Books for Latinx & Hispanic Heritage Month

A Young People’s History of the United States brings to US history the viewpoints of workers, slaves, immigrants, women, Native Americans, and others whose stories, and their impact, are rarely included in books for young people. A Young People’s History of the United States is also a companion volume to The People Speak, the film adapted from A People’s History of the United States and Voices of a People’s History of the United States.

A new paperback edition of Julia Alvarez’s beloved Pura Belpré winner about life in Trujillo’s Dominican Republic. “Diary entries written by a child while in hiding will remind readers of Anne Frank’s story.” —SLJ

"It won't take you long to read this book, but it will linger in your heart and head for quite a while, and perhaps inspire you to join in the creative, blossoming movement to make this world work." -- Bill McKibben, environmentalist, New York Times bestselling author of The End of Nature, journalist, and founder of 350.org"An inspiring story that will change the way all of us think about the climate crisis - and how we can solve it." -- Van Jones, New York Times bestselling author of The Green Collar Economy and Rebuild the Dream, and co-founder of Dream Corps"A hopeful, well-argued book on climate change written in a refreshing new voice."-- Kirkus Reviews, starred review"Martinez presents a meaningful, heartfelt call to action with content that reflects current issues. Additionally, the book's short length will appeal to reluctant readers. An essential purchase for any high school or public library."-- School Library Journal, starred reviewIn this personal, moving essay, environmental activist and hip-hop artist Xiuhtezcatl Martinez uses his art and his activism to show that climate change is a human issue that can't be ignored.

Pura Belpré Award Winner Ruth Behar's inspiring story of a young Jewish girl who escapes Poland to make a new life in Cuba, while she works to rescue the rest of her family

In her acclaimed debut work, Cisneros tells the story of Esperanza Cordero, a young girl growing up in the Latino section of Chicago. Esperanza's thoughts and emotions are expressed in her fable-like poems and stories, which portray the alternating beauty and desolation of her life and its realities. Esperanza doesn't want to belong—not to her rundown neighborhood, and not to the low expectations the world has for her. Esperanza's story is that of a young girl coming into her power, and inventing for herself what she will become.

For hundreds of years, the history of the conquest of Mexico and the defeat of the Aztecs has been told in the words of the Spanish victors. Miguel León-Portilla has long been at the forefront of expanding that history to include the voices of indigenous peoples. In this new and updated edition of his classic The Broken Spears, León-Portilla has included accounts from native Aztec descendants across the centuries. These texts bear witness to the extraordinary vitality of an oral tradition that preserves the viewpoints of the vanquished instead of the victors. León-Portilla’s new Postscript reflects upon the critical importance of these unexpected historical accounts.

Finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize for Fiction

An intersectional history of the shared struggle for African American and Latinx civil rights

From the New York Times bestselling author of The House of the Spirits comes an epic novel spanning decades and crossing continents, following two young people as they flee the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War in search of a new place to call home.

Selected for common reading at:

A Goddard CBC's Social Justice Prize Nominee • A YALSA Amazing Audiobook for Young Adults"I will close my eyes and disappear into the pages of this book for many years to come."--Hanif Abdurraqib (New York Times bestselling author of Go Ahead in The Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest)"Amyra's wondrous awe for life in all its terror and splendor is inspiring to witness."--Rosario Dawson (award-winning actor, singer, and activist)"A moving, inspiring love letter to and about 'the concrete kids. The kids with a melanin kiss.'"-- Kirkus Reviews "Leon's powerful book will embolden readers find their own ways of speaking out against injustice." -- Booklist, Starred Review"A raw and complex free verse exploration of self-love, Blackness, womanhood, and healing. A timely, essential ­purchase for all young adult collections." -- School Library Journal, Starred ReviewIn Concrete Kids, playwright, musician, and educator Amyra León uses free verse to challenge us to dream beyond our circumstances -- and sometimes even despite them.