Age

Catalog sorted by age group

Esperanza Rising

When Esperanza and Mama are forced to flee to the bountiful region of Aguascalientes, Mexico, to a Mexican farm labor camp in California, they must adjust to a life without fancy dresses adn servants they were accustomed to on Rancho de las Rosas. Now they must confront the challenges of hard work, acceptance by their own people, and economic difficulties brought on by the Great Depression. When Mama falls ill and a strike for better working conditions threatens to uproot their new life, Esperanza must relinquish her hold on the past learn to embrace a future ripe with the riches of family and community.

This book has been included in WOW’s Language and Learning: Children’s and Young Adult Fiction Booklist. For our current list, visit our Booklist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.

The Jumping Tree

These lively stories follow Rey Castaneda from sixth through eighth grade in Nuevo Penitas, Texas. One side of Rey’s family lives nearby in Mexico, the other half in Texas, and Rey fits in on both sides of the border. In Nuevo Penitas, he enjoys fooling around with his pals in the barrio; at school, he’s one of the “A list” kids. As Rey begins to cross the border from childhood into manhood, he turns from jokes and games to sense the meaning of work, love, poverty, and grief, and what it means to be a proud Chicano-moments that sometimes propel him to show feelings un hombre should never express. It’s a new territory where Rey longs to follow the example his hardworking, loving father has set for him. From the Hardcover edition.

Nerdlandia

A humorous play in which Martin, a Chicano nerd, undergoes a transformation with the help of his friends and experiences true love. Includes a glossary of Spanish words and phrases used in the dialogue.

Conversations with Contemporary Chicana and Chicano Writers

Hector A. Torres conducted these interviews with today’s popular Chicano/a writers, asking each about language and life between languages, about the creative drive that has guided them in their craft and commits them to their art. In sharing their responses, Torres reveals a brief biography of each author and a concise examination of their writings. Taking their stories and essays individually and collectively, Torres explains how each author reiterates issues that have concerned Mexican Americans since at least 1848. Chicano/a authors know that an abundance of politics can spoil a story, as can too little. The writers included here span historical terrain, first, under the shadow of Manifest Destiny and, then, under the America’s imperial sovereignty stance. Interviewees include Rolando Hinojosa (“I Reflect the Way Valleyites Act and React”), Arturo Islas (“I Don’t Like Labels and Categories”), Erlinda Gonzales-Berry (“On the New Mexican Borderlands”), Gloria Anzaldúa (“The Author Never Existed”), Ana Castillo (two separate interviews), Sandra Cisneros (two separate interviews), Pat Mora (“I Was Always at Home in Language”), Richard Rodriguez (“I Don’t Think I Exist”), Demetria Martinez (“To Speak as Global Citizens”), and Kathleen Alcalá (“To Tell the Counternarratives”).

The Piñata Maker / El Piñatero

Told in both English and Spanish by award-winning author-photographer George Ancona, The Pinata Maker/El pinatero documents this traditional Latin American artform and includes a note on how to make pinatas at home. Set in Mexico.

Family/Familia

Young Daniel doesn’t share his dad’s excitement over going to the family reunion. What’s the big deal? It’s just going to be a bunch of old people he doesn’t know, sitting around and telling stories about other old people he doesn’t know. Once there, though, Daniel is in for several pleasant surprises.

Quinito, Day and Night/Quinito, Día y Noche

From dawn till dusk, Quinito’s life is full of opposites. In the morning, he’s up and running – fast or slowly, depending on the day. If it’s sunny, he’s off to the park to swing high and low. If it’s a rainy, stay-at-home day, Quinito’s quiet at naptime and noisy at playtime. So much to do before the sun sets! This playful story builds awareness in young readers that everywhere they look, opposites abound. Told in both English and Spanish, Quinito, Day and Night is a delight for readers young or old, tall or short, messy or neat.

Burro’s Tortillas

burro'sWhat do you get when you cross The Little Red Hen with a burro and his friends? Burro s Tortillas! In this humorous Southwestern retelling of a childhood favorite, Burro finds it difficult to get any help from his friends as he diligently works to turn corn into tortillas. Young children will love the repetition; older children will enjoy the book’s many puns. In addition to its Southwestern flavor, the delightful story imparts an accurate picture of the traditional way that tortillas are made. A Spanish/English glossary and a simple recipe for making tortillas are included in the For Creative Minds section.

Migrant Worker: A Boy from the Rio Grande Valley

Describes the way of life of Mexican American families and their children who work as migrant agricultural laborers in Texas.

Viva!…!una Pinata! (Spanish Edition)

Clara chooses to have a dog-shaped pinata at her birthday party but quickly finds she has become attached to it and cannot bear to destroy it, so she finds herself in a bad situation because if she keeps the dog pinata, she will have no pinata for her party.