Exclusive Sneak Peek of Acclaimed Poet Elisabet Velasquez's debut, WHEN WE MAKE IT

Latinx in Publishing is pleased to exclusively reveal an excerpt from When We Make It by debut author and critically acclaimed poet Elisabet Velasquez.

An unforgettable young adult debut novel-in-verse that redefines what it means to “make it,” touching on themes of mental illness, sexual assault, food insecurity and gentrification, in the Nuyorican literary tradition of Nicholasa Mohr and the work of contemporary writer Elizabeth Acevedo.

Sarai is a first-generation Puerto Rican eighth grader who can see with clarity the truth, pain, and beauty of the world both inside and outside her Bushwick apartment. Together with her older sister Estrella, she navigates the strain of family traumas and the systemic pressures of toxic masculinity and housing insecurity in a rapidly gentrifying Brooklyn. Sarai questions the society around her, her Boricua identity, and the life she lives with determination and an open heart, learning to celebrate herself in a way that she has been denied.

When We Make It is a love letter to girls who were taught to believe they would not make it at all. The verse is evocative and insightful, and readers are sure to be swept into Sarai’s world and rooting for her long after they close the book.

Read on for an exclusive excerpt of When We Make It by Elisabet Vasquez!

Lucky

In Bushwick, the reporters double park

to shoot the latest crime scene & then bounce

quick before their news vans get tagged up.

The teachers find their car radios missing

and blame the worst student they have.

Pero, the teachers and the reporters, they get to leave.

Back to their “good” neighborhoods

with boring-ass walls and vehicles

they don’t have to piece back together like a puzzle.

They’ll have a nice dinner with their predictable family

and talk about their wack-ass day in Bushwick

& somebody will say: You’re lucky you don’t live there.

Someone else will echo: Imagine?!

& they think they can imagine because fear

got them believing they know what it means to be safe.

I mean, it’s one thing to feel danger.

& maybe it’s another thing

to work in it.

& maybe it’s another thing altogether

to live with it.

But it’s something else completely

to be the thing everyone is afraid of.

We Ain’t Afraid

Estrella says:

We ain’t afraid of nothing.

We ain’t afraid of nothing.

We ain’t afraid of nothing.

I say:

Some days though,

shit is scary.

Not gonna front

like shit ain’t scary.

Estrella says:

Damn, yo, what’s so scary?

That’s just Corner Boy Jesus and his friends.

I say:

Shit. That’s 5-0. Ayo!

They’re creeping around the corner.

I tell Estrella & the corner boys to run. Run!

Estrella & the corner boys say:

Run? We ain’t running.

Snitch? We ain’t snitching.

Estrella says:

Yo, chill, we’ll be aight.

Yo, chill, we’ll be okay.

& even when we not

we are. You know what I mean?

& I know exactly what she means

’cause it’s just like being afraid.

Even when we not we are.

Even when we not we are.

But I don’t say that.

Nah.

I don’t say that.

Neighbors

Bushwick is full of hip-hop & salsa.

 Cuchifritos & soul food.

 Nail & hair salons.

 Bootleg CD vendors & tamale ladies on the corner.

 We are all the same in our difference.

 No matter how we got to be neighbors here

 We all know we lived somewhere else first.

 I know this because on the occasion that

 Our eyes lock for more than a moment

 Our mouths ask each other the same question.

 Where you from? Like nice to meet you.

 Where you from? Like what block?

 Where you from? Like what country?

 Where you from? Like what God?

 Where you from? Like where you been?

 Where you from? Like where you going?

 Where you from? Like who you missing?

 Where you from? Like why you here?

 Where you from? Like have you gone back?

 Where you from? Like what did you leave behind?

Pronunciation

We can tell who is from the neighborhood
and who isn’t by the way they pronounce
street names. We pronounce Graham Avenue
not like the cracker (GRAM) but like if
the first half of the word got stuck in your mouth
and you had to breathe out to let out the second
(GRAA-HAM). Some people say we are saying
it wrong but they are just jealous our accents
want every letter to be heard because isn’t that the worst
thing? To exist so plainly in sight and still be ignored.

Used with permission from Penguin Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Copyright (c) Elisabet Velasquez, 2021.

---

Elisabet Velasquez is a Boricua writer born in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Her work has been featured in Muzzle Magazine, Winter Tangerine, Latina Magazine, We Are Mitú, Tidal and more. She is a 2017 Poets House fellow and the 2017 winner of the Button Poetry Video Contest. Her work is featured in Martín Espada’s anthology What Saves Us: Poems of Empathy and Outrage in the Age of Trump. Elisabet lives in Jersey City, New Jersey, and When We Make It is her debut novel.

Sala Sundays with Stefanie Sanchez von Borstel

Latinx in Publishing (LxP): What do you do?

Stefanie Sanchez von Borstel (SSVB): I am a literary agent, co-founder of Full Circle Literary, and author/artist advocate. I represent picture books, middle grade, and nonfiction books.

LxP: How did you get started?

SSVB: Growing up I spent hours in public libraries. My dad would take us every weekend and free afternoons. I probably read every book at the San Pedro Library in San Antonio --I loved books, but had no idea how books were published!

In high school and college, I had tons of internships/jobs at a library, a museum bookstore, an arts nonprofit, a film talent agency, and finally in editorial at a small press (now part of Penguin) that published humor/novelty books like MadLibs. Next, I worked at Harcourt in trade marketing/publicity for 8 years and then for an author’s attorney/literary agent. In 2005, I co-founded Full Circle Literary with Lilly Ghahremani. I love working with book creators, and as an agent it’s great to be able to work with many different people at publishing houses (editorial, design, contracts, marketing/publicity, sales, rights).

LxP: Do you have any tips for those who are getting into the industry?

SSVB: If you’re thinking about working in publishing, try working at a library, bookstore, community center, museum, magazine/online media, or anywhere you’ll be around writers, artists, storytellers. Try lots of different things to see what resonates with you.

I didn’t take the typical path to a career in publishing by moving to NYC or enrolling in an expensive publishing course. I made my own path into publishing with hands-on experience--looking for any opportunity around books that I could find in Texas and California! I’m deeply committed to discovering and developing Latinx, BIPOC and underrepresented writers so that young readers everywhere, no matter where they live or who they are, find themselves in the books they read.

LxP: What book are you currently working on or reading?

SSVB: Just back from a family vacation in Texas I picked up a copy of LOTERIA REMEDIOS by Xelena Gonzalez, it’s a collection of affirmations inspired by Loteria and came packaged with the game so it was perfect for summer traveling!

I also love reading middle grade with my son, right now we’re reading A WISH IN THE DARK by Christina Soontornvat. Also reading an advance copy of WHEN THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN by K. Ibura (coming Nov 2021) and a submission starring Esperanza Mae Windbornee.

---

Stefanie Sanchez von Borstel is co-founder of Full Circle Literary, an entrepreneur, and mom with 25+ years of experience in trade book publishing. Prior to agenting, she worked in editorial, publicity and trade marketing with Penguin and Harcourt Children’s Books. She enjoys tapping her publicity and marketing background to champion writers and artists. Stefanie represents children’s books from toddler to teen, and select adult nonfiction.

July 2021 Latinx Most Anticipated Reads

With a new month comes new books! It’s starting to get warmer which means reading on the beach with your favorite book and a cool drink in hand. Scroll below for our list of the most anticipated Latinx reads for the month of July and get one to read at the beach (or at home under air conditioning)! Check here for our full list of July 2021 Latinx Releases.

THE MUSE SQUAD: THE MYSTERY OF THE TENTH | Middle Grade

by Chantel Acevedo (Balzer + Bray)

Callie Martinez-Silva is finally getting the hang of this whole goddess within thing. Six months after learning she was one of the nine muses of ancient myth, she and the other junior muses are ready for new adventures. Except first Callie has to go to New York City for the summer to visit her dad, stepmom, and new baby brother.

Then the muses get startling news: an unprecedented tenth muse has been awakened somewhere in Queens, putting Callie in the perfect position to help find her. And she’ll have help—thanks to a runaway mold problem in London, Muse Headquarters is moving to the New York Hall of Science.

But balancing missions and family-mandated arts camp proves difficult for Callie, especially once mysterious messages from spiders (yikes!) begin to weave a tale of ancient injustice involving Callie’s campmate Ari.

SING WITH ME: THE STORY OF SELENA QUINTANILLA | Picture Book

by Diana López; illustrated by Teresa Martinez (Dial Books)

From a very early age, young Selena knew how to connect with people and bring them together with music. Sing with Me follows Selena's rise to stardom, from front-lining her family's band at rodeos and quinceañeras to performing in front of tens of thousands at the Houston Astrodome. Young readers will be empowered by Selena's dedication--learning Spanish as a teenager, designing her own clothes, and traveling around the country with her family--sharing her pride in her Mexican-American roots and her love of music and fashion with the world.

ALL THESE WARRIORS | Young Adult

by Amy Tintera (Houghton Milton)

When the world was crumbling, seventeen-year-old Clara fought back. She escaped her abusive home and joined Team Seven, a monster fighting squad of runaways and misfits formed to combat the scrabs terrorizing the planet. And after nearly dying in Paris, Clara and Team Seven discovered the sinister truth behind the scrab invasion. Scrabs aren't just mindless monsters set on destruction. They're being trained and weaponized by MDG, a private security firm hired by the government.

Now Clara and the rest of Team Seven have made it their mission to expose MDG. But no one said fighting for the truth would be easy. And as Clara and Team Seven find themselves at the center of a global conspiracy, they must face their biggest threat yet: their own demons.

BELLA’S RECIPIE FOR SUCCESS | Picture Book

by Ana Siqueira; illustrated by Geraldine Rodríguez (Beaming Books)

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Bella wants to find out what she's good at. But she quits everything she (barely) tries because she's a disaster at it. Her somersaults are like clumsy jirafas rolling downhill, her piano playing like elephant feet. When she decides to learn how to bake with her wise old abuela, her first attempt at dulce de leche frosting looks like scaly cocodrilo skin. She must learn it's okay to try again or she won't be good at anything. Peppered with Spanish vocabulary and set in an intergenerational Latinx home, Bella's Recipe for Success will show all kids the value of practicing to learn a new skill, and that it's okay to make mistakes along the way.

Review: Lost in the Never Woods

A distinct retelling of the original story of a boy who never wants to grow up by J.M. Barrie, Lost in the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas is a mysterious tale filled with the seemingly familiar characters we know and love. Set in Astoria, Oregon (perhaps a similar walking ground for Thomas themself, who now lives in Portland), Peter Pan makes his reappearance in Wendy’s imagination— or so she believes. 

It’s been five years since the fateful day when Wendy and her younger brothers disappear in the woods behind their home. Sorrow fills the Darling family when Wendy returns to her parents after a period of being missing and her brothers do not. Unable to recall what happened to her or her brothers, Wendy and her parents must now relive the guilt, grief, and separation that continues to affect their small family when children begin to go missing in their small town. 

A car crash into a mysterious figure leaves Wendy shaken as she meets the boy from the stories she’s told in her childhood. It’s Peter Pan, but is it really? Older now, Peter must wrestle with his own shadows— figuratively and literally. He’s come in search of Wendy, the only one who can help him sew his shadow back on and hopefully save Neverland. Along their quest to find his shadow, Wendy and Peter respark their connection from Wendy’s childhood. Together, they confront the Never Woods and learn that growing up comes with hardship, tragedy, and grief, but that it doesn’t have to lose the wonder of their youth.  

Credit: Illianna Gonzalez-Soto

Entirely different from Cemetery Boys, Thomas still adds hints of Latinx flair within Lost in the Never Woods. Wendy’s best friend Jordan is Latinx, though that fact is not central to the storyline. What is prevalent, however, is Jordan’s steadfast support for her friend. Her encouragement of Wendy’s dream to be a pediatrician is a reassuring force when everything else in Wendy’s life is out of sorts. Both 18 with college on the horizon, Wendy and Jordan prove that their friendship can outlast their hardships. 

This is the perfect retelling which completely reimagines the classic tale of Peter Pan. Thomas makes the story their own with mysterious twists, dark secrets, and painful truths. This is the perfect tale for learning to cope with grief. Touching upon the psychological effects of tragedy and death, we see a very real and very adult version of Peter Pan as Wendy Darling moves through anxiety, depression, grief, and recovery. Though the story deals with adult topics, the adolescence of Peter and Wendy gives a key perspective for any teen who may also be dealing with similar issues. 

Mixed with playfulness and wonder, we see that growing up may not be so bad if you continue to have faith, trust, and just a little bit of pixie dust.

---

Aiden Thomas is a trans, Latinx, New York Times bestselling author of young adult novels. They received an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. Originally from Oakland, California, they now make their home in Portland, OR. Aiden is notorious for not being able to guess the endings of books and movies, and organizes their bookshelves by color.

To stay updated with their latest works, follow them here:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/aidenschmaiden

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aidenschmaiden/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aidenschmaiden?

Website: https://www.aiden-thomas.com/

Illianna Gonzalez-Soto graduated from Earlham College in 2020, where she served as an editor for The Crucible. She obtained a BA in English and a minor in creative writing. She currently lives in San Diego, CA where she serves as a Media & Marketing intern at Red Hen Press and Latinx in Publishing. You can follow her on Twitter (@Annalilli15) and Instagram (@librosconillianna).

Sala Sundays with Alex Cruz-Jimenez

Latinx in Publishing (LxP): What do you do?

Alex Cruz-Jimenez (ACJ): I’m a Marketing Assistant for the Viking Books, Penguin Books, and Penguin Classics imprints of Penguin Random House.

LxP: How did you get started?

ACJ: I was in the middle of getting my Masters in Teaching at Binghamton University (thinking that’s the only thing you could do with an English degree) when my university sponsored trips to Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster. By the end of that first information session I was hooked, and applied to every publishing internship I could until I landed a marketing internship at HarperCollins in 2019. That solidified my love for publishing, and I was lucky enough to start my current job in January of 2020 and haven’t looked back!

LxP: What do you wish you knew before getting into the industry?

ACJ: So many things! How to juggle multiple projects at once (I am assigned dozens of books a year), how many different departments go into the making of a book, the timeline of a book, how to speak up in meetings, how to feel confident speaking up when you are often the only BIPOC in a meeting, I could go on!

LxP: What book are you currently working on or reading?

ACJ: I am really excited to work on two titles from Julia Alvarez this fall, In the Time of Butterflies and How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, that we are reissuing under Penguin Classics. This will be the first Dominican author I work with, and I think it really speaks to the hard work Penguin Classics is doing to diversify the canon. I really hope to come up with some creative and inclusive marketing plans for this one!

---

Alex Cruz-Jimenez was born and raised in New York City and attended Binghamton University before returning to the city to pursue a career in publishing. She now works as a Marketing Assistant at Penguin Random House and spends her time exploring the city, finding her next TV binge, and reading of course. Follow her on Instagram @alex.gets.lit!

July 2021 Latinx Releases

*Correction: Sing with Me: The Story of Selena Quitanilla has been moved to July 20th.

ON-SALE JULY 6TH, 2021

THE MUSE SQUAD: THE MYSTERY OF THE TENTH | Middle Grade

by Chantel Acevedo (Balzer + Bray)

Callie Martinez-Silva is finally getting the hang of this whole goddess within thing. Six months after learning she was one of the nine muses of ancient myth, she and the other junior muses are ready for new adventures. Except first Callie has to go to New York City for the summer to visit her dad, stepmom, and new baby brother.

Then the muses get startling news: an unprecedented tenth muse has been awakened somewhere in Queens, putting Callie in the perfect position to help find her. And she’ll have help—thanks to a runaway mold problem in London, Muse Headquarters is moving to the New York Hall of Science.

But balancing missions and family-mandated arts camp proves difficult for Callie, especially once mysterious messages from spiders (yikes!) begin to weave a tale of ancient injustice involving Callie’s campmate Ari.

SUMMER IN THE CITY OF ROSES | Young Adult

by Michelle Ruiz Keil (Soho Teen)

All her life, seventeen-year-old Iph has protected her sensitive younger brother, Orr. But this summer, with their mother gone at an artist residency, their father decides it's time for fifteen-year-old Orr to toughen up at a wilderness boot camp. When their father brings Iph to a work gala in downtown Portland and breaks the news, Orr has already been sent away against his will. Furious at her father's betrayal, Iph storms off and gets lost in the maze of Old Town. Enter George, a queer Robin Hood who swoops in on a bicycle, bow and arrow at the ready, offering Iph a place to hide out while she tracks down Orr.

Orr, in the meantime, has escaped the camp and fallen in with The Furies, an all-girl punk band, and moves into the coat closet of their ramshackle pink house. In their first summer apart, Iph and Orr must learn to navigate their respective new spaces of music, romance, and sex-work activism--and find each other before a fantastical transformation fractures their family forever.

TIME VILLAINS | Middle Grade

by Victor Piñeiro (Sourcebooks Young Readers)

Javi Santiago is trying his best not to fail sixth grade. So, when the annual invite any three people to dinner homework assignment rolls around, Javi enlists his best friend, Wiki, and his sister, Brady, to help him knock it out of the park.

But the dinner party is a lot more than they bargained for. The family's mysterious antique table actually brings the historical guests to the meal...and Blackbeard the Pirate is turning out to be the worst guest of all time.

Before they can say avast, ye maties, Blackbeard escapes, determined to summon his bloodthirsty pirate crew. And as Javi, Wiki, and Brady try to figure out how to get Blackbeard back into his own time, they might have to invite some even zanier figures to set things right again...

ON-SALE JULY 13TH, 2021

ALL THESE WARRIORS | Young Adult

by Amy Tintera (Houghton Milton)

When the world was crumbling, seventeen-year-old Clara fought back. She escaped her abusive home and joined Team Seven, a monster fighting squad of runaways and misfits formed to combat the scrabs terrorizing the planet. And after nearly dying in Paris, Clara and Team Seven discovered the sinister truth behind the scrab invasion. Scrabs aren't just mindless monsters set on destruction. They're being trained and weaponized by MDG, a private security firm hired by the government.

Now Clara and the rest of Team Seven have made it their mission to expose MDG. But no one said fighting for the truth would be easy. And as Clara and Team Seven find themselves at the center of a global conspiracy, they must face their biggest threat yet: their own demons.

BELLA’S RECIPIE FOR SUCCESS | Picture Book

by Ana Siqueira; illustrated by Geraldine Rodríguez (Beaming Books)

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Bella wants to find out what she's good at. But she quits everything she (barely) tries because she's a disaster at it. Her somersaults are like clumsy jirafas rolling downhill, her piano playing like elephant feet. When she decides to learn how to bake with her wise old abuela, her first attempt at dulce de leche frosting looks like scaly cocodrilo skin. She must learn it's okay to try again or she won't be good at anything. Peppered with Spanish vocabulary and set in an intergenerational Latinx home, Bella's Recipe for Success will show all kids the value of practicing to learn a new skill, and that it's okay to make mistakes along the way.

EL CUCUY IS SCARED, TOO! | Picture Book

by Donna Barba Higuera; illustrated by Juliana Perdomo (Abrams Books for Young Readers)

Ramón is a little boy who can't sleep. He is nervous for his first day at a new school.

And El Cucuy is the monster who lives in Ramón's cactus pot. He can't sleep, either.

It turns out that El Cucuy is scared, too!

This gentle, perceptive story explores the worries that can accompany moving to a new place and beginning a new journey--and reveals how comfort, bravery, and strength can be found through even the most unexpected of friendships.

ON-SALE JULY 15TH, 2021

ISABEL AND HER COLORES GO TO SCHOOL | Picture Book

by Alexandra Alessandri; illustrated by Courtney Dawson (Sleeping Bear Press)

English, with its blustery blues and whites, just feels wrong to Isabel. She prefers the warm oranges and pinks of Spanish. As she prepares for class at a new school, she knows she's going to have to learn--and she would rather not! Her first day is uncomfortable, until she discovers there's more than one way to communicate with friends.

ON-SALE JULY 20TH, 2021

SING WITH ME: THE STORY OF SELENA QUINTANILLA | Picture Book

by Diana López; illustrated by Teresa Martinez (Dial Books)

From a very early age, young Selena knew how to connect with people and bring them together with music. Sing with Me follows Selena's rise to stardom, from front-lining her family's band at rodeos and quinceañeras to performing in front of tens of thousands at the Houston Astrodome. Young readers will be empowered by Selena's dedication--learning Spanish as a teenager, designing her own clothes, and traveling around the country with her family--sharing her pride in her Mexican-American roots and her love of music and fashion with the world.

La Consejería: I wrote a bilingual children’s book...What’s steps should I take next?

Q: I wrote a bilingual children’s book and could use some guidance on gaining an illustrator and moving forward with publishing. What’s steps should I take? Thank you in advance.

A: It’s a common misconception that picture book manuscripts need to be paired with an illustrator at the querying stage or even the submission stage. Unless the author has been working with an illustrator in a team effort early on or the author will also be illustrating, children’s editors commonly review picture book manuscripts without any art on hand.

If the editor connects with the manuscript and is able to offer and acquire it, it is once the manuscript has already found its publisher that the illustrator search will begin. This is all to say that in completing your picture book manuscript, you’re well on your way in your publishing journey! It would be advisable to consider beginning to query agents for representation for your work as your next step.

To submit your own question to La Consejería, click here and fill out the form!

10 Latinx Books to Celebrate Pride

It’s June once again, which means it’s Pride Month! To celebrate, we’ve put together some Latinx and LGBTQ+ recommendations for you to read! Scroll down to see them and get a copy before the end of the month!

*Be sure to visit our Bookshop for even more queer Latinx literature recommendations!

CEMETERY BOYS | Young Adult

by Aiden Thomas (Swoon Reads)

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him.

When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his true gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free.

However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school's resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He's determined to find out what happened and tie off some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

RAINBOW MILK | Literary Fiction

by Paul Mendez (Doubleday Books)

In the 1950s, ex-boxer Norman Alonso is a determined and humble Jamaican who has immigrated to Britain with his wife and children to secure a brighter future. Blighted with unexpected illness and racism, Norman and his family are resilient, but are all too aware that their family will need more than just hope to survive in their new country.

At the turn of the millennium, Jesse seeks a fresh start in London, escaping a broken immediate family, a repressive religious community and his depressed hometown in the industrial Black Country. But once he arrives he finds himself at a loss for a new center of gravity, and turns to sex work, music and art to create his own notions of love, masculinity and spirituality.

THEY BOTH DIE AT THE END | Young Adult

by Adam Silvera (Quill Tree Books)

On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They're going to die today.

Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they're both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There's an app for that. It's called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure--to live a lifetime in a single day.

JULIET TAKES A BREATH | Young Adult

by Gabby Rivera (Dial Books)

Juliet Milagros Palante is a self-proclaimed closeted Puerto Rican baby dyke from the Bronx. Only, she's not so closeted anymore. Not after coming out to her family the night before flying to Portland, Oregon, to intern with her favorite feminist writer--what's sure to be a life-changing experience. And when Juliet's coming out crashes and burns, she's not sure her mom will ever speak to her again.

But Juliet has a plan--sort of. Her internship with legendary author Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women's bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff, is sure to help her figure out this whole Puerto Rican lesbian thing. Except Harlowe's white. And not from the Bronx. And she definitely doesn't have all the answers . . .

In a summer bursting with queer brown dance parties, a sexy fling with a motorcycling librarian, and intense explorations of race and identity, Juliet learns what it means to come out--to the world, to her family, to herself.

ORDINARY GIRLS: A MEMOIR | Memoir

by Jaquira Díaz (Algonquin Books)

In this searing memoir, Jaquira Díaz writes fiercely and eloquently of her challenging girlhood and triumphant coming of age.

While growing up in housing projects in Puerto Rico and Miami Beach, Díaz found herself caught between extremes. As her family split apart and her mother battled schizophrenia, she was supported by the love of her friends. As she longed for a family and home, her life was upended by violence. As she celebrated her Puerto Rican culture, she couldn't find support for her burgeoning sexual identity. From her own struggles with depression and sexual assault to Puerto Rico's history of colonialism, every page of Ordinary Girls vibrates with music and lyricism. Díaz writes with raw and refreshing honesty, triumphantly mapping a way out of despair toward love and hope to become her version of the girl she always wanted to be.

THE STREET BELONGS TO US | Middle Grade

by Karleen Pendleton Jimenez (Arsenal Pulp Press)

In 1984 Los Angeles, Alex is a tomboy who would rather wear her hair short and her older brother's hand-me-downs, and Wolf is a troubled kid who's been wearing the same soldier's uniform ever since his mom died. They temporarily set their worries aside when their street is torn up by digging machines and transformed into a muddy wonderland with endless possibilities. To pass the hot summer days, the two best friends seize the opportunity to turn Muscatel Avenue into a battleground and launch a gleeful street war against the rival neighborhood kids.

But when Alex and Wolf make their headquarters inside a deep trench, Alex's grandmother warns them that some buried things want to be found and some want to stay hidden and forgotten. Although she has the wisdom of someone who has survived the Mexican Revolution, the Spanish Flu, and immigration to a new country, the kids ignore her warning, unearthing more than they bargained for.

WE SET THE DARK ON FIRE | Young Adult

by Tehlor Kay Mejia (Katherine Tegen Books)

At the Medio School for Girls, distinguished young women are trained for one of two roles in their polarized society. Depending on her specialization, a graduate will one day run a husband's household or raise his children. Both paths promise a life of comfort and luxury, far from the frequent political uprisings of the lower class.

Daniela Vargas is the school's top student, but her pedigree is a lie. She must keep the truth hidden or be sent back to the fringes of society.

And school couldn't prepare her for the difficult choices she must make after graduation, especially when she is asked to spy for a resistance group desperately fighting to bring equality to Medio.

Will Dani cling to the privilege her parents fought to win for her, or will she give up everything she's strived for in pursuit of a free Medio--and a chance at a forbidden love?

THE MIRROR SEASON | Young Adult

by Anna-Marie McLemore (Feiwel & Friends)

When two teens discover that they were both sexually assaulted at the same party, they develop a cautious friendship through her family's possibly-magical pastelería, his secret forest of otherworldly trees, and the swallows returning to their hometown, in Anna-Marie McLemore's The Mirror Season...

Graciela Cristales' whole world changes after she and a boy she barely knows are assaulted at the same party. She loses her gift for making enchanted pan dulce. Neighborhood trees vanish overnight, while mirrored glass appears, bringing reckless magic with it. And Ciela is haunted by what happened to her, and what happened to the boy whose name she never learned.

But when the boy, Lock, shows up at Ciela's school, he has no memory of that night, and no clue that a single piece of mirrored glass is taking his life apart. Ciela decides to help him, which means hiding the truth about that night. Because Ciela knows who assaulted her, and him. And she knows that her survival, and his, depend on no one finding out what really happened.

FIFTEEN HUNDRED MILES FROM THE SUN | Young Adult

by Jonny Garza Villa (Skyscape)

Julián Luna has a plan for his life: Graduate. Get into UCLA. And have the chance to move away from Corpus Christi, Texas, and the suffocating expectations of others that have forced Jules into an inauthentic life.

Then in one reckless moment, with one impulsive tweet, his plans for a low-key nine months are thrown--literally--out the closet. The downside: the whole world knows, and Jules has to prepare for rejection. The upside: Jules now has the opportunity to be his real self.

Then Mat, a cute, empathetic Twitter crush from Los Angeles, slides into Jules's DMs. Jules can tell him anything. Mat makes the world seem conquerable. But when Jules's fears about coming out come true, the person he needs most is fifteen hundred miles away. Jules has to face them alone.

Jules accidentally propelled himself into the life he's always dreamed of. And now that he's in control of it, what he does next is up to him.

IN THE DREAM HOUSE | Adult Nonfiction

by Carmen Maria Machado (Graywolf Press)

In the Dream House is Carmen Maria Machado’s engrossing and wildly innovative account of a relationship gone bad, and a bold dissection of the mechanisms and cultural representations of psychological abuse. Tracing the full arc of a harrowing relationship with a charismatic but volatile woman, Machado struggles to make sense of how what happened to her shaped the person she was becoming.

And it’s that struggle that gives the book its original structure: each chapter is driven by its own narrative trope—the haunted house, erotica, the bildungsroman—through which Machado holds the events up to the light and examines them from different angles. She looks back at her religious adolescence, unpacks the stereotype of lesbian relationships as safe and utopian, and widens the view with essayistic explorations of the history and reality of abuse in queer relationships.

Machado’s dire narrative is leavened with her characteristic wit, playfulness, and openness to inquiry. She casts a critical eye over legal proceedings, fairy tales, Star Trek, and Disney villains, as well as iconic works of film and fiction. The result is a wrenching, riveting book that explodes our ideas about what a memoir can do and be.

'The Mirror Season' by Anna-Maria McLemore

Mentions: sexual assault, PTSD, homophobia, and bullying

What does healing look and feel like after trauma? What kinds of stories do we tell about survivors or deem worthy of telling? How is our memory shaped by trauma? How does our interconnectedness as humans allow survivors to live and thrive again? These are some of the questions, among many others, that Anna-Maria McLemore evokes in their book, The Mirror Season.

Throughout this book, McLemore, who is nonbinary Latinx, uses magical realism to help the reader better understand trauma. They use glass and mirrors as a portal to explore the characters’ relationship to themselves, others, and what they’ve gone through. Although our traumas have the ability to shape us into someone unrecognizable to ourselves and cast shadows upon places where we once only saw light, those are not the only realities. When we are in community or share space with others, we are able to heal our wounds in an imperfect but very human way. More often than not, our traumas mirror and reflect back to us exactly that which we do not wish or desire to see, but ultimately bring us to a deeper embodiment of our truths. The Mirror Season is just that, a portal into our unhealed selves, to give language to a reality that often isn’t discussed, and give us permission to voice ourselves to our chosen community. 

Image from Publisher website.

Although The Mirror Season’s not a monolithic representation of all survivors and their stories, Graciela Cristales and Locke Thomas are their own. Notably, the characters in this book who experience sexual assault are not solely women or straight. The story is told from Graciela’s, also known as Ciela, point of view. The reader is taken on a journey exploring how the memory and body respond to trauma, in a very real and tangible way. However, Ciela and Locke are not only their traumas. Ciela is La Bruja de los Pasteles, and has the don de adivinanza y conocimiento; she knows exactly what kind of pan dulce a person wants. All that changes after experiencing assault and other horrific events. Locke is a crocheter, and becomes so passionate about botany that he creates his own magical forest. Additionally, they both are not only victims of violence, but contribute to each other's violation. They are not perfect and learn as they go, despite the violence done to them. They are human. They are survivors and catalysts to each other’s healing journeys. 

Although one can definitely read this book solo, the novel works within a group context where people can hold space for each other as they read and discuss the book. I suggest having some resources or tools to help with grounding on deck. Reading about sexual assault, PTSD, homophobia, and bullying can be difficult and may be triggering. There’s no shame in needing support if you decide to read this book. Read at the speed of your nervous system, and remember that your embodiment is of utmost importance to the work of liberation. 

Connect with author Anna-Maria McLemore on the below platforms to find out more about them & their works:

Twitter: @LaAnnaMarie

Website: annamariemclemore.com

Alondra Vargas-Soto is a creative and Boricua from Brooklyn, New York. They have received their BA in English: Creative Writing and Music: Vocal from Hunter College. Alo loves writing poetry and can usually be found bailando, practicing yoga, or exploring the world around them. Connect with them on Instagram @corriente_alo.

June 2021 Most Anticipated Reads

It’s starting to get warmer which means reading on the beach with your favorite book and a cool drink in hand. Scroll below for our list of the most anticipated Latinx reads for June and snag one for yourself (just in time for summer)! Check here for our full list of June 2021 Latinx Releases.

MILES MORALES: SHOCK WAVES | Middle Grade

by Jason Reynolds; illustrated by Pablo Leon (Graphix/Scholastic)

Miles Morales is a normal school kid who happens to juggle school at Brooklyn Visions Academy while swinging through the streets of Brooklyn as Spider-Man. After a disastrous earthquake strikes his birthplace of Puerto Rico, Miles springs into action to help set up a fundraiser for the devastated island. But when a new student's father goes missing, Miles begins to make connections between the disappearance and a giant corporation sponsoring Mile's fundraiser. Who is behind the disappearance, and how does that relate to Spider-Man?

A true middle grade graphic novel that just happens to star one of Marvel's most popular characters, exciting new voice Justin A. Reynolds (Opposite of Always) creates a riveting story that will connect with new and well-versed comics readers alike.

SHE PERSISTED: SONIA SOTOMAYOR| Middle Grade

by Meg Medina and Chelsea Clinton; illustrated by Alexandra Boiger and Gillian Flint (Penguin Random House)

In this chapter book biography by Meg Medina, the award-winning author of Merci Suarez Changes Gears and Mango, Abuela, and Me, readers learn about the amazing life of Sonia Sotomayor–and how she persisted.

Sonia Sotomayor is the first Latina Supreme Court Justice in the history of the United States, but her road there wasn’t easy. She overcame many challenges along the way, including a diagnosis of diabetes at age seven. But she didn’t let that stop her from achieving her dream and inspiring children all over the world to work hard and believe in themselves.

Complete with an introduction from Chelsea Clinton!

THE COT IN THE LIVING ROOM | Picture Book

by Hilda Eunice Burgos; illustrated by Gaby D'Alessandro (Kokila/Penguin Random House)

Night after night, a young girl watches her mami set up a cot in the living room for guests in their Washington Heights apartment, like Raquel (who’s boring) and Edgardo (who gets crumbs everywhere). She resents that they get the entire living room with a view of the George Washington Bridge, while all she gets is a tiny bedroom with a view of her sister (who snores). Until one night when no one comes, and it’s finally her chance! But as it turns out, sleeping on the cot in the living room isn’t all she thought it would be.

With charming text by Hilda Eunice Burgos and whimsical illustrations by Gaby D’Alessandro, The Cot in the Living Room is a celebration of the ways a Dominican American community takes care of one another while showing young readers that sometimes the best way to be a better neighbor is by imagining how it feels to spend a night sleeping on someone else’s pillow.

FIRE WITH FIRE| Young Adult

by Destiny Soria (HMH)

Raised to be fierce dragon slayers, two sisters end up on opposite sides of the impending war when one sister forms an unlikely, magical bond with a dragon in this standalone YA contemporary fantasy that's perfect for fans of Slayer and Sorcery of Thorns.

Dani and Eden Rivera were both born to kill dragons, but the sisters couldn't be more different. For Dani, dragon slaying takes a back seat to normal high school life, while Eden prioritizes training above everything else. Yet they both agree on one thing: it's kill or be killed where dragons are concerned.

Until Dani comes face-to-face with one and forges a rare and magical bond with him. As she gets to know Nox, she realizes that everything she thought she knew about dragons is wrong. With Dani lost to the dragons, Eden turns to mysterious and alluring sorcerers to help save her sister. Now on opposite sides of the conflict, each sister will do whatever it takes to save the other. But the two are playing with magic that is more dangerous than they know, and there is another, more powerful enemy waiting for them both in the shadows.

SIMONE BREAKS ALL THE RULES| Young Adult

by Debbie Riguad (Scholastic)

Simone Thibodeaux's life is sealed in a boy-proof container.

Her strict Haitian immigrant parents enforce no-dating rules and curfews, and send Simone to an all-girls school. As for prom? Simone is allowed to go on one condition: her parents will select her date (a boy from a nice Haitian immigrant family, obviously).

Simone is desperate to avoid the humiliation of the set up — especially since she's crushing on a boy she knows her parents wouldn't approve of. With senior year coming to a close, Simone makes a decision. She and her fellow late-bloomer friends will create a Senior Year Bucket List of all the things they haven't had a chance to do. On the list: kissing a boy, sneaking out of the house, skipping class (gasp!), and, oh yeah — choosing your own prom date.

But as the list takes on a life of its own, things get more complicated than Simone expected. She'll have to discover which rules are worth breaking, and which will save her from heartbreak.

FIFTEEN HUNDRED MILES FROM THE SUN| Young Adult

by Jonny Garza Villa (Amazon Publishing)

Julián Luna has a plan for his life: Graduate. Get into UCLA. And have the chance to move away from Corpus Christi, Texas, and the suffocating expectations of others that have forced Jules into an inauthentic life.

Then in one reckless moment, with one impulsive tweet, his plans for a low-key nine months are thrown—literally—out the closet. The downside: the whole world knows, and Jules has to prepare for rejection. The upside: Jules now has the opportunity to be his real self.

Then Mat, a cute, empathetic Twitter crush from Los Angeles, slides into Jules’s DMs. Jules can tell him anything. Mat makes the world seem conquerable. But when Jules’s fears about coming out come true, the person he needs most is fifteen hundred miles away. Jules has to face them alone.

Jules accidentally propelled himself into the life he’s always dreamed of. And now that he’s in control of it, what he does next is up to him.