In thirteen stories full of wit and energy, Gary Soto illuminates the ordinary lives of young people. Meet Angel, who would rather fork over twenty bucks than have photos of his naked body plastered all over school; Philip, who discovers he has a “mechanical mind,” whatever that means; Estela, known as Stinger, who rules José’s heart and the racquetball court; and many other kids, all of them with problems as big as only a preteen can make them. Funny, touching, and wholly original, Local News is Gary Soto in top form.
Author: Book Importer
The Pool Party
Invited to Tiffany Perez’s pool party, Rudy Herrara longs to make a big impression on Tiffany and his classmates. By the author of Living up the Street.
Over Here It’s Different: Carolina’s Story
Relates, in text and photographs, the experiences of an eleven-year-old girl who emigrated from the Dominican Republic at age seven, and describes the two worlds she lives in as an American trying to preserve her heritage.
Radio Man/Don Radio
As he travels with his family of migrant farmworkers, Diego relies on his radio to provide him with companionship and help connect him to all the different places in which he lives.
Tortillas
A child tells about all the different ways to enjoy tortillas
Botas Negras
This story takes place in Mexico in the summer of 1830, during the fight for independence. Neto and his family seek refuge in the countryside, away from the bloody conflict. During this time of anxiety and confusion, Neto finds a friend in a goat named Black Boots. (Spanish version.)
Tio Armando
When Lucita’s great-uncle Armando comes to live with them, he teaches her many truths about life.
Blow Away Soon
Disliking the wind that whisks away her favorite possessions, Sophie appeals to her grandmother for help and is instructed on how to build a blow-away-soon, an appeasing gift for the wind, in a story about keeping and giving away.
Pablo’s Tree
Each year on his birthday, a young Mexican American boy looks forward to seeing how his grandfather has decorated the tree he planted on the day the boy was adopted.
Three Little Tamales
While three little tamales cool off on a windowsill, a tortilla rolls by. “You’ll be eaten. You’d better run,” he tells them. And so the tamales jump out the window. The first runs to the prairie and builds a house of sagebrush. The second runs to a cornfield and builds a house of cornstalks. The third runs to the desert and builds a house of cactus. Then who should come along but Senior Lobo, the Big Bad Wolf, with plans to blow their houses down. Valeria Docampo’s oil-and-pencil illustrations add zest and humor to this rollicking southwestern version of a popular tale.