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.)
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A Box Full of Kittens
Ruthie loves Superman. Ruthie wants to be Superman. And when Ruthie is asked to go spend the afternoon with her aunt, who is about to have a baby any day day now and may need some help., Ruthie seizes the opportunity. It could be her chance to be a hero, should the baby come while she’s visiting! But when Ruthie is out fetching a snack for her aunt, she gets so distracted by a box full of kittens in the bodega that she doesn’t hear her aunt calling for her, nor does she notice the policemen running to the apartment or the ambulance pulling to the curb. When she realizes what’s happened, she’s devastated — she’s missed her one chance to be a hero! Or has she? Sonia Manzano, best known as “Maria” on Sesame Street, once again captures the warmth, love, and adventures of her childhood Bronx neighborhood.
A Birthday Basket for Tia
With the help of her cat, Chica, Cecilia prepares a special gift in honor of her great-aunt’s ninetieth birthday, a celebration basket filled with things to remind Tia of the wonderful moments that she and Cecilia have shared.
Angel City
Old man Joseph never imagined a family could start this way. When he finds a baby abandoned on a lonely L.A. street, he vows to raise it as his own. He’s an old farmer and knows nothing of parenting, even less about raising a Mexican baby.Yet Joseph keeps his promise and with time he realizes that even in the darkest barrio, there is a world to explore, songs and stories to be shared. Even in the darkest barrio, there is love.
Illustrated by Caldecott-Honor Medal winner Carol Byard and beautifully told by Tony Johnston, Angel City is a moving tribute to the strength of family no matter its form.
Chato’s Kitchen
Chato, the coolest cat in East L.A., and his buddy, Novio Boy, prepare to serve up a special housewarming party for their new neighbors, a family of mice, in which their guests are also the main course, but the mice bring along their own guest, Chorizo, the toughest dog in the barrio.
Pepita on Pepper Street/ Pepita En La Calle Pepper
Pepita is almost always happy. But she isn’t today because everything is different on her new street. There’s no familiar grocery store on the corner, and no tortilla shop squeezed right next to it. Rosa’s house isn’t down the street, and worst of all, her best friend Sonya no longer lives right next door. Pepita is definitely not happy about her move to Pepper Street. But her dog Lobo doesn’t mind the new neighborhood, and in fact, he likes the new smells he encounters as Pepita walks him up and down the street. He even wags his tail at the new people they meet: Mrs. Green, who wears a straw hat while weeding her rose garden; Mrs. Becker, who paints the pepper trees, and her dog, Blackie; and Jose, the mailman, who hopes Lobo won’t bite him. Soon, Pepita realizes that her father’s suggestion, “the best way to stop feeling new is to get to know people” is good advice. And when a girl with bright red hair named Katie Ann comes by to visit, Pepita learns that making new friends isn’t so hard after all.
Selena Perez: Queen of Tejano Music (Great Hispanics of Our Time)
Details the life and tragic death of the popular young Tejano singer.
Let’s Eat
Little Antonio introduces his extended family and explains that Mama is the biggest because “she is going to have a baby any day now.” Everyday she sends the boy to gather the family for their midday meal. On Monday, Papa can’t leave his busy carpentry shop. On Tuesday, his sister Alicia is learning to dance the sevillanas for the summer fiesta. Day after day, when there is an empty seat at the table that Papa built and Mama has filled with inviting food, she sighs, “Ay, que pena! What a pity.” Eventually, it is Mama herself who is missing because it’s time for her to have baby Rosa.
El Barrio
Join a young boy as he explores his vibrant neighborhood. The city shimmers with life—at once a party, a waltz, and a heartbeat. El Barrio is his sister preparing for her quinceañera, his grandfather singing about the past, and his cousins’ stories from other lands. The city is alive with the rhythms of the street. Told in lyrical language and through bold, colorful illustrations, this celebration of Hispanic culture and urban life is sure to fire children’s curiosity about where they live and what they can discover in their own neighborhoods.
Quesadilla Moon
As a young migrant worker, David is shocked and thrilled when the man running the field store offers him a loaf of bread in exchange for a song. Singing has been strongly discouraged by David’s father, who views it as a less-than-manly activity. But the opportunity to get food for free is a temptation David can’t resist, and the praise he receives afterwards produces a sense of euphoria he has never felt. Someone is actually paying him to sing! But singing always leads to conflict with his father, and the only time David can do it without getting into trouble is when the others start to harmonize to pass the time as they move up and down the rows, picking cotton, asparagus, or other crops. To help get through the grueling labor, David regularly daydreams about performing in front of an adoring audience. As David and his family move from town to town following the crops, he begins to forget his dream of becoming a singer, until one day when he learns about a local competition. Somehow, his feet carry him to the Four Square Apostolic Church where the contest will take place, but he is shaken when the elderly black ladies setting up for the event tell him it’s only for “colored folk.” When he is ultimately given the chance to participate, he eagerly seizes the opportunity. Is it really possible that his dreams might come true? Will the people who believe in him–a group of African-American women and an ambitious young reporter from the Oakland Tribune–be able to help David overcome the racial, social, and familial barriers he faces?