page or even be invented! Poems can be very long or super short. Jovi de la Jara’s fun black-and-white illustrations cleverly depict the humorous ideas: a dog’s face looks like a planet with a ring around it, flowers sprout cat faces and a cloud cries laughter. These original and sometimes abstract images will surely ignite kids’ imaginations!

This entertaining book is perfect for sharing the joy of writing poetry with young readers. Kids will be encouraged to explore the world around them and come up with their own inventive creations as they realize, “The poem is a mirror inside your head.”

The Closest Thing to a Normal Life by Michael Méndez Guevara | YOUNG ADULT

There’s nothing remotely normal about seventeen-year-old Ethan-Matthew Cruz Canton’s life. His parents, journalists in Spain, were killed in a terrorist attack and now he’s living with his grandparents in San Antonio, attending his father’s high school for senior year. Narrated in the young man’s perceptive, witty voice, the novel opens with his plan to keep his head down, make it until June and then follow his parents’ footsteps to Northwestern University’s journalism program. But his idea to keep a low profile is quickly blown out of the water.

As Ethan-Matthew deals with incessant questions about his hyphenated name and his grief, he looks forward to the only “normal” thing available: writing for the school newspaper. He was set to be the editor at his high school in Spain, but now his story ideas are being ignored! With the encouragement and help of his new friends, he starts an alternative online newspaper to cover the overlooked students and staff.  Things escalate, though, when he writes about a racist incident—instigated by the school’s mostly white, privileged student body—that turns violent!

Amidst all the drama, Ethan-Matthew suddenly and unexpectedly finds himself romantically involved with another boy, his cross-country teammate and best friend Reid. Author Michael Méndez Guevara, a former high school teacher, writes convincingly about the lives of young adults on the path to self-discovery. This refreshing, intelligent novel dealing with the loss of loved ones, prejudice and the clash of social mores is sure to capture the imagination of teen readers.

Book Review: The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica

Agustina Bazterrica’s The Unworthy is an outstanding work of literary fiction and horror that speaks to grief, sisterhood and self-discovery while exposing humankind’s ugliest side. Readers of The Handmaid’s Tale looking for an even darker narrative will revel in this book. 

Narrated through a woman’s surreptitious journal, The Unworthy follows her to a cult hidden far away from the lingering shadows of a society destroyed by unforgiving climate change and human selfishness. This cult, a convent called the Sacred Sisterhood, is made up of women, the only man present—referred to as “He” or “Him”—being the leader. Through the woman’s writing, which she does with anything she can get her hands on (dirt, stolen ink, and even her own blood), the reader explores the workings of the cult. These women are physically punished and abused, manipulated and made to adore a mysterious god, and put against each other. And yet their main concerns are to please “Him” and the Superior Mother, and to do everything in their power to one day be promoted from Unworthy to either Chosen or Enlightened – even if they have to destroy the others to accomplish so. They sacrifice everything: their names, their individuality, and their physical well-being.

The book is written in present-tense, which I found compelling. This choice of tense makes the book more immersive because you’re reading the story while the narrator is actively writing it. Words have a strong power in The Unworthy and it’s delightful to see the woman’s mindset evolution through her writing and word choice, adding additional layers of depth to the story and the character. 

At first, the reality of the narrator might seem to be very removed from the readers’, and with a writing style that is matter-of-fact and raw, The Unworthy reads harsh and unhinged. However, like the excellent dystopian title it is, this story speaks to many issues hidden within the folds of modern society that we might not be actively aware of. One of the aspects that spoke to me the most is the way the women in the convent are kept divided and collaterally weak. The Superior Mother encouraged unhealthy competition and rivalry among the women, repeatedly asking them to create new punishments to be applied on an offending Unworthy, and rewarding the most terrible and wicked of them. I can’t help but think that if we break this concept to its bare bones, it’s not as different to how women have been encouraged to hate each other in real life. Society often demands too much from women and it’s not enough to excel at something. Women must be the prettiest, the smartest, the most talented—and such a mindset creates a set of conditions where sorority and true sisterhood struggle to bloom.

Another important aspect of the book is climate change. The Unworthy is set in a not-so-far-away future where the environment kept worsening until the world as we know it stopped existing because of the inhospitable weather. Despite being the ones who pushed the state of the world to that extreme, people’s greed can be unrelenting. In the book, they fight over resources and the stronger person abuses the weaker. In this way, The Unworthy mirrors one of the ugliest sides of people and a level of selfishness we’ve seen happening throughout history.

But it is sometimes during the darkest times that light shines the brightest—and so in this book there’s beauty hidden behind the horrors. The Unworthy is, too, a book about the pure, honest love shared among and between women (say, the joy of braiding each other’s hair in silent contemplation). It is, too, a reminder that there’s power in unity. Bazterrica has done an impressive work of packing infinite threads of meaning in such a short work of fiction. 

Thought-provoking and vulnerable, The Unworthy is the book I needed in these times of uncertainty. It will leave a bittersweet aftertaste in your tongue and open-up a conversation that you won’t be able to ignore, reassuring you in its macabre sort of way.

---

Agustina Bazterrica, born in Buenos Aires in 1974, has a degree in arts from the University of Buenos Aires and works as a cultural manager and jury member in various literary contests. She is the author of the short story collection Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird, and the novels Matar al niña and Tender Is the Flesh, the latter of which was awarded the Clarín Novel Prize. Tender Is the Flesh established Bazterrica as a bestselling author worldwide, with translations into thirty languages and half a million copies sold in English alone. Tender Is the Flesh is currently being adapted for television. Her latest novel, The Unworthy, was published in Spanish in 2023 and received the same enthusiastic reception as Tender Is the Flesh, affirming Bazterrica’s status as a prominent author in contemporary literature.

Dianna Vega is a Dominican assistant editor, fiction writer, and poet based in Florida. She holds a bachelor’s degree in creative writing from the University of Central Florida. She is a 2024 Periplus Fellow. Her poetry has appeared in Outrageous Fortune, South Dakota Review, Tint Journal and Poetry Magazine.

Most Anticipated April 2025 Releases

Its a busy month with a ton of new releases. From love stories to a novel that transcends time and place, there’s something for all readers. Check out some of our most anticipated releases for April below!

Gloria by Andrés Felipe Solano | Translated by Will Vanderhyden

It is a bright spring Saturday: April 11, 1970. The famous Argentine singer Sandro is about to become the first Latin American to perform at Madison Square Garden, and Gloria will be one of the lucky attendees at what will be a legendary concert. At just twenty years old, the young woman walks through the electric streets of New York City full of hope and possibility. The disturbing images she recently encountered at her job at a photographic laboratory, the trauma of a father who was murdered when she was a child, and even the long-term prospects of her relationship with Tigre, her irascible boyfriend, are problems for another day. This day should be perfect and should last forever. Which it will, in surprising and unexpected ways.

Five decades later, Gloria’s son reflects on his mother's life and realizes that their formative years—imprinted as they are by sojourns in New York at exactly the same age—are a bridge between generations that draws the pair closer through a shared sense of longing and potential.

A novel of mothers and sons spanning New York City, Colombia, and Miami, Gloria is a sophisticated and daring excavation of a woman's life that asks us to consider how the choices we make in our youth reverberate throughout our possible futures.

Takes One to Know One by Lissette Decos

Daniela is risk-averse, blazer-obsessed, and likes to be taken seriously. So when her record label job is on the line, she's prepared to do anything to keep it. Except for working with the genre of music she hates most: reggaeton. It's supposed to inspire sensual hip-swinging dance moves and Dani's hips do not swing--not like that anyway. Out of desperation, Dani lies and says she loves reggaeton. But not only does Dani get to keep her job, she gets a ticket to Puerto Rico . . . on a mission to clean up the scandalous image of international reggaeton singer Rene 'El Rico' Rodriguez.

Despite her best act, Dani's dislike of his music and Rene's prickly disposition is palpable, resulting in them butting heads at every turn. Yet as the two spend more time together under the island's sizzling sun, Dani realizes there's more to Rene than his rough edges and good looks. The man that many only see as a sex icon actually cares about his music, community, and culture. Against her will, she slowly begins finding him harder to hate. And before she knows it, Rene is teaching Dani how to find the rhythm of the music and learn to let go. But will she ever be ready to acknowledge the heat growing between them and put her heart on the line?

Futbolista by Jonny Garza Villa

Gabriel Piña knows who he is: a college goalkeeper, a future Liga MX or MLS star, and definitely straight. He's starting his freshman year with a lot of eyes on him and even more potential, but he's got this. Nothing will have him straying off the path to greatness.

That is, until his philosophy classmate Vale volunteers to tutor him. Vale, the same guy who Gabi, in a moment of history repeating itself, might've kissed very briefly--and only once--just to help him out at a party. Vale, the smart, supportive, compassionate new friend with beautiful brown eyes and a smile that keeps Gabi, for completely inexplicable reasons, constantly in a daydream.

As a friendship blooms and the two spend more and more time together, Gabi finally begins to recognize something about himself: maybe he's not as straight as he thought he was. But a larger and darker realization lingers. Someone like Gabi--a brown, Mexican futbolista with dreams of playing for El Tri--can't also be bisexual. He's seen the way his teammates and community react to queerness in their sport. It would be the exact type of straying off path that destroys his future.

Or, maybe Gabi could be brave enough to embrace all those parts of himself and forge his own path, one that includes a boyfriend and the beautiful game.

Latinx Comics Studies: Critical and Creative Crossings Edited by Fernanda Díaz-Basteris & Maite Urcaregui

Latinx Comics Studies: Critical and Creative Crossings offers an intersectional and interdisciplinary approach to analyzing Latinx studies and comics studies. The book draws together groundbreaking critical essays, practical pedagogical reflections, and original and republished short comics. The works in this collection discuss the construction of national identity and memory, undocumented narratives, Indigenous and Afro-Latinx experiences, multiracial and multilingual identities, transnational and diasporic connections, natural disasters and unnatural colonial violence, feminist and queer interventions, Latinx futurities, and more. Together, the critical and creative works in this collection begin to map out the emerging and evolving field of Latinx comics studies and to envision what might be possible in and through Latinx comics.

This collection moves beyond simply cataloguing and celebrating Latinx representation within comics. It examines how comics by, for, and about Latinx peoples creatively and conceptually experiment with the very boundaries of "Latinx" and portray the diverse lived experiences therein.

Property of the Revolution: From a Cuban Barrio to a New Hampshire Mill Town by Ana Hebra Flaster

Ana Hebra Flaster was six years old when her working-class family was kicked out of their Havana barrio for opposing communism. Once devoted revolutionaries themselves but disillusioned by the Castro government’s repressive tactics, they fled to the US. The permanent losses they suffered—of home, country, and loved ones, all within forty-eight hours—haunted her multigenerational family as they reclaimed their lives and freedom in 1967 New Hampshire. There, they fed each other stories of their scrappy barrio—some of which Hebra Flaster has shared on All Things Considered—to resurrect their lost world and fortify themselves for a daunting task: building a new life in a foreign land.

Weaving pivotal events in Cuba–US history with her viejos’—elders’—stories of surviving political upheaval, impossible choices, and “refugeedom,” Property of the Revolution celebrates the indomitable spirit and wisdom of the women warriors who led the family out of Cuba, shaped its rebirth as Cuban Americans, and helped Ana grow up hopeful, future-facing—American. But what happens when deeply buried childhood memories resurface, demanding an adult’s reckoning?

Here’s how the fiercest love, the most stubborn will, and the power of family put nine new Americans back on their feet.

A Necklace of Ears by Alberto Roblest

After leaving the artificial charm of Las Vegas behind, Sergio makes a living working at a military base. While repairing houses and maintaining the complex's gardens, he enters the lives of characters as diverse as married women in need of a sexual encounter--who are marked by the absence of their husbands at the front--and veterans who carry the echoes of war, facing ghosts that never fade away. In a bold narrative game, the reader becomes an accomplice to the clandestine encounters and gossip of the military base.

With a provocative tone, Alberto Roblest invites us to witness the human dynamics that unfold in this microcosm: the unbridled flirtation of the playboy protagonist and the stories that are whispered in the shadows. As relationships blossom and wither, Sergio is presented as an enigma: in sudden dreams--or hazy memories--we find him wandering through the desert, a collar made of ears hanging from his neck. The haunting question persists: to whom do these ears belong?

Expertly translated from the original Spanish edition, Collar de orejas, by Dillon Scalzo, the novel combines detailed descriptions with reflections on today's society to graphically explore the reality of many hard-working migrants facing harsh conditions in the United States.

April 2025 Latinx Releases

On Sale April 1

Covert Joy by Clarice Lispector | ADULT FICTION

This radiant selection of Clarice Lispector's best and best-loved stories includes such familiar favorites as "The Smallest Woman in the World,""Love," "Family Ties," and "The Egg and the Chicken." Lispector's luminous regard for life's small revelatory incidents is legendary, and here her genius is concentrated in a fizzing, portable volume.

Covert Joy offers the particular bliss a book can bring that she expresses in the title story: Joy would always be covert for me... Sometimes I'd sit in the hammock, swinging with the book open on my lap, not touching it, in the purest ecstasy.I was no longer a girl with a book: I was a woman with her lover

Bebé AMA a Mamá / Baby Loves Mom by Chela de la Vega | Illustrated by Teresa Martínez | PICTURE BOOK

A heartwarming and delightful exploration of love, the story takes place in various settings in Latin America and the United States, creating a rich and engaging experience for babies and toddlers.

Through charming illustrations and simple, expressive text, the book celebrates the special bond between babies and their mothers. From playful moments to soothing bedtime routines, Bebé Ama a Mamá / Baby Loves Mom captures the universal language of love, making it a perfect read for families looking to embrace both English and Spanish in their little one's early learning journey.

Gloria by Andrés Felipe Solano | Translated by Will Vanderhyden | ADULT FICTION

It is a bright spring Saturday: April 11, 1970. The famous Argentine singer Sandro is about to become the first Latin American to perform at Madison Square Garden, and Gloria will be one of the lucky attendees at what will be a legendary concert. At just twenty years old, the young woman walks through the electric streets of New York City full of hope and possibility. The disturbing images she recently encountered at her job at a photographic laboratory, the trauma of a father who was murdered when she was a child, and even the long-term prospects of her relationship with Tigre, her irascible boyfriend, are problems for another day. This day should be perfect and should last forever. Which it will, in surprising and unexpected ways.

Five decades later, Gloria’s son reflects on his mother's life and realizes that their formative years—imprinted as they are by sojourns in New York at exactly the same age—are a bridge between generations that draws the pair closer through a shared sense of longing and potential.

Takes One to Know One by Lissette Decos | ADULT FICTION

Daniela is risk-averse, blazer-obsessed, and likes to be taken seriously. So when her record label job is on the line, she's prepared to do anything to keep it. Except for working with the genre of music she hates most: reggaeton. It's supposed to inspire sensual hip-swinging dance moves and Dani's hips do not swing--not like that anyway. Out of desperation, Dani lies and says she loves reggaeton. But not only does Dani get to keep her job, she gets a ticket to Puerto Rico . . . on a mission to clean up the scandalous image of international reggaeton singer Rene 'El Rico' Rodriguez.

Despite her best act, Dani's dislike of his music and Rene's prickly disposition is palpable, resulting in them butting heads at every turn. Yet as the two spend more time together under the island's sizzling sun, Dani realizes there's more to Rene than his rough edges and good looks. The man that many only see as a sex icon actually cares about his music, community, and culture. Against her will, she slowly begins finding him harder to hate. And before she knows it, Rene is teaching Dani how to find the rhythm of the music and learn to let go. But will she ever be ready to acknowledge the heat growing between them and put her heart on the line?

Frida Kahlo's Flower Crown by Nydia Armendia-Sánchez | Illustrated by Loris Lora | PICTURE BOOK

Like a seed / Frida sprouted /
And burst through the earth where / the coyotl once foraged.
Coyoacán was the place where Frida grew.

Told through the language and imagery of the native Mexican flowers and plants comes the life of acclaimed and beloved artist Frida Kahlo. Like a flower, Frida blossomed, wilted, was crushed, survived, and thrived, growing into one of the most celebrated Indigenous painters.

This poetic and empowering picture book, written by Nydia Armendia-Sánchez and illustrated by Pura Belpré Honor awardee Loris Lora, features the very flora Frida grew in her garden, bought at the market in her hometown, painted in her famous portraits, and wore proudly in a crown around her head.

A Carnival of Atrocities by Natalia García Freire | Translated by Victor Meadowcroft | ADULT FICTION

Cocuán, a desolate town nestled between the hot jungle and the frigid Andes, is about to slip away from memory. This is where Mildred was born, and where everything she had—her animals, her home, her lands—was taken from her after her mother’s death. Years later, a series of strange events, disappearances, and outbursts of collective delirium will force its residents to reckon with the legend of old Mildred. Once again, they will feel the shadow of death that has hung over the town ever since she was wronged. The voices of nine characters—Mildred, Ezequiel, Agustina, Manzi, Carmen, Víctor, Baltasar, Hermosina, and Filatelio—tell us of the past and present of that doomed place and Mildred's fate. Natalia García Freire’s vivid language blurs the lines between dreams and reality and transports the reader to the hypnotic Andean universe of Ecuador.

City of Smoke and Sea by Malia Marquez | ADULT FICTION

Queenie Rivers was raised by her grandparents in coastal Los Angeles. As she approaches thirty, her erratic lifestyle is forced back on course by a car accident and her grandmother's intervention.

But her recovery is interrupted by a break-in and Gran's death. Gran's last act was to set Queenie up with a job at an upscale seaside bistro with a shady reputation--the owner of which, it turns out, was once a close friend. As Queenie digs into Gran's past for answers about the break-in, the murder, and the unnerving circumstances surrounding the restaurant and her new boss, she discovers that her grandmother, a Romani Holocaust survivor, kept many secrets, some of them otherworldly--secrets that become hers to unravel when she becomes a suspect in Gran's murder case.

On Sale April 8

Creepy Campfire Stories: Frights to Tell at Night by Anastasia Garcia | Illustrated by Teo Skaffa | MIDDLE GRADE

The great outdoors has never been so terrifying! Featuring iconic landscapes like the Grand Canyon and Redwood National Park, this book will haunt your dreams long after the last ember of the campfire has faded. Here are just a few of the super-scary stories inside:

• A strange museum that won't stay open after dark.

• Sinister plants with a taste for human flesh.

• Monsters hidden in the snow--friend or foe?

• Mysterious lights in the sky leave messages in a cornfield.

• A winged creature warns of impending doom.

On Sale April 15

Snap! Crunch! Munch? by Diana Castillo |

A little boy comes down for family dinner. There’s food for each member of his picky family: black beans, plantains, flan, and more. Soon his imagination is filled with lions, elephants, and flamingos slurping, crunching, and munching on a delicious dinner.

This early reader graphic novel is perfect for 1st and 2nd graders to read on their own. The simple text and story matches everyone's favorite foods with animals, featuring fun onomatopoeia that kids will want to shout outloud. 

Carlito's Butterfly by Angèle Delaunois | Illustrated by Augusto Mora | Translated by Ann Marie Boulanger | PICTURE BOOK

Carlito has recently immigrated and he misses Mexico.

During a walk with his friend Samia, he recognizes a magnificent orange and black butterfly--a monarch! He remembers visiting a forest in Mexico where the monarch butterflies spend the winter. Through the monarch's migratory story, Carlito and Samia realize that they can have two countries to call home, just like the butterflies.

This bilingual book includes full text in both English and Spanish.

The Influencers by Anna-Marie McLemore | ADULT FICTION

What do you really know about the people you’ve made famous?

“Mother May I” Iverson has spent the past twenty-five years building a massively successful influencer empire with endearing videos featuring her five mixed-race daughters. But the girls are all grown up now, and the ramifications of having their entire childhoods commodified start to spill over into public view, especially in light of the pivotal question: Who killed May’s newlywed husband and then torched her mansion to cover it up?

April is a businesswoman feuding with her mother over intellectual property; twins June and July are influencers themselves, threatening to overtake May’s spotlight; January is a theater tech who steers clear of her mother and the limelight; and the youngest . . . well, March has somehow completely disappeared. As the days pass post-murder, everyone has an opinion—the sisters, May, a mysterious “friend of the family,” and the collective voice of the online audience watching the family’s every move—with suspicion flying every direction.

Cómo decirle hola a una lombriz: Primera guía al aire libre (How to Say Hello to a Worm: A First Guide to Outside) by Kari Percival | Translated by Yanitzia Canetti | PICTURE BOOK

The beautiful simplicity of a garden is depicted through digital woodcut illustrations and engaging nonfiction text presented as a series of sweet questions and gentle replies. Less of a traditional how-to and more of a how-to-appreciate, this soothingly sparse text paints an inviting and accessible picture of what a garden offers. And with an all-child cast, the absence of an adult presence empowers readers to view the garden and its creatures through their own eyes, driven by curiosity and wonder.

This delightful book embodies the magic of gardening and encourages all readers, from those who LOVE the outdoors to those with hesitation, to interact with nature at their own, comfortable pace.

Futbolista by Jonny Garza Villa | YOUNG ADULT

Gabriel Piña knows who he is: a college goalkeeper, a future Liga MX or MLS star, and definitely straight. He's starting his freshman year with a lot of eyes on him and even more potential, but he's got this. Nothing will have him straying off the path to greatness.

That is, until his philosophy classmate Vale volunteers to tutor him. Vale, the same guy who Gabi, in a moment of history repeating itself, might've kissed very briefly--and only once--just to help him out at a party. Vale, the smart, supportive, compassionate new friend with beautiful brown eyes and a smile that keeps Gabi, for completely inexplicable reasons, constantly in a daydream.

As a friendship blooms and the two spend more and more time together, Gabi finally begins to recognize something about himself: maybe he's not as straight as he thought he was. But a larger and darker realization lingers. Someone like Gabi--a brown, Mexican futbolista with dreams of playing for El Tri--can't also be bisexual. He's seen the way his teammates and community react to queerness in their sport. It would be the exact type of straying off path that destroys his future.

Or, maybe Gabi could be brave enough to embrace all those parts of himself and forge his own path, one that includes a boyfriend and the beautiful game.

Tío and Tío: The Ring Bearers by Ross Mathews and Dr. Wellinthon García-Mathews | Illustrated by Tommy Doyle | PICTURE BOOK

Evan and Andy are excited to visit Mexico for their uncles’ wedding—and their parents are excited that the boys will have a chance to experience the culture, practice their Spanish, and learn responsibility as ring bearers in the ceremony. Once they arrive, Evan and Andy just want to play soccer, swim, and eat all the great food. However, once the festivities are in full swing and the boys witness the love and happiness between their two tíos, they quickly embrace their role in their uncles’ very special day.

This debut picture book written by Ross Mathews and Dr. Wellinthon García-Mathews, and illustrated by Tommy Doyle, reminds us about the importance of love, family, and embracing one’s cultural identity.

Latinx Comics Studies: Critical and Creative Crossings Edited by Fernanda Díaz-Basteris & Maite Urcaregui | NONFICTION

Latinx Comics Studies: Critical and Creative Crossings offers an intersectional and interdisciplinary approach to analyzing Latinx studies and comics studies. The book draws together groundbreaking critical essays, practical pedagogical reflections, and original and republished short comics. The works in this collection discuss the construction of national identity and memory, undocumented narratives, Indigenous and Afro-Latinx experiences, multiracial and multilingual identities, transnational and diasporic connections, natural disasters and unnatural colonial violence, feminist and queer interventions, Latinx futurities, and more. Together, the critical and creative works in this collection begin to map out the emerging and evolving field of Latinx comics studies and to envision what might be possible in and through Latinx comics.

How to Reach the Moon by Nicolás Schuff | Illustrated by Ana Sender | Translated by Lawrence Schimel | PICTURE BOOK

Emilio loves spending vacations out in the forest at his abuelo's house. The woods are mysterious, and Abuelo and Emilio can dine outside by the light of a lantern every night. And then, best of all, Abuelo tells his fantastical stories! One night, when there's a full moon, Abuelo suggests they go and meet the moon. At first, Emilio isn't sure he's serious--but Abuelo is a true adventurer! And so the two, boy and grandfather, set off on their mission. But what creatures might await them in the forest? And will they really get to see the moon?

Cristina Plays by Micaela Chirif | Illustrated by Paula Ortiz | Translated by Lawrence Schimel | PICTURE BOOK

Cristina explores ordinary tasks like eating and tidying and makes curious discoveries before tumbling into sleep and visiting a fantastical dream world. Cristina Plays sweeps the reader into a clever game where Cristina might be a toy rabbit in a doll house or the child playing with it.

On Sale April 22

The Reel Wish by Yamile Saied Méndez | MIDDLE GRADE

Ballet is Florencia del Lago's entire world. After years of hard work, she is chosen as Clara in the winter production of The Nutcracker. Not only is she the youngest dancer to receive such an honor but also the first Latina. She's on track to be recruited by the best ballet companies.

Unfortunately, she suffers a panic attack on opening night--on stage, in front of everyone. And then Selena, Florencia's best friend, steps right into the role to replace her. Just like that, Florencia's whole world falls apart--the ballet studio expels her, and her best friend turns on her, tormenting her on social media and in real life.

But even though the one thing she was driven toward has come to an end, therapy and family support help Florencia open up to new experiences. She notices people at school she's never paid attention to before, and she even stumbles upon an Irish dance school and decides to give it a try. Can a new passion for Irish dance help Florencia find the joy of performing on the stage that she lost that fateful winter night?

Don't miss the Spanish-language edition of this book, El Deseo de Mi Corazón.

Echoes of the Water War: Legacies of Cochabamba, Bolivia by Oscar Olivera | NONFICTION

Water is life! From the frontlines of the greatest popular rebellion against the privatization of water comes the triumphant grassroots story of ordinary people in Cochabamba, Bolivia who became water warriors. As Echoes of Cochabamba shows in vivid detail, the 2001 "water wars" was an explosion of democracy and human rights regained by the masses, which won popular control of water supply and defied all odds by driving out the transnational corporation that had stolen their water in the first place.

Oscar Olivera, a trade union machinist who helped shape and lead a movement that brought thousands of ordinary people to the streets, powerfully conveys the perspective of a committed participant in a victorious and inspirational rebellion.

With hard-won political savvy, Olivera reflects on major themes that emerged from the war over water: the fear and isolation that Cochabambinos faced with a spirit of solidarity and mutual aid; the challenges of democratically administering the city's water supply; and the impact of the water wars on subsequent resistance.

If We Were a Movie by Zakiya N. Jamal | YOUNG ADULT

Lights. Camera. Love?

Rochelle “the Shell” Coleman is laser focused on only three things: becoming valedictorian, getting into Wharton, and, of course, taking down her annoyingly charismatic nemesis and only academic competition, Amira Rodriguez. However, despite her stellar grades, Rochelle’s college application is missing that extra special something: a job.

When Rochelle gets an opportunity to work at Horizon Cinemas, the beloved Black-owned movie theater, she begrudgingly jumps at the chance to boost her chances at getting into her dream school. There’s only one problem: Amira works there…and is also her boss.

Rochelle feels that working with Amira is its own kind of horror movie, but as the two begin working closely together, Rochelle starts to see Amira in a new light, one that may have her beginning to actually…like her?

But Horizon’s in trouble, and when mysterious things begin happening that make Horizon’s chances of staying open slimmer, it’s up to the employees to solve the mystery before it’s too late, but will love also find its way into the spotlight?

The Summer I Ate the Rich by Maika Moulite & Maritza Moulite | YOUNG ADULT

Brielle Petitfour loves to cook. But with a chronically sick mother and bills to pay, becoming a chef isn’t exactly a realistic career path.

When Brielle’s mom suddenly loses her job, Brielle steps in and uses her culinary skills to earn some extra money. The rich families who love her cooking praise her use of unique flavors and textures, which keep everyone guessing what’s in Brielle’s dishes. The secret ingredient? Human flesh.

Written by the storytelling duo Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite, The Summer I Ate the Rich is a modern-day fable inspired by Haitian zombie lore that scrutinizes the socioeconomic and racial inequity that is the foundation of our society. Just like Brielle’s clients, it will have you asking: What’s for dinner?

Juana y Lucas: Grandes problemas by Juana Medina | Translated by Eida DelRisco | PICTURE BOOK

Juana’s life is just about perfect. She lives in the beautiful city of Bogotá with her two most favorite people in the world: her mami and her dog, Lucas. Lately, though, things have become a little less perfect. Mami has a new hairdo and a new amigo named Luis with whom she has been spending a LOT of time. He is kind and teaches Juana about things like photography and jazz music, but sometimes Juana can’t help wishing things would go back to the way they were before. When Mami announces that she and Luis are getting married and that they will all be moving to a new casa, Juana is quite distraught. Lucky for her, though, some things will never change—like how much Mami loves her. Based on author-illustrator Juana Medina’s own childhood in Colombia, this joyful series is sure to resonate with readers of all ages.

Property of the Revolution: From a Cuban Barrio to a New Hampshire Mill Town by Ana Hebra Flaster | NONFICTION

Ana Hebra Flaster was six years old when her working-class family was kicked out of their Havana barrio for opposing communism. Once devoted revolutionaries themselves but disillusioned by the Castro government’s repressive tactics, they fled to the US. The permanent losses they suffered—of home, country, and loved ones, all within forty-eight hours—haunted her multigenerational family as they reclaimed their lives and freedom in 1967 New Hampshire. There, they fed each other stories of their scrappy barrio—some of which Hebra Flaster has shared on All Things Considered—to resurrect their lost world and fortify themselves for a daunting task: building a new life in a foreign land.

Weaving pivotal events in Cuba–US history with her viejos’—elders’—stories of surviving political upheaval, impossible choices, and “refugeedom,” Property of the Revolution celebrates the indomitable spirit and wisdom of the women warriors who led the family out of Cuba, shaped its rebirth as Cuban Americans, and helped Ana grow up hopeful, future-facing—American. But what happens when deeply buried childhood memories resurface, demanding an adult’s reckoning?

On Sale April 29

Latine Herbalism: A Beginner's Guide to Modern Curanderismo, Healing Plants, and Folk Traditions of the Americas by Iosellev Castañeda | NONFICTION

Delve into the healing traditions of Latine folk herbalism and modern curanderismo with this all-in-one guidebook offering a fusion of time-honored and contemporary practices. Latine Herbalism details the medicinal power of herbs and plants, their origins, and their most common uses while also exploring the folk traditions from sacred locations in the US, Mexico, and South America. This book even goes one step further, helping you navigate through the most common afflictions of body and mind, from digestive issues to stress management and beyond, with remedios y rituales such as:

• Breath vibrations

• Heart vibrations

• Spirit of the flowers

• Moon energy

• And more

Authored by a passionate advocate and practitioner, this book explores and honors the nuanced realms of curanderismo and Latine herbalism.

Dreams in Times of War / Soñar En Tiempos de Guerra: Stories / Cuentos by Oswaldo Estrada| Translated by Sarah Pollack | ADULT FICTION

In twelve stories, Dreams in Times of War / Soñar en tiempos de guerra brilliantly fictionalizes the lives of Latinx immigrants in the United States. The stories explore themes of violence including toxic masculinity, domestic abuse, and (trans)gender discrimination but also the alternative communities the characters form that offer solidarity and hope. Readers will celebrate this unflinching but heartfelt look at diverse immigrant experiences in the twenty-first century United States.

Theory of the Rearguard: How to Survive Contemporary Art (and Almost Everything Else) by Iván de la Nuez | Translated by Ellen Jones | NONFICTION

Theory of the Rearguard examines how contemporary art is in tension with survival, rather than in relation to life. In the twentieth century, Peter Bürger’s Theory of the Avant-Garde was a cult book focused on the two main tasks that art demanded at the time: to break its representation and to destroy the barrier that separated it from life.

Forty years later, The Theory of the Rearguard is an ironic manifesto about contemporary art and its failures, even though Iván de la Nuez does not waste his time mourning it or disguising it. He argues that our times are not characterized by the distance between art and life, but by a tension between art and survival, which is the continuation of life by any means necessary.

In the twenty-first century, Iván de la Nuez examines art in relationship to politics, iconography, and literature. This austere and sharp book—in which Duchamp stumbles upon Lupe, the revolution upon the museum, Paul Virilio upon Joan Fontcuberta or Fukuyama upon Michael Jackson—wonders if contemporary art will ever end. Because if it were mortal—“just as mortal as everything it invokes or examines under its magnifying glass”—de la Nuez argues would be worth writing an epitaph for it as he has done in this sparkling book of art criticism.

Fix-It Familia by Lucky Diaz | Illustrated by Micah Player | PICTURE BOOK

No job is too big, no task is too small. We’re the Fix It Familia. We help one, we help all!

Chavo and his family are always there to lend a helping hand. So when the main parade float crashes at a neighborhood fiesta, Chavo has the perfect plan to help his community. With a load of creativity and a truck full of love, nothing can stop Chavo’s ideas from becoming reality! 

This empowering tale of resilience, community, and the power of creativity is perfect for lovers of all things construction tools and trucks. 

The book includes Spanish words and phrases throughout and an author’s note from Lucky Diaz about his inspiration behind the story.

A Necklace of Ears by Alberto Roblest | ADULT FICTION

After leaving the artificial charm of Las Vegas behind, Sergio makes a living working at a military base. While repairing houses and maintaining the complex's gardens, he enters the lives of characters as diverse as married women in need of a sexual encounter--who are marked by the absence of their husbands at the front--and veterans who carry the echoes of war, facing ghosts that never fade away.

In a bold narrative game, the reader becomes an accomplice to the clandestine encounters and gossip of the military base. With a provocative tone, Alberto Roblest invites us to witness the human dynamics that unfold in this microcosm: the unbridled flirtation of the playboy protagonist and the stories that are whispered in the shadows.

As relationships blossom and wither, Sergio is presented as an enigma: in sudden dreams--or hazy memories--we find him wandering through the desert, a collar made of ears hanging from his neck. The haunting question persists: to whom do these ears belong?

Book Review: 'On the Wings of la Noche' by Vanessa L. Torres

Jamie Anderson said, “Grief, I've learned, is really just love. It's all the love you want to give, but cannot.” Naturally, a story that revolves around grief is also one that revolves around love. On the Wings of la Noche draws this connection between these two very intense emotions wonderfully, introducing us to a character who tragically lost her first love and must navigate a world without her person. 

Estrella Villanueva, best known as Noche, witnesses the death of her girlfriend Dante on a cold winter night at Lake Superior. Since then, Noche doesn’t know how to adapt to a life without Dante, especially since she is not entirely gone. Dante’s spirit still roams the earth, and Noche knows this because she is the one responsible for it. 

Noche is a Lechuza, a young woman who transforms into an owl at night and delivers souls to the afterlife; however, her duty becomes more complex after the love of her life requires her services. Noche is incapable of saying goodbye to Dante’s soul, so they spend their nights by the lake that swallowed her lover’s body, conversing in their ethereal forms. During the day, Noche must go back to school and experience life without Dante, but she is able to withstand it because of the promise of seeing her love again at night. Unfortunately, Dante’s soul is more and more dispersed with every encounter, and Noche doesn’t know how to stop her from fading. 

Besides the one with Dante, Torres introduces the reader to other relationships pivotal to Noche’s life. The one with her childhood best friend, Julien, who carries many secrets and is affected by Dante’s death too; the one with her new biology class’s lab partner, Jax, who makes her heart flutter in ways she had forgotten; and the one with her parents, who know about her Lechuza-self but can’t understand much of what she is going through. Every single connection is fundamental for our main character’s growth and navigation through grief. Torres develops each of Noche’s interactions organically, even with the awkwardness of a 17-year-old, making readers feel immediately drawn to all the characters. 

“With this, the author reminds readers of the importance of allowing ourselves to grieve and surrender to the things we cannot change. ”

The most crucial connection, however, is between Noche and her Lechuza persona. The immense loss she faces makes her question her own identity. Noche is Dante’s girlfriend, Julien’s best friend, Jax’s lab partner, and her parent’s daughter, but who is she outside all these relationships? Noche can’t ignore how alone she feels inside her feathers, knowing nobody in her circle could fully understand her experience. Besides, the lines between her owl and human self begin to blur, and Noche can’t tell where Estrella ends and her Lechuza begins. This conflict of identity is a great device that Torres uses to show us that our main character is not only grieving Dante but also her life before becoming a Lechuza, creating a beautiful exploration of self-acceptance. With this, the author reminds readers of the importance of allowing ourselves to grieve and surrender to the things we cannot change. 

On the Wings of la Noche is a conversation about forgiveness, identity, and reconciliation, explored by a 17-year-old shapeshifter facing a heartbreaking tragedy. Torres will make you believe in love again while holding your hand through a journey of immense grief. It aches, it makes you blush, it makes you cry, it makes you laugh. Her prose drives you through all the inevitable and necessary emotions one feels when one loves, the ones that make us human—the same ones that make Noche human even when spreading her wings at night. 

---

Roxanna Cardenas Colmenares is a Venezuelan writer living in New York City who loves to consume, study, and create art. She explores multiple genres in her writing, with a special interest in horror and sci-fi, while working on her B.A. in English with a Creative Writing concentration. 

Her work has made her a two-time recipient of the James Tolan Student Writing Award for her critical essays analyzing movies. She has also won The Henry Roth Award in Fiction, The Esther Unger Poetry Prize, and The Allan Danzig Memorial Award in Victorian Literature.

In her free time, she likes to watch movies, dance, and draw doodles that she hopes to be brave enough to share one day.

Most Anticipated March 2025 Releases

Daylight saving time is here! We are so excited to go out and enjoy the longer days with one of the many great books releasing this month. Take a look at our list of most anticipated books to find a good book to fill your daylight hours.

Like a Hammer: Poets on Mass Incarceration Edited by Diana Marie Delgado

Like a Hammer is an anthology of poems that seeks to address the US prison-industrial complex and the often negative and long-lasting impact it has on the imprisoned and their communities. The book presents hope for a better future and aims to organize communities to demand change.

Contributors include: Hanif Abdurraqib, Rhionna Anderson, Brian Batchelor, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Marina Bueno, Cody Bruce, Marcelo Hernandez Castillo, Natalie Diaz, Tongo Eisen-Martin, Nikky Finney, Kennedy A. Gisege, Gustavo Guerra, Jessica Hill, Vicki Hicks, Randall Horton, Sandra Jackson, Catherine LaFleur, Ada Limón, Sarah Lynn Maatsch, Christopher Malec, Eduardo Martinez, John Murillo, Angel Nafis, Kenneth Nadeau, Leeann Parker, James Pearl, Christina Pernini, Roque Raquel Salas Rivera, Patrick Rosal, Nicole Sealey, Evie Shockley, Patricia Smith, Sin á Tes Souhaits, Vanessa Angélica Villarreal, Erica "Ewok" Walker, Candace Williams, and SHE/p>

The Tokyo Suite by Giovana Madalosso | Translated by Bruna Dantas Lobato

It's a seemingly ordinary morning when Maju, a nanny, boards a bus with Cora, the young girl she's been caring for, and disappears. The abduction, an act as impulsive as it is extreme, sets off a series of events that will force Maju and Cora’s parents to confront their deepest fears and desires.

The Tokyo Suite is the anticipated English-language debut of acclaimed Brazilian writer Giovana Madalosso. It explores themes of maternal guilt, societal expectations, and the search for personal identity.

Dichos En Nichos by Sage Vogel | Illustrated by Jim Vogel and Christen Vogel

Sage Vogel's debut story collection features ten interconnected stories inspired by original dichos--pithy folk sayings and proverbs. The dichos offer guidance, caution, and comfort as the townsfolk of an archetypal 1950s Northern New Mexico village navigate themes of identity, community, loss, and love.

Created in collaboration with each story is a nicho--an oil painting set in an antique frame--created by renowned Southwestern artists Christen Vogel and Jim Vogel. These fine artworks serve as both vibrant altars and vivid windows into a village brimming with the dynamic rhythms of life, from poetry and music to tragedy and scandal.

The Anatomy of Magic by J. C. Cervantes

Lilian Estrada seemingly has it all: an ob-gyn star on the rise, a master at balancing work with whirlwind romances and part of a family of fiercely loyal and exceptional women, all bound together by an extraordinary secret. The Estrada women each possess a unique power, and Lily shines with the rare gift to manipulate memories. Yet not even her mystical abilities can shield her from a harrowing event at the hospital, one that sends her powers--and her confidence--spiraling out of control.

Seeking solace, Lily retreats to her family's ancestral home in Mexico, only to find herself face-to-face with a ghost from her past--Sam, the first love she never forgot. Nearly a decade since she last saw him, Sam is hardly the boy she once knew, and as old flames spark to life, Lily must navigate the mysteries of their shared history and the depths of her own heart if she hopes to control her unpredictable magic.

The Latina Anti-Diet: A Dietitian's Guide to Authentic Health that Celebrates Culture and Full-Flavor Living by Dalina Soto

As a registered dietitian, Dalina Soto understands the pros and cons of intuitive eating. As a first-generation Dominican American, she’s also seen firsthand how this movement has only catered to a certain demographic. With her easy-to-follow CHULA method, Soto teaches us how to

• Challenge negative thoughts
• Honor our bodies and health
• Understand our needs
• Listen to our hunger
• Acknowledge our emotions

She gives us tools to confront diet culture and the whitewashing of food so we can go back to eating what we love while managing our health.

Engaging and incisive, The Latina Anti-Diet is for everyone who’s been told to lay off the tortillas and swap their white rice for brown. Soto shows us that food is so much more than calories; it’s about celebrating our culture and living a life full of flavor.

The Search Committee by José Skinner

When Minerva Mondragón, candidate for a tenure-track Border Studies position at Bravo University, suggests Professor Quigley take her across the border for lunch before the interview, he acquiesces uneasily. He can't afford to scare her off, so doesn't mention he hasn't crossed over in more than a year because of the drug cartel-related violence.

But lunch in the fictional border town of La Reina leads to shocking consequences for the candidate and her hapless guide. Minerva never returns from the restaurant's bathroom and Quigley, feeling guilty, convinces himself that she has decided to disappear.

He returns to the United States without reporting her missing or mentioning the trip to his colleagues. Meanwhile, the applicant finds herself bound and gagged in the back of a taxi, victim of a kidnapping.

A long-time professor of literature and creative writing in South Texas, José Skinner writes darkly comedic scenes with an insider's understanding of university and border life and the narco violence that has disrupted them.

March 2025 Latinx Releases

On Sale March 4

Guatemalan Rhapsody: Stories by Jared Lemus | SHORT STORIES

Ranging from a custodian at an underfunded college to a medicine man living in a temple dedicated to San Simon, the patron saint of alcohol and cigarettes, the characters in these stories find themselves at defining moments in their lives, where sacrifices may be required of them, by them, or for them.

Across this collection, Lemus’s characters test their loyalty to family, community, and country, illuminating the ties that both connect us and constrain us. Guatemalan Rhapsody explores how we journey from the circumstances that we are forged by, and whether the ability to change our fortunes lies in our own hands or in those of another. Revealing the places where beauty, desperation, love, violence, and hope exist simultaneously, Jared Lemus’s debut establishes him as a major new voice in the form.

The Tokyo Suite by Giovana Madalosso | Translated by Bruna Dantas Lobato | ADULT FICTION

It's a seemingly ordinary morning when Maju, a nanny, boards a bus with Cora, the young girl she's been caring for, and disappears. The abduction, an act as impulsive as it is extreme, sets off a series of events that will force each character to confront their deepest fears and desires.

Fernanda, Cora's mother, is a successful executive who is so engulfed in her own personal crisis that she initially fails to notice her daughter's disappearance. Her marriage is strained, and she finds solace in an affair, distancing herself further from her family. Meanwhile, her husband, overwhelmed by the complexities of their domestic life, remains emotionally detached. As Maju navigates the streets of São Paulo with Cora, the "white army" of nannies, a term coined by Fernanda, seems to watch her every move, heightening her sense of paranoia and urgency.

Speak Up, Santiago! by Julio Anta | Illustrated by Gabi Mendez | MIDDLE GRADE

Santi is excited to spend the summer in Hillside Valley, meeting the local kids, eating his Abuela's delicious food, exploring! There's just one problem—Santi doesn't speak Spanish that well and it feels like everyone he meets in Hillside does. There's Sol (she's a soccer player who really loves books), Willie, (the artist), Alejandro (Santi's unofficial tour guide!), and Nico (Alejandro's brother and blue belt in karate). In between all of their adventures in Hillside, Santi can't help but worry about his Spanish-what if he can't keep up?! Does that mean he's not Colombian enough? Will Santi find his confidence and his voice? Or will his worries cost him his new friendships...and the chance to play in HIlliside's summer soccer tournament?!

The Unworthy by Agustina Bazterrica | Translated by Sarah Moses | ADULT FICTION

From her cell in a mysterious convent, a woman writes the story of her life in whatever she can find—discarded ink, dirt, and even her own blood. A lower member of the Sacred Sisterhood, deemed an unworthy, she dreams of ascending to the ranks of the Enlightened at the center of the convent and of pleasing the foreboding Superior Sister. Outside, the world is plagued by catastrophe—cities are submerged underwater, electricity and the internet are nonexistent, and bands of survivors fight and forage in a cruel, barren landscape. Inside, the narrator is controlled, punished, but safe.

But when a stranger makes her way past the convent walls, joining the ranks of the unworthy, she forces the narrator to consider her long-buried past—and what she may be overlooking about the Enlightened. As the two women grow closer, the narrator is increasingly haunted by questions about her own past, the environmental future, and her present life inside the convent. How did she get to the Sacred Sisterhood? Why can’t she remember her life before? And what really happens when a woman is chosen as one of the Enlightened?

Like a Hammer: Poets on Mass Incarceration Edited by Diana Marie Delgado | Foreward by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor | POETRY

These powerful poems of witness seek to address the oppressive systems that make up the US prison-industrial complex, revealing cracks in a criminal punishment system that too often appears unchangeable. The impacts of that system reverberate through lives and across generations. The poets gathered here aim to foreground the real experiences of people touched by the system, to upend dominant narratives, shine light on injustice, and act as a fulcrum around which to organize communities in support of change.

Like A Hammer explores how art and imagination can serve as vehicles for endurance, offering us the hope to envision a better future.

Dichos En Nichos by Sage Vogel | Illustrated by Jim Vogel and Christen Vogel |ADULT FICTION

Sage Vogel's debut story collection invites readers into the heart of an archetypal 1950s Northern New Mexico village, where the fruit orchards, arroyo roads, adobe homes, and even pigsties hold tales of wit, romance, woe, and wisdom.

Dichos en Nichos contains ten interconnected stories inspired by original dichos--pithy folk sayings and proverbs. Vogel's dichos--presented in both Spanish and English--are shared among a colorful cast of characters. The dichos offer guidance, caution, and comfort as the townsfolk navigate themes of identity, community, loss, and love. From tales of sacrifice and survival to those of intimacy and independence, each story is a testament to the strength and resilience of the human spirit.

Created in collaboration with each story is a nicho--an oil painting set in an antique frame--created by renowned Southwestern artists Christen Vogel and Jim Vogel. These fine artworks serve as both vibrant altars and vivid windows into a village brimming with the dynamic rhythms of life, from poetry and music to tragedy and scandal.

On Sale March 11

Home by Matt de la Peña | Illustrated by Loren Long | PICTURE BOOK

Home is a tired lullaby
and a late-night traffic that mumbles in
through a crack in your curtains.

Home is the faint trumpet of a distant barge
as your grandfather casts his line
from the edge of his houseboat.

So begins this stirring celebration of home in its many forms. For home is an idea more profound than the walls we build up around ourselves. It’s the family that shows its love through small gestures every day. It’s the community that sees one another through hard times. And it’s the wonder of the natural world, a refuge we share with every living thing on Earth.

Don't miss the Spanish-language edition of this book, Hogar.

Little Cloud's Big Dream by Ixtzel Arreola | Illustrated by Martina Liebig | PICTURE BOOK

A little cloud named Re wishes to grow as big as the clouds floating over the sea. She learns from a passing cloud how to collect dew and water and soon she has grown BIG! As she travels, she even soaks up some droplets from the petals of a beautiful flower and the two become fast friends. But then something happens that Re never expected–she starts to storm!

After storming across land and sea, Re grows small again and returns to Flower. At first the cloud is afraid her new friend won’t recognize her, but Flower assures her “from dew to rain to thunder, you are still you.”

An imaginative look into the water cycle through a little cloud and the feelings she experiences as she grows and changes.

The Anatomy of Magic by J. C. Cervantes | ADULT FICTION

Lilian Estrada seemingly has it all: an ob-gyn star on the rise, a master at balancing work with whirlwind romances and part of a family of fiercely loyal and exceptional women, all bound together by an extraordinary secret. The Estrada women each possess a unique power, and Lily shines with the rare gift to manipulate memories. Yet not even her mystical abilities can shield her from a harrowing event at the hospital, one that sends her powers--and her confidence--spiraling out of control.

Seeking solace, Lily retreats to her family's ancestral home in Mexico, only to find herself face-to-face with a ghost from her past--Sam, the first love she never forgot. Nearly a decade since she last saw him, Sam is hardly the boy she once knew, and as old flames spark to life, Lily must navigate the mysteries of their shared history and the depths of her own heart if she hopes to control her unpredictable magic.

Vanishing Daughters by Cynthia Pelayo | ADULT FICTION

It started the night journalist Briar Thorne's mother died in their rambling old mansion on Chicago's South Side.

The nightmares of a woman in white pleading to come home, music switched on in locked rooms, and the panicked fear of being swallowed by the dark...Bri has almost convinced herself that these stirrings of dread are simply manifestations of grief and not the beyond-world of ghostly impossibilities her mother believed in. And more tangible terrors still lurk outside the decaying Victorian greystone.

A serial killer has claimed the lives of fifty-one women in the Chicago area. When Bri starts researching the murders, she meets a stranger who tells her there's more to her sleepless nights than bad dreams--they hold the key to putting ghosts to rest and stopping a killer. But the killer has caught on and is closing in, and if Bri doesn't answer the call of the dead soon, she'll be walking among them.

America, Let Me in: A Choose Your Immigration Story by Felipe Torres Medina

Born in Colombia, Felipe Torres Medina moved to the US at the age of 21 and has spent over ten years of his life both navigating the chaos and confusion of the immigration system and explaining that craziness to the clueless Americans around him. There are few subjects that Americans have stronger opinions on. And there are few subjects that they know less about.

So, like many immigrants before him, Torres Medina sets out to do the job American-born citizens won't: make the US immigration process accessible, relatable, and, hey, a little bit funny. With an outsider's eye, an insider's affection, and a biting, humorous flair, Torres Medina invites readers from all passport lines to explore the multiple paths and potholes of moving to America, and experience just how many choices it takes to choose a new home.

Las Horas Imposibles / The Impossible Hours by Octavio Quintanilla| POETRY

In Las Horas Imposibles / The Impossible Hours, Octavio Quintanilla takes us on a profound journey to witness what it means to erase those boundaries devised by genre and politics intent on stifling memory, imagination, and creativity.

Presented in Spanish with English translations, this poetry collection comprises lyric and concrete poems--or frontextos--that explore intimacy and different shades of violence as a means to reconcile the speaker's sense of belonging in the world. From the opening poem to the last in the first section, Quintanilla captures the perilous journeys that migrants undertake crossing borders as well as the paths that lovers forge to meet their endless longing. These themes are skillfully woven by Quintanilla, guiding us back and forth across the Rio Grande to encounter the apparitions of the disappeared and to witness the willingness of many to risk life and limb for a better life. The second half of the collection is one long poem, a letter addressed to a lost lover who will never get to read the speaker's secret thoughts. Haunted by loss--of parents, of children, of the self--the speaker reaches an inevitable epiphany: "[A]nd sometimes it's hard to know / on which side of the river I stand." Stylistically, these poems destabilize our notions and expectations of genre and lyricism.

On Sale March 18

Fever Dreams of a Parasite by Pedro Iniguez | ADULT FICTION

In Fever Dreams of a Parasite Iniguez weaves haunting tales that traverse worlds both familiar and alien. Paying homage to Lovecraft, Ligotti, and Langan, these cosmic horror, weird fiction, and folk-inspired stories explore tales of outsiders, killers, and tormented souls as they struggle to survive the lurking terrors of a cold and cruel universe. With symbolism and metaphor pulled from his Latino roots, Iniguez cuts deep into the political undercurrent to expose an America rarely presented in fiction. Whether it's the desperation of poverty, the fear of deportation or the countless daily slights endured by immigrants, these tales are about people who are usually overlooked. This fresh perspective is often delivered with a twist that allows us to see the mundane with fresh eyes.

The Latina Anti-Diet: A Dietitian's Guide to Authentic Health that Celebrates Culture and Full-Flavor Living by Dalina Soto | NONFICTION

Diet culture is facing a reckoning, and intuitive eating has been leading the charge. The movement has taken the internet by storm, encouraging us to stop dieting and make food choices that feel good for our bodies rather than follow influencers and their shakes.

But intuitive eating is missing a key ingredient: culture. Like many movements, intuitive eating has become co-opted by a select few—placing the focus on “mainstream” food while discounting cultural cuisines. But how can we gain a healthy attitude toward food when our foods—our arroz, habichuelas, and plátanos—are left out of the conversation?

Dalina Soto is here to add them back to our plates.

As a registered dietitian, Soto understands the pros and cons of intuitive eating. As a first-generation Dominican American, she’s also seen firsthand how this movement has only catered to a certain demographic.

She gives us tools to confront diet culture and the whitewashing of food so we can go back to eating what we love while managing our health.

A Sky That Sings by George Steele & Anita Sanchez | Illustrated by Emily Mendoza | PICTURE BOOK

Mia and her tía are spending a sunny afternoon at the park bird-listening! Some people enjoy bird-watching but as a blind person, Mia uses her other senses to identify different birds by their unique calls and songs. She calls it bird-listening.

Mia loves naming each of the birds that she hears. Sweet! Sweet! Sweet! Is that the chipper call of a yellow warbler? At first Mia's aunt doesn't know what to expect, but with Mia's guidance, she learns to listen and enjoy the bright melodies pouring from the sky. Their adventure will take them past a lively pond, through the hush of the quiet woods, and up a breezy hilltop for a soaring encounter with Mia's favorite bird of all!

Perfect for bird lovers of every feather, A Sky That Sings invites us to open our senses to life's everyday treasures--the delights of nature and spending time with loved ones.

Variations in Blue by Adela Najarro | POETRY

The poems in Variations in Blue cycle through the traumatic residue of dysfunctional relationships, the complexities of Latinx representation through a series of ekphrastic poems, and reimagine Nicaragua as a homeland set in a volcanic landscape. Each section contains a series of poetic variations on a theme, and the poems reverberate and rotate through the indeterminacy of language. Najarro's Variations in Blue insists that the complexities of experience must be understood one version at a time, each distinctly unfolding its unique design.

Camila Núñez's Year of Disasters by Miriam Zoila Pérez | YOUNG ADULT

Cuban American Camila Núñez has always been afraid of the future. She’s been working hard to keep her anxieties in check, but with so many new experiences—her first queer love, trouble with her dog walking job, her mother’s judgments about her body, learning to drive, her father being too busy with work—there’s just so much to worry about.

So when Camila’s best friend gives her a tarot card reading for her sixteenth birthday, she believes it when the cards predict terrible things to come. As the year unfolds, the cards seem to be spot-on—is her papi having an affair? Will her best friend’s love life ruin their friendship? Are all her relationships doomed to fail?

Whether she’s ready or not, Camila will have to reckon with all the ways her fear about the future is ruining her life and learn to find peace amidst it all.

At the Island's Edge by C. I. Jerez | ADULT FICTION
As a combat medic, Lina LaSalle went to Iraq to save the lives of fellow soldiers. But when her convoy is attacked, she must set aside her identity as a healer and take a life herself.

Although she is honored as a hero when she returns to the US, Lina cannot find her footing. She is stricken with PTSD and unsure of how to support her young son, Teó, a little boy with Tourette's. As her attempts to self-medicate become harder to hide, Lina realizes she must do the toughest thing yet: ask for help.

She retreats to her parents' house in Puerto Rico, where Teó thrives under her family's care. Lina finds kinship, too--with a cousin whose dreams were also shattered by the war and with a handsome and caring veteran who sought refuge on the island and runs a neighborhood bar.

But amid the magic of the island are secrets and years of misunderstandings that could erode the very stability she's fighting for. Hope lies on the horizon, but can she keep her gaze steady?

I Want to Dance in Pants by Jess Hernandez and Ruymán Hernandez | Illustrated by Teresa Martinez | PICTURE BOOK

When a girl needs a new outfit for a special holiday party, she chooses comfort over tradition.

Ava does not love dresses. They poke and pinch, squish and squash. They just do not feel good to her. But after Ava and her family are invited to a quinceañera celebration, her mother thinks they need to go shopping for a new dress. Ava's mother loves dresses--fancy dresses, swishy dresses, dresses of all kinds.

I want to dance in pants, says Ava. Nonsense! says her mother. And off they go to shop.

After trying on dress (too itchy) after dress (too poofy) after dress (too silly), Ava finally finds what she does want to wear. It's a bright and sparkly tuxedo pantsuit. It's perfect! Her mother tells her that she will be the only girl not wearing a dress. And that's just fine with Ava. But what happens when they get to the party?

Brought to life through energetic, colorful artwork, this story serves as a reminder to readers of all ages to be comfortable in their own skin (and especially in their clothes).

On Sale March 25

The Girl and the Robot by Claribel A. Ortega & Oz Rodriguez | MIDDLE GRADE

With a little heart, you can fix anything.

Mimi Perez fixes things. Phones, tablets, speakers, printers. She gets it from her dad—helping him at the family e-repair shop was always one of Mimi’s favorite things to do. But ever since Papi was deported, there’s a lot more than electronics that need fixing in Mimi’s world. Things too big for any twelve-year-old to handle on her own.

Mimi hustles around her Brooklyn neighborhood trying to earn enough money to finally fix her family. There’s no time for school or friends, but Mimi knows it will all be worth it the day Papi comes home. Then her ex-friends approach her with a proposition: enter a robotics competition with them, and they could win $50,000. It could be her chance.

Not part of the plan? A mysterious robot crashing to earth. From space.

The robot is scared, alone, and broken, and federal agents are after her. Mimi does what any street-smart electronics repair person would do: she takes the robot home, fixes her up, and in the process, makes herself a friend.

Suddenly, Mimi is anything but alone. She’s part of a robotics team. She’s sheltering a robot. She’s dodging federal agents. And keeping all of it a secret from her mom.

rekt by Alex Gonzalez | ADULT FICTION
> be me, 26 
> about to end it all 
> feels good, man 

Once, Sammy Dominguez thought he knew how the world worked.  The ugly things in his head—his uncle’s pathetic death, his parents’ mistrust, the twisted horrors he writes for the Internet—didn’t matter, because he and his girl, Ellery, were on track for the good life in this messed-up world. 

Then a car accident changed everything.  

Spiraling with grief and guilt, Sammy scrambles for distraction. He finds it in shock-value videos of gore and violence that terrified him as a child. When someone messages him a dark web link to footage of Ellery dying, he watches—first the car crash that killed her, then hundreds of other deaths, even for people still alive. Accidents. Diseases. Suicides. Murders. 

The host site, chinsky, is sadistic, vicious, impossible.  It even seems to read his mind, manipulate his searches. But is chinsky even real? And who is Haruspx, the web handle who led him into this virtual nightmare? As Sammy watches compulsively, the darkness in his mind blooms, driving him down a twisted path to find the roots of chinsky, even if he must become a nightmare himself…

Lamentations of Nezahualcóyotl: Nahuatl Poems by Nezahualcóyotl | Illustrated by Cuauhtémoc Wetzka | Translated by Ilan Stavans |POETRY

From award-winning author, editor, and translator Ilan Stavans comes a one-of-a-kind retelling of a legendary Aztec ruler's timeless verses.

A king, a warrior, and a poet, Nezahualcóyotl was a revolutionary ahead of his time. Born in 1402, the ruler--whose name means 'hungry coyote' in the Uto-Aztecan language of Nahuatl--led the city-state of Texcoco through its age of enlightenment. His four-decade reign was among the most transformative and prosperous eras of the Aztec Empire. Today he is a hero in Mexico, seen as a mysterious, powerful, anti-colonial figure.

Brimming with longing, this epic collection of songs and poems was composed by Nezahualcóyotl with members of his illustrious court. Six centuries later, in a powerful translation by Ilan Stavans and with new illustrations by Cuauhtémoc Wetzka, twenty-two poems bring to life a young warrior's journey from exile to historical legend. Anguished and unforgettable, Lamentations of Nezahualcóyotl will thrill readers of Latin American literature for years to come.

Space Brooms! by A. G. Rodriguez| ADULT FICTION

Everyone aboard Kilgore Station is living their best life. Everyone except for Johnny Gomez.

While humans, the augmented, and aliens of all shapes and sizes enjoy exotic cuisine on the dining deck, or gamble away their credits on the entertainment deck, Johnny is elbow-deep in oily, black, alien excrement. A ‘space broom’ custodian for the entire station.

This was obviously not the life Johnny dreamt of. Ten years ago, he travelled to Kilgore, the farthest space station in our solar system, in search of fortune like everyone else. Some people are just luckier than others.

Yet his meaningless, uneventful existence is immediately turned upside down when he happens upon a tiny glass data-chit, hidden amongst the alien poop he must clean up. Unbeknownst to him, every nefarious creature in the solar system will soon be after him to claim it for their own.

With the help of his augmented roommate, a pair of smugglers and a mysterious and beautiful stranger, Johnny fights off thugs and sails as fast as possible to earth’s moon, Luna, in effort to sell the chit to the Obinna Crime Syndicate. But with assassins and mobsters on their tail, the trip is anything but a cakewalk. And Luna itself proves to be nothing like a safe haven, when Johnny’s painful past finally catches up to him…

The Search Committee by José Skinner | ADULT FICTION

Mexico is only eight miles from Bravo University. When Minerva Mondragón, candidate for a tenure-track Border Studies position, suggests Professor Quigley take her across the border for lunch before the interview, he acquiesces uneasily. He can't afford to scare her off, so doesn't mention he hasn't crossed over in more than a year because of the drug cartel-related violence.

The first two candidates have turned down the job offer, and the committee can't lose this applicant. But lunch in the fictional border town of La Reina leads to shocking consequences for the candidate and her hapless guide. Minerva never returns from the restaurant's bathroom and Quigley, feeling guilty, convinces himself that she has decided to disappear. He returns to the United States without reporting her missing or mentioning the trip to his colleagues.

Meanwhile, the applicant finds herself bound and gagged in the back of a taxi, victim of a kidnapping.

A long-time professor of literature and creative writing in South Texas, José Skinner writes darkly comedic scenes with an insider's understanding of university and border life and the narco violence that has disrupted them.