El Bronx Remembered

In a city called New York… In a neighborhood called El Bronx… The Fernandex children own a very special pet: A white hen named after their favorite Hollywood movie star. A new girl comes to school – a gypsy child who can read palms and foretell the future. A young boy must face the humiliation of wearing his uncle’s orange roach-killer shoes to his high school graduation. In the South Bronx – or El Bronx, as it’s known to the people who live there – anything can happen. A migrant “fresh off the boat” from Puerto Rico can be somebody on the mainland, pursue the American Dream… and maybe even make it come true. Here are stories that capture the flavor and beat of El Bronx in its heyday, from 1946-1956. A New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year Finalist, 1976 National Book Award for Children’s Literature A Notable Children’s Trade Book in Social Studies (NCSS/CBC).

Cinnamon Girl: Letters Found Inside A Cereal Box

cinnamonI want to see what is on the other side of the dust When the towers fall, New York City is blanketed by dust. On the Lower East Side, Yolanda, the Cinnamon Girl, makes her manda, her promise, to gather as much of it as she can. Maybe returning the dust to Ground Zero can comfort all the voices. Maybe it can help Uncle DJ open his eyes again. As tragedies from her past mix in the air of an unthinkable present, Yolanda searches for hope. Maybe it’s buried somewhere in the silvery dust of Alphabet City.

Cuentos Con Sazon (Spanish Edition)

It¹s New Year’s Day and Carmen Teresa’s Maryland home is filled with relatives, friends, and neighbors from all over Latin America. Everyone is eating, dancing, and telling stories. When Dona Josepha gives Carmen a blank notebook, each guest tells her a story to write down but Carmen has an idea of her own!

My Land Sings: Stories from the Rio Grande

A collection of ten original and traditional stories set in New Mexico, including “Lupe and la Llorona,” “The Shepherd Who Knew the Language of Animals,” and “Coyote and Raven.”

 

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 3, Issue 2

Famous Mexican Americans: 2

Discusses the accomplishments and contributions to society of fourteen Mexican Americans, representing a variety of professions.

Adios, Oscar!: A Butterfly Fable

OscarWhen Oscar the caterpillar discovers that he will one day become a butterfly, he’s overjoyed. And his friend Edna the bookworm encourages his hopes of flying to Mexico with the other Monarch butterflies. To prepare, Oscar learns Spanish and dreams of flying through the purple Sierra Madre Mountains. But when Oscar emerges from his cocoon with stubby little wings, a craving for the taste of designer sweaters — and the urge to take a spin around the bathroom light bulb– his dreams are dashed. There will be no trip to Mexico for Oscar — or will there? Yes there will! How Oscar ignores the limitations of being a moth and learns how to dream like a butterfly is both inspirational, liberating — and hilariously funny.

¡scandalosa!: A Honey Blonde Chica Novel (Honey Blonde Chica)

scandalosaIn this sequel to Honey Blonde Chica, Evie Gomez finally has it all: a sweet boyfriend, two mejor amigas, and an upcoming sixteeñera that’s the talk of the school. Too bad reality has a way of ruining things. Just when things look perfect, everything starts to unwind. Evie’s life takes one bad turn after another. Things can’t get more complicated…can they?

The Secret Story Of Sonia Rodriguez

Sonia Rodriguez was born in the United States, but her parents are Mexican immigrants who came to California before she was born. Her father has three Social Security numbers, her mother is pregnant (again), and neither of them speaks English. Sonia’s mother spends most of her time in bed, watching soap operas, and letting Sonia clean up after her brothers. Sonia’s father works dutifully to support his family, but he knows that his daughter’s dreams are bigger than making tamales for family get-togethers. When Sonia attempts to put school work before her familia, her mother decides that it’s time for Sonia to visit her grandmother in Mexico to learn “the ways of the old world.” While in Mexico, Sonia spends time with her wise grandmother and her cousin Maria who teach her that while familia is important, the most important thing is to follow your heart. Sonia returns to the States determined to succeed in school, but the birth of her new twin siblings, inappropriate advances from her drunk uncle (Drunkle), and a forbidden relationship with an El Salvadorian boy push school to the back burner. If only Sonia can find the time to cook dinner, secretly meet with her boyfriend, avoid her Drunkle, AND finish her homework, she just might be able to graduate from high school…

Probably the World’s Best Story about a Dog and the Girl Who Loved Me

The further adventures and misadventures of twelve-year-old Paolo, his six-year-old brother Georgie, and their nine-year-old deaf cousin Billy as they try to find their missing dog, cope with a new paper route, and discover romance in their small California town in 1951.