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Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpré
An inspiring picture book biography of storyteller, puppeteer, and New York City's first Puerto Rican librarian, who championed bilingual literature.
When she came to America in 1921, Pura Belpré carried the cuentos folklóricos of her Puerto Rican homeland. Finding a new home at the New York Public Library as a bilingual assistant, she turned her popular retellings into libros and spread story seeds across the land. Today, these seeds have grown into a lush landscape as generations of children and storytellers continue to share her tales and celebrate Pura's legacy.
Brought to colorful life by Paola Escobar's elegant and exuberant illustrations and Anika Aldamuy Denise's lyrical text, this gorgeous book is perfect for the pioneers in your life. Informative backmatter and suggested further reading included.
Recipient of the Pura Belpré Honor Award
Target age group 4-8 -
Vamos! Let's Go to the Market (World of vamos!)
Explore the marketplace of a buzzing Mexican-American border town in ¡VAMOS! LET'S GO TO THE MARKET, a paper-over-board picture book from New York Times best-selling, three-time Pura Belpré Award-winning author/illustrator Raúl the Third.
Bilingual in a new way, this colorful adventure teaches readers simple words in Spanish as they experience the bustling life of a border town. Follow Little Lobo and his dog Bernabe as they deliver supplies to a variety of vendors, selling everything from sweets to sombreros, portraits to piñatas, carved masks to comic books!
A Pura Belpré Award Honor Book
Target age group 4-7 -
Hear My Voice / Escucha Mi Voz: The Testimonies of Children Detained at the Southern Border of the United States
The moving stories of children in migration -- in their own words. Every day, children in migration are detained at the US-Mexico border. They are scared, alone, and their lives are in limbo.
HEAR MY VOICE / ESCUCHA MI VOZ shares the stories of 61 of these children, from Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Mexico, ranging in age from five to seventeen -- in their own words from actual sworn testimonies. Befitting the spirit of the project, this book is in English on one side; then flip it over, and there's a complete Spanish version.
Illustrated by 17 Latinx artists, including Caldecott Medal and multiple Pura Belpré Illustrator Award-winning Yuji Morales and Pura Belpré Illustrator Award-winning Raúl the Third. Includes information, questions, and action points.
Las conmovedoras historias de niños migrantes, en sus propias palabras. Todos los días, niños migrantes son detenidos en la frontera entre Estados Unidos y México. Están asustados, solos y sus vidas en el limbo.
ESCUCHA MI VOZ / ESCUCHA MI VOZ comparte las historias de 61 de estos niños, de Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ecuador y México, con edades comprendidas entre cinco y diecisiete años, en sus propias palabras a partir de testimonios jurados reales. Como corresponde al espíritu del proyecto, este libro está en inglés por una cara; luego dale la vuelta y verás la versión completa en español.
Ilustrado por 17 artistas latinos, entre ellos Yuji Morales, ganador de múltiples premios Pura Belpré Illustrator Award y Pura Belpré Illustrator Award, y Pura Belpré Illustrator Award, Raúl III. Incluye información, preguntas y puntos de acción.
English / Spanish Bilingual Edition
Target age group 8-11 -
Pura Belpré (She Persisted)
Inspired by the #1 New York Times bestseller SHE PERSISTED by Chelsea Clinton and Alexandra Boiger, a chapter book series about women who spoke up and rose up against the odds -- including Pura Belpré!
Pura Belpré grew up in Puerto Rico surrounded by stories. When she moved to New York and was offered the chance to work at the New York Public Library, she was thrilled to be able to help share her stories with children -- especially multicultural and multilingual children like her.
She persisted in bringing Spanish and bilingual storytelling and books to libraries across the city and across the country, and she wrote books and stories of her own to bring even more of her culture to people everywhere. Pura gave Spanish speakers in New York and around the country the opportunity to read and find community in ways they never had before, and she changed the way libraries reach readers even to this day.
In this chapter book biography by best-selling and award-winning author Meg Medina, readers learn about the amazing life of Pura Belpré and how she persisted. Complete with an introduction from Chelsea Clinton, black-and-white illustrations throughout, and a list of ways that readers can follow in Pura Belpré's footsteps and make a difference!
Target age group 6-9 -
How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe (Hardcover)
THE HATING GAME meets I AM NOT YOUR PERFECT MEXICAN DAUGHTER in this Pura Belpré Award-winning novel that's an irresistible romance starring a Mexican American teen who discovers love and profound truths about the universe when she spends her summer on a road trip across the country.
When her twin sister reaches social media stardom, Moon Fuentez accepts her fate as the ugly, unwanted sister hidden in the background, destined to be nothing more than her sister's camera woman.
But this summer, Moon also takes a job as the "merch girl" on a tour bus full of beautiful influencers and her fate begins to shift in the best way possible. Most notable is her bunkmate and new nemesis, Santiago Phillips, who is grumpy, combative, and also the hottest guy Moon has ever seen. Moon is certain she hates Santiago and that he hates her back.
But as chance and destiny (and maybe, probably, close proximity) bring the two of them in each other's perpetual paths, Moon starts to wonder if that's really true. She even starts to question her destiny as the unnoticed, unloved wallflower she always thought she was. Could this summer change Moon's life as she knows it?
"Breathlessly atmospheric... A gorgeous, hopeful book." --Rachel Lynn Solomon, author of TODAY TONIGHT TOMORROW
Target age group 13 -14 -
How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe (Paperback)
THE HATING GAME meets I AM NOT YOUR PERFECT MEXICAN DAUGHTER in this Pura Belpré Award-winning novel that's an irresistible romance starring a Mexican-American teen who discovers love and profound truths about the universe when she spends her summer on a road trip across the country.
When her twin sister reaches social media stardom, Moon Fuentez accepts her fate as the ugly, unwanted sister hidden in the background, destined to be nothing more than her sister's camera woman.
But this summer, Moon also takes a job as the "merch girl" on a tour bus full of beautiful influencers and her fate begins to shift in the best way possible. Most notable is her bunkmate and new nemesis, Santiago Phillips, who is grumpy, combative, and also the hottest guy Moon has ever seen. Moon is certain she hates Santiago and that he hates her back.
But as chance and destiny (and maybe, probably, close proximity) bring the two of them in each other's perpetual paths, Moon starts to wonder if that's really true. She even starts to question her destiny as the unnoticed, unloved wallflower she always thought she was. Could this summer change Moon's life as she knows it?
"Breathlessly atmospheric... A gorgeous, hopeful book." --Rachel Lynn Solomon, author of TODAY TONIGHT TOMORROW
Target age group 13 -14 -
Child of the Flower Song People: Luz Jiménez Daughter of the Nahua
Award-winning illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh brings to life debut author Gloria Amescua's lyrical picture book biography of an Indigenous Nahua woman from Mexico who taught and preserved her people's culture through modeling for famous artists.
"She was Luz Jiménez, child of the flower-song people, the powerful Aztec, who called themselves Nahua -- who lost their land but who did not disappear."
As a young Nahua girl in Mexico during the early 1900s, Luz learned how to grind corn in a metate, to twist yarn with her toes, and to weave on a loom. By the fire at night, she listened to stories of her community's joys, suffering, and survival, and wove them into her heart.
A 2022 Pura Belpré Award Author Honor Book
Target age group 6-10 -
We Are Not from Here (Hardcover)
A poignant novel of desperation, escape, and survival across the US/Mexico border, inspired by current events.
Pulga has his dreams.
Chico has his grief.
Pequeña has her pride.
And these three teens have one another. But none of them have illusions about the town they've grown up in and the dangers that surround them. Even with the love of family, threats lurk around every corner. And when those threats become all too real, the trio knows they have no choice but to run: from their country, from their families, from their beloved home.
Crossing from Guatemala through Mexico, they follow the route of La Bestia, the perilous train system that might deliver them to a better life -- if they are lucky enough to survive the journey.
With nothing but the bags on their backs and desperation drumming through their hearts, Pulga, Chico, and Pequeña know there is no turning back, despite the unknown that awaits them. And the darkness that seems to follow wherever they go. In this striking portrait of lives torn apart, the plight of migrants at the U.S. southern border is brought to light through poignant, vivid storytelling.
An epic journey of danger, resilience, heartache, and hope.
"A fierce and tender story... Relevant, timely, and perceptive." --Margarita Engle, winner of the Pura Belpré Award and Newbery Honor
"With poignant, exhausting lyricism and heart wrenching poetic prose, Jenny Torres Sanchez digs deep and shows us the throbbing, aching corazón -- the hopeful, unbreakable spirit of the embattled immigrant. A book for the starving, lost soul." --Guadalupe García McCall, Pura Belpré Award-winning author of UNDER THE MESQUITE
"A brutally honest, not-to-be-missed narrative... gripping, heart-wrenching, and thrilling." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"A devastating read that is difficult to put down, this unforgettable book unflinchingly illuminates the experiences of those leaving their homes to seek safety in the United States." --Publishers Weekly, starred review
Target age group 14-17 -
Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story
"Fry bread is food.
It is warm and delicious, piled high on a plate.
Fry bread is time.
It brings families together for meals and new memories.
Fry bread is nation.
It is shared by many, from coast to coast and beyond.
Fry bread is us.
It is a celebration of old and new, traditional and modern, similarity and difference."
Told in lively and powerful verse by debut author Kevin Noble Maillard, FRY BREAD is an evocative depiction of a modern Native American family, vibrantly illustrated by Pura Belpré Award winner and Caldecott Honoree Juana Martinez-Neal.
Target age group 3-6 -
Vamos! Let's Go Read (World of vamos!)
From New York Times best-selling, Pura Belpré Award-winning author-illustrator Raúl the Third, ¡VAMOS! LET'S GO READ follows Little Lobo and friends as they explore their library's Libro Love Book Festival in this paper-over-board picture book from the World of "¡Vamos!"
Little Lobo and his friends are excited for the out-of-this-world book festival the Guadalupian Library hosts every year!
Everyone has a special book they're looking for, but there's so much to see and do first. From cookbook demonstrations and comics workshops to mask making and language classes, this library has something for everyone. Can Little Lobo, Bernabé, Kooky Dooky, Coco Rocho, and La Chida each find the book of their dreams?
Full of easy-to-remember Spanish vocabulary and packed with fun details, this colorful celebration of books, libraries, and all forms of reading will bring joy to young bookworms everywhere!
A Junior Library Guild Selection
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A Bologna Ragazzi Awards Amazing Bookshelf Selection
A Bank Street Best Children's Book
Target age group 4-8 -
Training Day: El Toro and Friends (World of vamos!)
From New York Times best-selling, three-time Pura Belpré Award-winning author/illustrator Raúl the Third, TRAINING DAY finds El Toro preparing for his wrestling match in Spanish and English in this graphic-novel-style El Toro & Friends paper-over-board reader from the Eisner-nominated World of ¡VAMOS!
Little Lobo introduced readers to his wrestling hero El Toro in ¡VAMOS! LET'S GO TO THE MARKET! Now El Toro is off on his own adventures in this early reader graphic novel series!
Getting out of bed isn't always easy, especially for Mexican wrestling star El Toro. But his coach, Kooky Dooky, knows that it's important for the wrestler to stay in shape and keep training -- even when he doesn't feel like it. Can Kooky Dooky raise El Toro's spirits and get him to practice before his next big wrestling match?
With unique, detailed illustrations and easy Spanish and English vocabulary words, sports fans and comic book fans alike will fall in love with El Toro on his training day adventures in this fun early reader graphic novel.
Target age group 6-10 -
Soldier for Equality: José de la Luz Sáenz and the Great War
The incredible story of one man's fight for Mexican-American civil rights, from award-winning picture book creator Duncan Tonatiuh.
José de la Luz Sáenz (Luz) believed in fighting for what was right. Though born in the United States, Luz often faced prejudice because of his Mexican heritage. Determined to help his community, even in the face of discrimination, he taught school -- children during the day and adults in the evenings.
When World War I broke out, Luz joined the army, as did many others. His ability to quickly learn languages made him an invaluable member of the Intelligence Office in Europe. However, Luz found that prejudice followed him even to war, and despite his efforts, he often didn't receive credit for his contributions. Upon returning home to Texas, he joined with other Mexican American veterans to create the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), which today is the largest and oldest Latinx civil rights organization.
Using his signature illustration style and Luz's diary entries from the war, award-winning author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh tells the story of a Mexican American war hero and his fight for equality.
A 2020 Pura Belpré Award Author Honor Book
A 2020 Association of Library Service to Children Notable Children's Book
Target age group 5-9 -
Saints of the Household
SAINTS OF THE HOUSEHOLD us a haunting contemporary YA about an act of violence in a small-town -- beautifully told by a debut Indigenous Costa Rican-American writer -- that will take your breath away.
Max and Jay have always depended on one another for their survival. Growing up with a physically abusive father, the two Bribri American brothers have learned that the only way to protect themselves and their mother is to stick to a schedule and keep their heads down. But when they hear a classmate in trouble in the woods, instinct takes over and they intervene, breaking up a fight and beating their high school's star soccer player to a pulp.
This act of violence threatens the brothers' dreams for the future and their beliefs about who they are. As the true details of that fateful afternoon unfold over the course of the novel, Max and Jay grapple with the weight of their actions, their shifting relationship as brothers, and the realization that they may be more like their father than they thought.
They'll have to reach back to their Bribri roots to find their way forward. Told in alternating points of view using vignettes and poems, debut author Ari Tison crafts an emotional, slow-burning drama about brotherhood, abuse, recovery, and doing the right thing.
Winner of the Pura Belpré Award
Winner of the Walter Dean Myers Award for Young Adult Literature
Target age group 14-18 -
Boogie Boogie Y'all
"Boogie boogie, y'all.
The city boogied all day.
Busy, busy, busy,
Till one kid stopped to say,
'Woah, woah, woah!
Look at the art on the wall!'"
The city is alive with vibrant art in every corner of the parks, the shops, the trains. But most people are too busy to see it -- or worse, choose to ignore it! When three children stop to marvel at the art around their community, they realize it's up to them to show everyone else how truly special it is when art and realty dance together so seamlessly.
Author/illustrator C. G. Esperanza delivers a celebratory ode to graffiti and the Boogie Down Bronx through an infectious read-aloud beat and colorful illustrations that leap right off the page! Perfect for fans of CROWN: ODE TO THE FRESH CUT and Keith Haring.
A NPR Best Book of the Year and Pura Belpré Honor Award winner
Target age group 4-7 -
Say Her Name
Inspired by the #SayHerName campaign launched by the African American Policy Forum, these poems pay tribute to victims of police brutality as well as the activists insisting that Black Lives Matter. Elliott engages poets from the past two centuries to create a chorus of voices celebrating the creativity, resilience, and courage of Black women and girls.
This collection features forty-nine powerful poems, four of which are tribute poems inspired by the works of Lucille Clifton, Audre Lorde, Nikki Giovanni, and Phillis Wheatley.
This provocative collection will move every reader to reflect, respond, and act.
Target age group 13-17 -
Vamos! Let's Go Eat (World of vamos!)
Little Lobo returns to share his love of food and wrestling in this delicious follow-up to Vamos! Let's Go to the Market from Pura Belpré Medal-winning illustrator, Raúl the Third.
In this new "Vamos!" title, LET'S GO EAT, Little Lobo is excited to take in a show with wrestling star El Toro in his bustling border town. After getting lunch orders from The Bull and his friends to help prepare for the event, Little Lobo takes readers on a tour of food trucks that sell his favorite foods, like quesadillas with red peppers and Mexican-Korean tacos. Peppered with easy-to-remember Latin-American Spanish vocabulary, this glorious celebration of food is sure to leave every reader hungry for lunch!
Jam-packed with fun details and things to see, the "Vamos!" books are perfect for fans of RICHARD SCARRY and WHERE'S WALDO?
Winner of the 2021 Pura Belpré Illustrator Medal
Target age group 4-7 -
My Papi Has a Motorcycle
A celebration of the love between a father and daughter, and of a vibrant immigrant neighborhood, by an award-winning author and illustrator duo.
When Daisy Ramona zooms around her neighborhood with her papi on his motorcycle, she sees the people and places she's always known. She also sees a community that is rapidly changing around her.
But as the sun sets purple-blue-gold behind Daisy Ramona and her papi, she knows that the love she feels will always be there.
With vivid illustrations and text bursting with heart, My Papi Has a Motorcycle is a young girl's love letter to her hardworking dad and to memories of home that we hold close in the midst of change.
Target age group 4-7 -
Day You Begin
National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson and two-time Pura Belpré Illustrator Award winner Rafael López have teamed up to create a poignant, yet heartening book about finding courage to connect, even when you feel scared and alone.
There will be times when you walk into a room and no one there is quite like you. There are many reasons to feel different. Maybe it's how you look or talk, or where you're from; maybe it's what you eat, or something just as random. It's not easy to take those first steps into a place where nobody really knows you yet, but somehow you do it.
Jacqueline Woodson's lyrical text and Rafael López's dazzling art reminds us that we all feel like outsiders sometimes-and how brave it is that we go forth anyway. And that sometimes, when we reach out and begin to share our stories, others will be happy to meet us halfway.
Target age group 5-8 -
Last Cuentista
From Pura Belpré Honor-winner Donna Barba Higuera -- a brilliant journey through the stars, to the very heart of what makes us human.
Había una vez... there lived a girl named Petra Peña, who wanted nothing more than to be a storyteller, like her abuelita. But Petra's world is ending. Earth has been destroyed by a comet, and only a few hundred scientists and their children -- among them Petra and her family -- have been chosen to journey to a new planet. They are the ones who must carry on the human race.
Hundreds of years later, Petra wakes to this new planet -- and the discovery that she is the only person who remembers Earth. A sinister Collective has taken over the ship during its journey, bent on erasing the sins of humanity's past. They have systematically purged the memories of all aboard -- or purged them altogether.
Petra alone now carries the stories of our past, and with them, any hope for our future. Can she make them live again?
Target age group 10-13 -
Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote: A Migrant's Tale
An allegorical picture book about the hardships and struggles of immigration from award-winning picture book creator Duncan Tonatiuh.
A young rabbit named Pancho eagerly awaits his papa's return. Papa Rabbit left two years ago to travel far away north to find work in the great carrot and lettuce fields to earn money for his family. When Papa does not return home on the designated day, Pancho sets out to find him. He packs Papa's favorite meal -- mole, rice and beans, a heap of still-warm tortillas, and a jug full of fresh aguamiel -- and heads north. He soon meets a coyote, who offers to help Pancho in exchange for some of Papa's favorite foods. They travel together until the food is gone and the coyote decides he is still hungry... for Pancho!
Award-winning author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh brings to light the hardship and struggles facing families who seek to make better lives for themselves and their children by illegally crossing the borders.
A Pura Belpré Author and Illustrator Honor Book and ALA/ALSC Notable Children's Book!
Target age group 6-9 -
Other Half of Happy
This immersive and beautifully written novel follows the story of Quijana, a girl in pieces.
Quijana must figure out which parts of herself are more important, and which pieces come together to make her whole. This is a heartfelt poetic portrayal of a girl growing up, fitting in, and learning what it means to belong.
One-half Guatemalan, one-half American: When Quijana's Guatemalan cousins move to town, her dad seems ashamed that she doesn't know more about her family's heritage.
One-half crush, one-half buddy: When Quijana meets Zuri and Jayden, she knows she's found true friends. But she can't help the growing feelings she has for Jayden.
One-half kid, one-halg grown-up: Quijana spends her nights Skyping with her ailing grandma and trying to figure out what's going on with her increasingly hard-to-reach brother.
2020 Pura Belpré Honor Book
A Junior Library Guild Selection ALSC Notable Children's Book
2020 Jean Flynn Award for Best Middle Grade Book
2020 Spirit of Texas Reading Program Recommended Title
Target age group 10-14 -
Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet
I'M NOT YOUR PERFECT MEXICAN DAUGHTER meets EMERGENCY CONTACT in this stunning Pura Belpré Honor Book about first love, familial expectations, the power of food, and finding where you belong.
Penelope Prado has always dreamed of opening her own pastelería next to her father's restaurant, Nacho's Tacos. But her mom and dad have different plans -- leaving Pen to choose between disappointing her traditional Mexican American parents or following her own path. When she confesses a secret she's been keeping, her world is sent into a tailspin. But then she meets a cute new hire at Nacho's who sees through her hard exterior and asks the questions she's been too afraid to ask herself.
Xander Amaro has been searching for home since he was a little boy. For him, a job at Nacho's is an opportunity for just that -- a chance at a normal life, to settle in at his abuelo's, and to find the father who left him behind. But when both the restaurant and Xander's immigrant status are threatened, he will do whatever it takes to protect his newfound family and himself.
Together, Pen and Xander must navigate first love and discovering where they belong in order to save the place they all call home.
This stunning and poignant novel from debut author Laekan Zea Kemp explores identity, found families and the power of food, all nestled within a courageous and intensely loyal Chicanx community.
Target age group 13-17 -
Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora (Paperback)
Save the restaurant. Save the town. Get the girl. Make Abuela proud. Can thirteen-year-old Arturo Zamora do it all or is he in for a BIG, EPIC FAIL?
For Arturo, summertime in Miami means playing basketball until dark, sipping mango smoothies, and keeping cool under banyan trees. And maybe a few shifts as junior lunchtime dishwasher at Abuela's restaurant.
Maybe. But this summer also includes Carmen, a poetry enthusiast who moves into Arturo's apartment complex and turns his stomach into a deep fryer. He almost doesn't notice the smarmy land developer who rolls into town and threatens to change it.
Arturo refuses to let his family and community go down without a fight, and as he schemes with Carmen, Arturo discovers the power of poetry and protest through untold family stories and the work of José Martí.
Funny and poignant, The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora is the vibrant story of a family, a striking portrait of a town, and one boy's quest to save both, perfect for fans of Rita Williams-Garcia.
Target age group 10-13 -
Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln
In soaring words and stunning illustrations, Margarita Engle and Rafael López tell the story of Teresa Carreño, a child prodigy who played piano for Abraham Lincoln.
As a little girl, Teresa Carreäno loved to let her hands dance across the beautiful keys of the piano. If she felt sad, music cheered her up, and when she was happy, the piano helped her share that joy. Soon she was writing her own songs and performing in grand cathedrals. Then a revolution in Venezuela forced her family to flee to the United States. Teresa felt lonely in this unfamiliar place, where few of the people she met spoke Spanish. Worst of all, there was fighting in her new home, too -- the Civil War.
Still, Teresa kept playing, and soon she grew famous as the talented Piano Girl who could play anything from a folk song to a sonata. So famous, in fact, that President Abraham Lincoln wanted her to play at the White House! Yet with the country torn apart by war, could Teresa's music bring comfort to those who needed it most?
Target age group 4-8 -
Notebook Keeper: A Story of Kindness from the Border
Based on true events, this inspiring story follows a mama and her daughter who are denied entry at the U.S. border, and must find the refugee in charge of "the notebook," an unofficial ledger of those waiting to cross into the U.S.
"Before, the sun drenched the yard. Our neighbor's laughter danced in the streets. Now, the streets are quiet. Papa is gone, and we are no longer safe here. We are leaving, too."
In this moving and stunningly-illustrated picture book, Noemi and Mama flee their home in Mexico, and head for the US border. There, they look for "The Notebook Keeper" -- the person in charge of a ledger for those waiting to cross, and they add their names to the book.
As the days turn into weeks, and hope dwindles, the little girl looks for kindness around her -- and inside herself. One day, when the Notebook Keeper's own name is called to cross, Noemi and her Mama are chosen -- for the generosity in their hearts -- to take her place.
Target age group 4-8 -
Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family's Fight for Desegregation
Seven years before Brown v. Board of Education, the Mendez family fought to end segregation in California schools. Discover their incredible story in this picture book from award-winning creator Duncan Tonatiuh.
When her family moved to the town of Westminster, California, young Sylvia Mendez was excited about enrolling in her neighborhood school. But she and her brothers were turned away and told they had to attend the Mexican school instead. Sylvia could not understand why -- she was an American citizen who spoke perfect English. Why were the children of Mexican families forced to attend a separate school? Unable to get a satisfactory answer from the school board, the Mendez family decided to take matters into its own hands and organize a lawsuit.
In the end, the Mendez family's efforts helped bring an end to segregated schooling in California in 1947, seven years before the landmark Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education ended segregation in schools across America.
Using his signature illustration style and incorporating his interviews with Sylvia Mendez, as well as information from court files and news accounts, award-winning author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh tells the inspiring story of the Mendez family's fight for justice and equality.
A Pura Belpré Illustrator Honor Book
A Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
Target age group 6-9 -
Tumble (Hardcover)
From the award-winning author of THE FIRST RULE OF PUNK and STRANGE BIRDS, a dazzling novel about a young girl who collects the missing pieces of her origin story from the family of legendary luchadores she's never met.
Twelve-year-old Adela "Addie" Ramírez has a big decision to make when her stepfather proposes adoption. Addie loves Alex, the only father figure she's ever known, but with a new half brother due in a few months and a big school theater performance on her mind, everything suddenly feels like it's moving too fast.
She has a million questions, and the first is about the young man in the photo she found hidden away in her mother's things. Addie's sleuthing takes her to a New Mexico ranch, and her world expands to include the legendary Bravos: Rosie and Pancho, her paternal grandparents and former professional wrestlers; Eva and Maggie, her older identical twin cousins who love to spar in and out of the ring; Uncle Mateo, whose lucha couture and advice are unmatched; and Manny, her biological father, who's in the midst of a career comeback.
As luchadores, the Bravos's legacy is strong. But being part of a family is so much harder -- it's about showing up, taking off your mask, and working through challenges together.
A 2023 Pura Belpré Author Honor Book
Target age group 9-12 -
Tumble (Paperback)
From the award-winning author of THE FIRST RULE OF PUNK and STRANGE BIRDS, a dazzling novel about a young girl who collects the missing pieces of her origin story from the family of legendary luchadores she's never met.
Twelve-year-old Adela "Addie" Ramírez has a big decision to make when her stepfather proposes adoption. Addie loves Alex, the only father figure she's ever known, but with a new half brother due in a few months and a big school theater performance on her mind, everything suddenly feels like it's moving too fast.
She has a million questions, and the first is about the young man in the photo she found hidden away in her mother's things. Addie's sleuthing takes her to a New Mexico ranch, and her world expands to include the legendary Bravos: Rosie and Pancho, her paternal grandparents and former professional wrestlers; Eva and Maggie, her older identical twin cousins who love to spar in and out of the ring; Uncle Mateo, whose lucha couture and advice are unmatched; and Manny, her biological father, who's in the midst of a career comeback.
As luchadores, the Bravos's legacy is strong. But being part of a family is so much harder -- it's about showing up, taking off your mask, and working through challenges together.
A 2023 Pura Belpré Author Honor Book
Target age group 9-12 -
Poet X (Paperback)
Fans of Jacqueline Woodson, Meg Medina, and Jason Reynolds will fall hard for this astonishing New York Times best-selling novel-in-verse by an award-winning slam poet, about an Afro-Latina heroine who tells her story with blazing words and powerful truth.
Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking. But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers -- especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about.
With Mami's determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself. So when she is invited to join her school's slam poetry club, she doesn't know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out. But she still can't stop thinking about performing her poems. Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.
National Book Award and Golden Kite Honor Award Winner
Target age group 13 and up -
Aniana del Mar Jumps in
A powerful and expertly told novel in verse about a twelve-year-old Dominican American swimmer who is diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis by an award-winning poet.
Aniana del Mar belongs in the water like a dolphin belongs to the sea. But she and Papi keep her swim practices and meets hidden from Mami, who has never recovered from losing someone she loves to the water years ago. That is, until the day Ani's stiffness and swollen joints mean she can no longer get out of bed, and Ani is forced to reveal just how important swimming is to her. Mami forbids her from returning to the water bu Ani and her doctor believe that swimming along with medication will help Ani manage her disease.
What follows is the journey of a girl who must grieve who she once was in order to rise like the tide and become the young woman she is meant to be. ANIANA DEL MAR JUMPS IN is a poignant story about chronic illness and disability, the secrets between mothers and daughters, the harm we do to the ones we love the most -- and all the triumphs, big and small, that keep us afloat.
"Beautiful in its honesty and vulnerability, this is a powerful story about dreams and bodily agency that sings from the heart." --Natalia Sylvester, award-winning author of BREATHE AND COUNT BACK FROM TEN
Target age group 13-17 -
De Aquí Como El Coquí (Coqui in the City)
Miguel's pet frog, Coquí, is always with him: as he greets his neighbors in San Juan, buys quesitos from the panadería, and listens to his abuelo's story about meeting baseball legend Roberto Clemente. Then Miguel learns that he and his parents are moving to the U.S. mainland, which means leaving his beloved grandparents, home in Puerto Rico, and even Coquí behind.
Life in New York City is overwhelming, with unfamiliar buildings, foods, and people. But when he and Mamá go exploring, they find a few familiar sights that remind them of home, and Miguel realizes there might be a way to keep a little bit of Puerto Rico with him -- including the love he has for Coquí -- wherever he goes.
La mascota de Miguel, Coquí, siempre anda con el: mientras saluda a sus vecinos en San Juan, compra quesitos en la panadería y mientras escucha la historia de su abuelo cuando conoció al famoso pelotero Roberto Clemente. Un día Miguel se entera que el y sus padres se mudarán a los Estados Unidos, lo cual significa dejar atrás a sus amados abuelos, su hogar en Puerto Rico y también a Coquí.
La vida en la ciudad de Nueva York es abrumadora, con lugares, comidas y personas desconocidas. Sin embargo cuando el y Mamá se van a explorar, descubren algunos lugares similares que les recuerdan a casa y Miguel se da cuenta que hay una posibilidad de mantener un poco de Puerto Rico con el -- incluyendo su amor por Coquí -- a donde quiera que vaya.
Spanish Language Edition
Translated by Farah Perez
Target age group 3-7 -
Mi Papi Tiene Una Moto (My Papi Has a Motorcycle)
A celebration of the love between a father and daughter, and of a vibrant immigrant neighborhood, by an award-winning author and illustrator duo.
When Daisy Ramona zooms around her neighborhood with her papi on his motorcycle, she sees the people and places she's always known. She also sees a community that is rapidly changing around her. But as the sun sets purple-blue-gold behind Daisy Ramona and her papi, she knows that the love she feels will always be there.
With vivid illustrations and text bursting with heart, MY PAPI HAS A MOTORCYCLE is a young girl's love letter to her hardworking dad and to memories of home that we hold close in the midst of change.
Un homenaje al amor entre un padre y su hija, y a un dinámico barrio de inmigrantes, del galardonado dúo de Isabel Quintero y Zeke Peña.
Cuando Daisy Ramona recorre su barrio en motocicleta con su papi, ve a la gente y los lugares que siempre ha conocido. También ve a una comunidad que está cambiando rápidamente a su alrededor. Pero mientras el sol azul púrpura y dorado se va poniendo a sus espaldas, Daisy Ramona comprende que el amor que siente por su ciudad nunca cambiará.
Con brillantes ilustraciones y un texto lleno de sentimiento, MI PAPI TIENE UNA MOTO es un mensaje lleno de amor de una niña a su padre, esforzado trabajador, y a los recuerdos que todos guardamos de nuestro hogar a pesar de los cambios o la distancia.
Spanish Language Edition
Target age group 4-7 -
They Called Us Enemy (Graphic)
A stunning graphic memoir recounting actor/author/activist George Takei's childhood imprisoned within American concentration camps during World War II.
Experience the forces that shaped an American icon -- and America itself -- in this gripping tale of courage, country, loyalty, and love.
George Takei has captured hearts and minds worldwide with his captivating stage presence and outspoken commitment to equal rights. But long before he braved new frontiers in Star Trek, he woke up as a four-year-old boy to find his own birth country at war with his father's -- and their entire family forced from their home into an uncertain future.
In 1942, at the order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, every person of Japanese descent on the west coast was rounded up and shipped to one of ten "relocation centers," hundreds or thousands of miles from home, where they would be held for years under armed guard.
THEY CALLED US ENEMY is Takei's firsthand account of those years behind barbed wire, the joys and terrors of growing up under legalized racism, his mother's hard choices, his father's faith in democracy, and the way those experiences planted the seeds for his astonishing future.
What does it mean to be American? Who gets to decide? When the world is against you, what can one person do? To answer these questions, George Takei joins co-writers Justin Eisinger & Steven Scott and artist Harmony Becker for the journey of a lifetime.
Target age group 12-17 -
Sal and Gabi Break the Universe (Sal and Gabi #01)
Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents a brilliant sci-fi romp with Cuban influence that poses this question: What would you do if you had the power to reach through time and space and retrieve anything you want, including your mother, who is no longer living (in this universe, anyway)?
How did a raw chicken get inside Yasmany's locker?
When Sal Vidon meets Gabi Real for the first time, it isn't under the best of circumstances. Sal is in the principal's office for the third time in three days, and it's still the first week of school. Gabi, student council president and editor of the school paper, is there to support her friend Yasmany, who just picked a fight with Sal. She is determined to prove that somehow, Sal planted a raw chicken in Yasmany's locker, even though nobody saw him do it and the bloody poultry has since mysteriously disappeared. Sal prides himself on being an excellent magician, but for this sleight of hand, he relied on a talent no one would guess... except maybe Gabi, whose sharp eyes never miss a trick.
When Gabi learns that he's capable of conjuring things much bigger than a chicken -- including his dead mother -- and she takes it all in stride, Sal knows that she is someone he can work with. There's only one slight problem: their manipulation of time and space could put the entire universe at risk. A sassy entropy sweeper, a documentary about wedgies, a principal who wears a Venetian bauta mask, and heaping platefuls of Cuban food are just some of the delights that await in his mind-blowing novel gift-wrapped in love and laughter.
Target age group 9-12 -
Furia (Hardcover)
A powerful contemporary YA for fans of THE POET X and I AM NOT YOUR PERFECT MEXICAN DAUGHTER set in Argentina, about a rising soccer star who must put everything on the line -- even her blooming love story -- to follow her dreams.
In Rosario, Argentina, Camila Hassan lives a double life. At home, she is a careful daughter, living within her mother's narrow expectations, in her rising-soccer-star brother's shadow, and under the abusive rule of her short-tempered father.
On the field, she is La Furia, a powerhouse of skill and talent. When her team qualifies for the South American tournament, Camila gets the chance to see just how far those talents can take her. In her wildest dreams, she'd get an athletic scholarship to a North American university.
But the path ahead isn't easy. Her parents don't know about her passion. They wouldn't allow a girl to play fútbol -- and she needs their permission to go any farther. And the boy she once loved is back in town. Since he left, Diego has become an international star, playing in Italy for the renowned team Juventus.
Camila doesn't have time to be distracted by her feelings for him. Things aren't the same as when he left: she has her own passions and ambitions now, and La Furia cannot be denied. As her life becomes more complicated, Camila is forced to face her secrets and make her way in a world with no place for the dreams and ambition of a girl like her.
Filled with authentic details and the textures of day-to-day life in Argentina, heart-soaring romance, and breathless action on the pitch, FURIA is the story of a girl's journey to make her life her own.
A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club YA Pick
Recipient of the 2021 Pura Belpré Young Adult Author Medal
One of BuzzFeed's Must-Read YA Books of 2020
A Best Book of the Year: Cosmopolitan, Kirkus Reviews, SheReads, New York Public Library
Target age group 14-18 -
Guardiana de la Libreta: Una Historia de Bondad Desde La Fronter (Notebook Keeper: A Story of Kindness from the Border)
Based on true events, this inspiring story follows a mama and her daughter who are denied entry at the U.S. border, and must find the refugee in charge of "the notebook," an unofficial ledger of those waiting to cross into the U.S.
"Before, the sun drenched the yard. Our neighbor's laughter danced in the streets. Now, the streets are quiet. Papa is gone, and we are no longer safe here. We are leaving, too."
In this moving and stunningly-illustrated picture book, Noemi and Mama flee their home in Mexico, and head for the US border. There, they look for "The Notebook Keeper" -- the person in charge of a ledger for those waiting to cross, and they add their names to the book.
As the days turn into weeks, and hope dwindles, the little girl looks for kindness around her -- and inside herself. One day, when the Notebook Keeper's own name is called to cross, Noemi and her Mama are chosen -- for the generosity in their hearts -- to take her place.
Basada en hechos reales, esta inspiradora historia sigue a una madre y su hija a quienes se les niega la entrada en la frontera de los EE. UU. y deben encontrar al refugiado a cargo del "cuaderno", un libro de contabilidad no oficial de quienes esperan cruzar a los EE. UU.
"Antes, el sol bañaba el jardín. La risa de nuestro vecino bailaba en las calles. Ahora, las calles están en silencio. Papá se ha ido y ya no estamos seguros aquí. Nosotros también nos vamos".
En este conmovedor y sorprendentemente ilustrado libro ilustrado, Noemí y mamá huyen de su hogar en México y se dirigen a la frontera con Estados Unidos. Allí, buscan a "The Notebook Keeper", la persona a cargo de un libro de contabilidad para los que esperan cruzar, y agregan sus nombres al libro.
A medida que los días se convierten en semanas y la esperanza disminuye, la niña busca bondad a su alrededor y dentro de sí misma. Un día, cuando se dice que se cruza el nombre del encargado del cuaderno, Noemí y su mamá son elegidas, por la generosidad de sus corazones, para ocupar su lugar.
Spanish Language Edition
Target age group 4-8 -
Dreamers
In 1994, Yuyi Morales left her home in Xalapa, Mexico and came to the US with her infant son. She left behind nearly everything she owned, but she didn't come empty-handed.
She brought her strength, her work, her passion, her hopes and dreams... and her stories. Caldecott Honor artist and six-time Pura Belpré winner Yuyi Morales's gorgeous picture book DREAMERS is about making a home in a new place.
Yuyi and her son Kelly's passage was not easy, and Yuyi spoke no English whatsoever at the time. But together, they found an unexpected, unbelievable place: the public library. There, book by book, they untangled the language of this strange new land, and learned to make their home within it.
DREAMERS is a celebration of what migrants bring with them when they leave their homes. It's a story about family. And it's a story to remind us that we are all dreamers, bringing our own gifts wherever we roam. Beautiful and powerful at any time but given particular urgency as the status of our own Dreamers becomes uncertain, this is a story that is both topical and timeless.
The lyrical text is complemented by sumptuously detailed illustrations, rich in symbolism. Also included are a brief autobiographical essay about Yuyi's own experience, a list of books that inspired her (and still do), and a description of the beautiful images, textures, and mementos she used to create this book.
Winner of the 2019 Pura Belpré Illustrator Award
A New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Book of 2018
Target age group 4-8 -
Soñadores (Dreamers)
In 1994, Yuyi Morales left her home in Xalapa, Mexico and came to the US with her infant son. She left behind nearly everything she owned, but she didn't come empty-handed.
She brought her strength, her work, her passion, her hopes and dreams... and her stories. Caldecott Honor artist and six-time Pura Belpré winner Yuyi Morales's gorgeous picture book DREAMERS is about making a home in a new place.
Yuyi and her son Kelly's passage was not easy, and Yuyi spoke no English whatsoever at the time. But together, they found an unexpected, unbelievable place: the public library. There, book by book, they untangled the language of this strange new land, and learned to make their home within it.
DREAMERS is a celebration of what migrants bring with them when they leave their homes. It's a story about family. And it's a story to remind us that we are all dreamers, bringing our own gifts wherever we roam. Beautiful and powerful at any time but given particular urgency as the status of our own Dreamers becomes uncertain, this is a story that is both topical and timeless.
The lyrical text is complemented by sumptuously detailed illustrations, rich in symbolism. Also included are a brief autobiographical essay about Yuyi's own experience, a list of books that inspired her (and still do), and a description of the beautiful images, textures, and mementos she used to create this book.
Yuyi Morales, artista galardonada con la Mención de Honor Caldecott y cinco veces ganadora del Premio Pura Belpré, cuenta su historia como inmigrante en este libro ilustrado tributo al poder transformador de la esperanza... y de la lectura.
En 1994, Yuyi Morales dejó su hogar en Xalapa, México, para emigrar a Estados Unidos con su hijo pequeño. Aunque dejó atrás casi todas sus pertenencias, no llegó con las manos vacías.
Trajo consigo su fortaleza, su trabajo, su pasión, sus esperanzas y sueños... y sus historias. El nuevo y magnífico libro de Yuyi Morales, Soñadores, se centra en la búsqueda por encontrar un hogar en un nuevo lugar. El trayecto de Yuyi y su hijo Kelly no fue fácil, ya que ella no hablaba inglés en esa época. Pero, juntos, descubrieron un lugar desconocido e increíble: la biblioteca pública. Allí, libro a libro, descifraron la lengua de esta nueva tierra y formaron en ella su hogar.
SOÑADORES es un homenaje a los migrantes y a todo lo que traen con ellos, y aportan, cuando dejan sus países. Es una historia de familia. Una historia que nos recuerda que todos somos soñadores que llevamos nuestros propios regalos donde quiera que vayamos. Bella y poderosa en todo momento, pero especialmente de una urgente premura hoy en día en que el futuro de los dreamers es incierto, esta es una historia actual y eterna.
El poético texto se complementa con unas espléndidas ilustraciones llenas de detalle y simbolismo. Incluye un ensayo autobiográfico sobre la experiencia de Yuyi, una bibliografía de los libros que la han inspirado (y la siguen inspirando) y una descripción de las bellas imágenes, texturas y recuerdos que utilizó para la creación de este libro.
Winner of the 2019 Pura Belpré Illustrator Award
A New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Book of 2018
Spanish Language Edition
Target age group 4-8 -
Quizás Algo Hermoso: Cómo El Arte Transformó Un Barrio (Maybe Something Beautiful)
A lyrical Spanish language edition of the acclaimed and inspiring picture book MAYBE SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL, illustrated by Pura Belpré Medal winner Rafael López.
In this exuberant picture book about transformation through art, Mira lives in a gray urban community until a muralist arrives and, along with his paints and brushes, brings color, joy, and hope to the neighborhood.
Una edición en español lírica del aclamado e inspirador libro de cuentos ilustrados QUIZÁS ALGO HERMOSO, ilustrado por el ganador de la medalla Pura Belpré, Rafael López.
Ganador del Premio Tomás Rivera ¿Qué pueden conseguir unas gotas de color en una comunidad gris? Viendo lo que Mira y sus vecinos descubren, ¡más de lo que nunca pudo imaginarse! Basado en una historia real, QUIZÁS ALGO HERMOSO nos revela cómo el arte puede inspirar la transformación -- y cómo incluso la más pequeña artista puede llegar a conseguir algo grande. ¡Toma un pincel y únete a la celebración!
Spanish Language Edition
Target age group 4-7 -
Inheritance: A Visual Poem
"They tell me to 'fix' my hair.
And by 'fix,' they mean straighten, they mean whiten;
but how do you fix this shipwrecked
history of hair?"
In her most famous spoken-word poem, author of the Pura Belpré-winning novel-in-verse, THE POET X, Elizabeth Acevedo embraces all the complexities of Black hair and Afro-Latinidad -- the history, pain, pride, and powerful love of that inheritance.
Paired with full-color illustrations by artist Andrea Pippins in a format that will appeal to fans of Mahogany L. Browne's BLACK GIRL MAGIC or Jason Reynold's FOR EVERYONE, this poem can now be read in a vibrant package, making it the ideal gift, treasure, or inspiration for readers of any age.
Target age group 13 and up -
Our Brave Foremothers: Celebrating 100 Black Brown Asian and Indigenous Women Who Changed the Course of History
Inspired by her own foremothers' legacies and the friendships formed throughout her life, Rozella Kennedy centers and celebrates the stories of 100 Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous women -- both famous and little-known -- who changed the course of U. S. history.
In the beautiful pages of OUR BRAVE FOREMOTHERS, discover an intergenerational, intercultural bouquet of Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous women lifted into the significance that they deserve.
From Etel Adnan to Mary Jones, Thelma Garcia Buchholdt to Pura Belpré to Zitkála-Sá, here are 100 women of color who left a lasting mark on United States history. Including both famous and little-known names, the thoughtful profiles and detailed portraits of these women herald their achievements and passions.
Following each entry is a prompt that asks you to connect your life to theirs, an inspiring way to understand their influence and the power of their stories. To consider on a deeper level the devotedness of Clara Brown, the fearlessness of Jovita Idár, the guts of Grace Lee Boggs, or the selflessness of Martha Louise Morrow Foxx. And to be as brave as we each can be -- and then beyond that.
Target age group 15 and up -
Surrender Tree / El Árbol de la Rendición: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom/ Poemas de la Lucha de Cuba Por Su Libertad (Bilingual)
THE SURRENDER TREE: POEMS OF CUBA'S STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM is a lyrical, Newbery Honor-winning history in poems, and this bilingual edition has the Spanish and English text available in one book.
It is 1896. Cuba has fought three wars for independence and still is not free. People have been rounded up in reconcentration camps with too little food and too much illness. Rosa is a nurse, but she dares not go to the camps. So she turns hidden caves into hospitals for those who know how to find her. Black, white, Cuban, Spanish -- Rosa does her best for everyone. Yet who can heal a country so torn apart by war?
Using the true story of the folk hero Rosa la Bayamesa, acclaimed poet Margarita Engle gives us another gripping, breathtaking account of a tumultuous period in Cuban history.
EL ÁRBOL DE LA RENDIMIENTO: POEMAS DE LA LUCHA DE CUBA POR LA LIBERTAD es una historia lírica en poemas ganadora del premio Newbery, y esta edición bilingüe tiene el texto en español e inglés disponible en un solo libro.
Estamos en 1896. Cuba ha librado tres guerras por la independencia y todavía no es libre. Se ha encerrado a personas en campos de reconcentración con muy poca comida y demasiadas enfermedades. Rosa es enfermera, pero no se atreve a ir a los campos. Así que convierte cuevas escondidas en hospitales para aquellos que saben cómo encontrarla. Negra, blanca, cubana, española: Rosa hace lo mejor que puede para todos. Sin embargo, ¿quién puede sanar a un país tan destrozado por la guerra?
Utilizando la historia real de la heroína popular Rosa la Bayamesa, la aclamada poeta Margarita Engle nos ofrece otro relato apasionante e impresionante de un período tumultuoso de la historia cubana.
A 2009 Newbery Honor Book
Winner of the 2009 Pura Belpré Medal for Narrative
Winner of the 2009 Bank Street - Claudia Lewis Award
A 2009 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year
English / Spanish Bilingual Edition
Target age group 12-18 -
Lowriders to the Center of the Earth (Lowriders)
Lupe Impala, Elirio Malaria, and El Chavo Octopus are now the proud owners of their own garage -- but when a series of earthquakes hit their town and Genie, their beloved cat, disappears they find themselves traveling to the realm of Mictlantecuhtli, Aztec god of the Underworld, who is keeping Genie prisoner.
Target age group 9-12 -
Islandborn
Every kid in Lola's school was from somewhere else. Hers was a school of faraway places.
So when Lola's teacher asks the students to draw a picture of where their families immigrated from, all the kids are excited. Except Lola. She can't remember The Island -- she left when she was just a baby. But with the help of her family and friends, and their memories -- joyous, fantastical, heartbreaking, and frightening -- Lola's imagination takes her on an extraordinary journey back to The Island.
As she draws closer to the heart of her family's story, Lola comes to understand the truth of her abuela's words: "Just because you don't remember a place doesn't mean it's not in you."
Target age group 5-8