Everything You Need to Know about Latino History

Novas, Himilce (2007). Everything you need to know about Latino history. New York: Plume.
ISBN: 97804522888898 

Summary: Everything You Need to Know about Latino History is an easy-to-navigate retelling of U.S. and Latin American history from a Latino perspective. Novas writes in a question-and-answer format, beginning with general information and proceeding to specific Latino subgroups, such as Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cuban Americans, and Dominican Americans. In the process, Novas, a journalist and expert on Latino history, debunks common misinformation and stereotypes that are erroneously propagated by Anglo-centric history classes traditionally taught in American schools. 

Additional Comments:  The 2008 edition of Everything You Need to Know about Latino also includes current pop culture, such as “Ugly Betty” and recent famous Latino /Latina athletes, entertainers, and politicians. Everything You Need to Know about Latino History should be required reading to educate all Americans about the contributions and history of the fastest-growing ethnic group.

Cuba 15, by Nancy Osa

Osa, Nancy (2003). Cuba 15. New York: Delacorte Press.

ISBN: 9780385732338 / 0-385-73233-3

Summary:  First time novelist Nancy Osa relates a light-hearted and entertaining coming-of-age novel about 15-year-old Violet Paz, whose Cuban grandmother insists on throwing a quinceanero—a traditional celebration to mark a girl’s transition to womanhood. Violet, whose father is Cuban and whose mother is Polish, initially opposes the festivity, feeling out of touch with her Cuban roots and reproachful of having to wear a fancy dress. But, she concedes to appease her abuela. 

Additional Comments:  Osa draws partially from her own experiences connecting with her Cuban heritage to create Violet, a spunky, comical American adolescent who is introduced to family customs and history and is developing a stronger sense of cultural identity. Female readers will particularly relate with Violet’s feelings towards friendships and family relationships while learning about Cuban culture and history.

Drink Cultura, by Jose Antonio Burciaga

Burciago, Jose Antonio (1993). Drink Cultura. Santa Barbara: Joshua Odell Editions.
ISBN 1877741078

Summary:  Burciago writes, “I’m Mexican by nature and American by nurture.” (p. 63). A Chicano cultural activist, Burciago presents a series of essays in Drink Cultura that explore elements of American and Mexican cultures and Mexican-American culture. By discussing language, food, and holidays, Burciago explores his identity as a Chicano Texan—neither Mexicano nor gringo, but caught between cultures —with wit and insightful commentary informed by personal experience and history. 

Additional Comments:  Despite his levity, Burciago also addresses serious social injustices against Latinos, such as the past prohibition of Spanish language and Mexican culture in schools, the struggles of the campesino farmworkers and the labor movement, and the evolution of the Chicano Movement. Students of Latin American studies will especially benefit from Burciago’s critique of American culture and history.

Revenge of the "Illegal Alien", by Cesar A. Preciado-Cruz

Preciado-Cruz, Cesar A. (2008). Revenge of the “illegal alien: A Mexican takes on the Empire. Oakland: Making Changes Press.

ISBN 9780615152998

Summary:  Human rights activist Cesar Preciado-Cruz (teolol) releases revolutionary rage in his Revenge of the “illegal alien: A Mexican takes on the Empire, a collection of poems and short stories that condemn the United States for the repression of people of color, for the wealthy corporate elite, for the political lies about Iraq, for the general contempt of undocumented workers by Americans who benefit from their services, and for historical atrocities. Cruz’s radical poems in English and Spanish lend themselves to spoken word to fully realize the emotional intensity of his writing. 

Additional Comments: Some readers will undoubtedly squirm with discomfort from his calls for insurgency in poems like “license this” and “the terrorist” and from his vilification of the American government in poems like “on the 4th u lie (4th of july)” and “things taken”. However, his voice represents the vital perspective of the underrepresented and marginalized.

Trino's Choice, by Diane Gonzales Bertrand

Bertrand, Diane Gonzales (1999). Trino's choice.  Houston: Pinata Books.  ISBN: 1558852689
/ 978-1-55885-268-6

Summary: When Trino witnesses a crime and ducks into a bookstore to hide from the perpetrator, Rosca, a tough eighth grader, Trino meets Lisana and her "school-type" friends, which introduces him to different activities and ways of interacting.  Trino is pretty miserable, living in a small trailer with his hard-working mother, three brothers, lazy cousin and never with enough food to eat.  When his mother loses her cleaning job and his baby brother gets ill, Trino has to make a difficult decision about how to get money to help the family.

Additional comments: Trino's Choice is a quick read that is fast-paced and moving.  The story provides a glimpse into a very difficult home-life without any father figure, supervision, and without consistent nutritious meals.  Trino's Choice is a great book to show life in a poor barrio and the hard life of low-waged jobs.  However, the characters are not very well developed, and although tragedy strikes at the end, the book doesn't have the emotional impact it could have if more connection were created with the characters. But, reluctant readers will be drawn into Trino's world and challenges.

The Circuit, by Francisco Jimenez

Jimenez, Francisco (1997). The circuit. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.

ISBN:9780826317971

Summary:  Jimenez's childhood memories as a child migrant farm-workers inspired The Circuit, a heart-wrenching tale of a Mexican family who crossed the border illegally to increase their opportunities in the U.S. only to attain a life of seasonal migrations.  Just as a new camp begins to feel like home and just as he makes friends at school where he can't speak the language, his hard-working parents load up the jalopy to move along "the circuit" for the next harvest.  Living in extreme privation and poverty, his parents and older brother, who often sacrifices school to help pick crops, break their backs to work in the fields all day while living in constant fear of "la migra". 

Additional comments:  Recounted with deep love and tenderness, The Circuit is a must-read to develop compassion for and an understanding of the harsh realities faced by undocumented agricultural laborers.

The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros

Cisneros, Sandra (1991). The house on mango street. New York: Vintage Contemporaries.

ISBN: 0679734775

Summary:  Cisneros’ beloved, classic novel is a collection of lyrical vignettes about Esperanza Cordero, a Mexican American girl in a Latino neighborhood in Chicago. Each section is brief yet emotionally poignant, such as Esperanza’s embarrassment about her rundown home, her loneliness and desperation for a friend, her empathy for Sally, whose father is abusive, and her sense of victimization after a sexual assault. Cisneros draws from her own experiences growing up Latina in Chicago to create a glimpse into the Latino American experience.

Additional Comments:  The House on Mango Street is a poetic reflection from an adolescent girl's viewpoint, providing insight into the sensitivity of a lonely, self-conscious girl.  

How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez

Alvarez, Julia (1992).  How the Garcia girls lost their accents.  New York: Plume. 

Summary:  How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents tells the story of four Dominican sisters whose family moves to New York City when their father is suspected as being part of the underground opposition to the dictatorship, Trujillo.  The young women find themselves navigating an ambiguous path of cultural assimilation, caught between Dominican traditions enforced by their father and a new American lifestyle introduced to them at school. 

Additional comments:  How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents is told in sentimental vignettes that reveal the hardships and mistreatment they faced as immigrants learning to speak English and struggling financial. Their relationship with their home country also evolves.  Female readers will enjoy the dynamic relationships between the contrasting personalities of the sisters.

Suckerpunch by David Hernandez

Hernandez, David (2008). Suckerpunch. New York: Harperteen. 

Summary: 17-year-old Marcus harbors deep hatred for his father who used to beat up his younger brother, Enrique, before eventually leaving the family.  Upon hearing that their father intends to return to the family, Marcus and Enrique, accompanied by friends, drive from Southern California to Monterey with a gun, planning to scare their father.  

Additional comments: Suckerpunch, the first novel by poet David Hernandez of Long Beach, California, strikes the reader with realistically harsh dialogue, detailed drug and alcohol experiences, explicit sexual fantasies, and violent physical abuse.  A few of the main characters are Latino, but Suckerpunch will appeal to any teen who enjoys a fast-moving plot with a lot of dialogue, who has wrestled with the morality of retribution, and who has suffered from depression, boredom, and anger.

Buried Onions by Gary Soto

Soto, Gary (1997, 2006).  Buried Onions. Orlando: Harcourt, Inc.

Summary:  After dropping out of the community college, Eddie has a hard time making ends meet on his own.  Though he tries hard to keep out of violence and crime that surrounds him in Fresno and to live honestly and earnestly , his aunt pressures him to avenge the murder of his cousin and he gets tangled in a mess that makes him look like a criminal.   

Additional comments:  This is a heart-breaking and suspenseful story about a young man with pure intentions and strong integrity who is trapped in poverty and where there are limited options available.  Events show how extremely difficult it is to rise above hardships due to lack of legal job opportunities and discrimination.   

Babylon Boyz by Jess Mowry

Mowry, Jess (1997, 1999). Babylon Boyz. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks. 

Summary:  The Babylon Boyz are three best friends in Oakland, California, who are outcasts at high school:  Pook for being gay, Dante for a weak heart in need of an operation, and Wyatt for his obesity.  The boys, who mostly get back without adults, befriend Radji, a homeless kid, and Jinx, who is in rehab for crack.  When they stumble upon a suitcase full of cocaine near the docks, they are divided about what to do.  On one hand, if they sell it, the large sum of money would provide them with choices and opportunities, such as Dante's greatly needed and expensive heart surgery, medical school for Pook, and ultimately a way out of "Babylon" where they feel trapped.  On the other hand, they could flush the coke down the toilet and spare the community from the drug that is destroying them.

Additional comments: A vivid and emotionally gripping portrayal of life for young, intelligent men of color who are marginalized and limited by poverty and racism.  Without parents, they lean on each other for support and love.  The male characters are at times hard-edged and others vulnerable and sensitive and despite arguments, always loyal to each other in the end.

Monster by Walter Dean Myers

Myers, Walter Dean (1999). Monster. New York: Scholastic Inc.  

Summary:  Steve Harmon is 16-year-old black high school student on trial for being the lookout in the robbery of a drug store in Harlem, New York during which the owner was shot and killed.  To bring comfort to the deep terror he faces both in the courtroom and in the detention center, Steve narrates his experience in the form of a screen play.

Additional comments:  An intense story presented in a unique and dramatic style. Readers will anxiously flip the pages to see if justice is served in the end.  Raises many questions about racism in the justice system, what is honesty, and reconciling self-identity and the judgment by others.  

The Color Purple (DVD)

Spielberg, Steven (1985). The Color Purple [Motion picture]. United States: Amblin Entertainment.

Summary:  Set in Georgia at the turn of the 20th century, The Color Purple follows the life of Celie, a 14-year-old black girl at the start of the film.  After bearing two children by her daddy only to have them pried from her arms at birth, Celie's life only gets harder when she is forced to marry and serve an abusive, mean-spirited older widower and his many rotten children.  But, her heart and spirit die when her new husband tries to rape Celie's beloved younger sister, who fights him off, and is physically removed from the house forever.  Celie then succumbs to a despondent life of servitude and speechlessness until she allows herself to be loved by Shug Avery, a spirited, head-strong performer and lover of Celie's husband.    

Additional comments:  Exposes the mistreatment and confinement of women, particularly women of color, who were kept down with no choices and basically no options for independence.  Celie is treated as property, who should be seen, not heard, and must serve "the Mister's" every need and endure beatings wordlessly. A long movie that is bound to bring you to tears at multiple points of the film.  This Steven Spielberg classic features an all-star cast, including Whoopie Goldberg, Danny Glover, and Oprah Winfrey.  

Based on the Pulitzer prize winning novel by Alice Walker.