A Crazy Mixed-Up Spanglish Day

get readyPart of the Get Ready for Gabi Series. In Northern California, Maritza Gabriela Morales Mercado struggles to deal with the third grade.

Abuelita Full Of Life/Abuelita Llena De Vida

abuelitaJose is not sure what to expect when his grandmother from Mexico moves in…except that he will certainly have to change his ways. What he discovers is that he doesn’t mind one bit. Abuelita is full of surprises! She is full of life!

Chato And The Party Animals

chatoChato, the coolest cat in el barrio, loves to party–but not his best buddy, Novio Boy. Birthday parties always make him blue. “I’m from the pound,” he tells Chato. “I don’t know when I was born. I never knew my mami. I never even had a birthday party, or nothing.”So Chato plans the coolest surprise party for Novio Boy, inviting all of el barrio, and cooking up a storm. But he forgets the most important thing–inviting Novio Boy! Luckily, just as everyone starts remembering all the things they used to love about their long-lost friend, the birthday boy arrives with his own surprise–himself!In a starred review, Publishers Weekly called Chato’s Kitchen “Wickedly funny…Guevara’s cats are delicious send-ups of barrio characters, and Soto’s words glisten with wit. Salud to this magical pairing of talents.”

El Dilema De Trino

To be thirteen is worthless, Trino Olivares thinks. Trino has three little brothers he’s supposed to look after, but no father he can look up to. He rules at video games, but in the classroom, and out in the real world, he’s barely getting by—just like his mom, who scarcely manages to pay the bills and feed her kids by working all the time.Trino gets angry when he looks around at his terrible life. But when Rosca, an older teen with a vicious streak, invites him to start hanging with his crowd—and maybe make some quick money, too—Trino doesn’t know what to think. What kind of choices does he have, anyway? To run or die?

Half Of The World In Light: New And Selected Poems (Camino Del Sol)

For nearly four decades, Juan Felipe Herrera has documented his experience as a Chicano in the United States and Latin America through stunning, memorable poetry that is both personal and universal in its impact, themes, and approach. Often political, never fainthearted, his career has been marked by tremendous virtuosity and a unique sensibility for uncovering the unknown and the unexpected. Through a variety of stages and transformations, Herrera has evolved more than almost any other Chicano poet, always re-inventing himself into a more mature and seasoned voice. Now, in this unprecedented collection, we encounter the trajectory of this highly innovative and original writer, bringing the full scope of his singular vision into view. Beginning with early material from A Certain Man and moving through thirteen of his collections into new, previously unpublished work, this assemblage also includes an audio CD of the author reading twenty-four selected poems aloud. Serious scholars and readers alike will now have available to them a representative set of glimpses into his production as well as his origins and personal development. The ultimate value of bringing together such a collection, however, is that it will allow us to better understand and appreciate the complexity of what this major American poet is all about.

Mercy on These Teenage Chimps

At age 13, best friends Ronnie and Joey suddenly feel like chimps–long armed, big eared, and gangly–and when the coach humiliates Joey in front of a girl, he climbs up a tree and refuses to come down. Gary Soto tells a touching story about friendship, understanding and the painful insecurities of being 13.

Lolo and Red-Legs

When eleven-year-old Lolo captures a tarantula, it turns an ordinary summer into a series of adventures that take him and his friends beyond their Mexican-American neighborhood in East Los Angeles.

The Empanadas That Abuela Made/Las Empanadas Que Hacia La Abuela

A sweet bilingual story about a family tradition. Baking is always a treat, particularly when you throw family and fun into the mix. In this whimsical look at the making of empanadas, popular children’s author Gonzales Bertrand serves up the festive fun of a family’s effort to concoct the delicious pastries. In the tradition of popular rhymes like “The Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly,” the laughter and fun rise from page to page. The Empanadas that Abuela Made/Las empanadas que Abuela hacía is filled with humorous cooks and family: Abuela, Abuelo, the cousins, aunts, uncles, and even the family dog join the parade of fluttering flour and swirling sugar. Alex Pardo de Lange fills the pages with offbeat illustrations of blankets of dough and dancing rolling pins.

The Lady In The Blue Cloak: Legends From The Texas Missions

For each Texas mission, there is a rich and complicated history. In the title story, from Mision de San Francisco de los Tejas, a mysterious woman in blue visits the Teas people to prepare them for the missionaries\’ arrival. In \”Rosa\’s Window\” and \”The Bell\” the love and grief of two couples torn apart in the making of the Mision de San Jose y San Miguel de Aguayo manifest themselves in the very edifices of the mission. The Mision de Nuestra SEnora de la Purisma Concepcion de Acuna, named for and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, was the scene of a remarkable salvation as the Teas workers tried to escape the heated pursuit of the Comanches in \”The Miracle at the Gate.\” Here Kimmel gracefully retells these and other powerful legends behind four of th missions, each enhanced by a beautifully evocative painting by Susan Guevara.

The Perfect Pinata/La Pinata Perfecta

Marisa’s sixth birthday was drawing near, and today her mother took her to buy a piñata. At the store, Marisa saw a beautiful butterfly piñata and knew she had to have it. “It’s perfect for my party!” she exclaimed. When they brought the piñata home, her mother wanted to put it in the closet, but Marisa begged to keep it on her dresser. That week Marisa took her butterfly everywhere, and it watched over her at night while she slept. The morning of the party, Mama filled the piñata with candy and toys. Soon the guests arrived. It was time to hit the piñata! Marisa was the first in line. But the butterfly looked down at her with its happy eyes, and Marisa started to cry. “I can’t do it!” she said as she ran into the house.