THE LATINA BOOK CLUB

             Gautami Tripathy wins a free copy of A.E. Roman's THE SUPERMAN PROJECT, the second book in the Chico Santana, P.I. mystery series! Congratulations!   Read Latino!

   Engrossing tale of passion and betrayal set against the cold and stark background of NYC's hustling streets.  --- Latin Temptress, author of THE ENCOUNTER  Every person has a story but this was a remarkable book when it comes to the detail. It allows the reader to vividly imagine the story playing out.  I can't wait to see what else is coming from this talented lady. -- Urban Fire Literary Q:   Tell us about yourself.   I was born and raised in East Harlem, New York, lovingly called “El Barrio” by Puerto Ricans who moved to this city many years ago. My mother moved to NY when she was 19 years old and my father when he was 3 years old. Growing up I was never a fan of the school system so I quit and got my GED. I was a receptionist for about 12 years, when I switched careers and became a mortgage processor. Once the market fell, I found myself without work but was fortunate enough to find a job with Deja Vu Publications in their Sales/Marketing Department. Q:   Wh

         "Torrey Maldonado’s SECRET SATURDAYS ought to be required reading at middle schools everywhere.” —E.R. Frank, author of the acclaimed LIFE IS FUNNY and AMERICA, which inspired the Lifetime movie. SECRET SATURDAYS is a fast read, entertaining and it also equips pre-teens and young adults to better handle everyday challenges. —Library Media Connections Torrey Maldonado is a teacher, a father, a writer, and a fierce hand ball player. His first young adult novel SECRET SATURDAYS was released from Putnam Juvenile this past April. Like the characters in his book, he too grew up in Red Hook, a poor, violent section of the Brooklyn. Raised by his mother, he went on to get a B.A. in Sociology from Vassar College and a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from Baruch College. Torrey has taught in New York City’s public school system for 10 years. SECRET SATURDAYS was inspired by his experiences with youth, city schools, fatherlessness and poverty.            Torrey j

       Catherine Mayo was born in El Paso, raised in Northern California, educated in Chicago and has lived in Washington DC and Mexico City for many years. Many people think she is Chicana, but she is actually of Scotch-Irish-English heritage, with a smidgen of German. Catherine speaks Spanish and has translated many Mexican poets and writers under the name of C.M. Mayo. She also published, Tameme , a bilingual literary journal (www.tameme.org), now a chapbook publisher.           “Over and over,” says Catherine, “I have found such a generosity of spirit in this [Latino Literary] community, and so many superb writers and poets, and now so many friends, I cannot help but feel a part of it.”           Mayo’s THE LAST PRINCE OF THE MEXICAN EMPIRE was selected as one of the best books of 2009 by Library Journal . And her novel SKY OVER EL NIDO, won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction.           This week, the Spanish version of THE LAST PRINCE is being released in Mexic

        It rained, it poured...but people still came and joined in the festivities for the 5th Annual Brooklyn Book Festival last Sunday, September 12. It was a wet but happy literary marketplace.  People sat on the court steps under their umbrellas listening to authors read from their works.  Kids huddled under a tent sitting on warm mats while characters came to life right before their eyes.  Others enjoyed the rain on their face and strolled down the aisles chatting with  writers, publishers, presses, et al. This was my first Brooklyn Book Festival, and certainly not my last.  I loved meeting the writers, listening to the readings, hearing kids laughing as they jumped over water puddles, watching people shiver when rain ran down their backs.  There were so many people, so many families and even a handful of dogs. Me encanto todo!   I was enchanted by everything! I visited my friends at the  NYC Sisters in Crime tent, where Laura and Donna kept a live Twitter feed for tho

   By day a bank lawyer; by night a writer. Such is the life of Chuy Ramirez, a lawyer for the Lone Star National Bank in McAllen Texas, who self-published his first book, STRAWBERRY FIELDS: A BOOK OF SHORT STORIES, last year. A native of the Rio Grande Valley, Chuy spent the past 10 years working on his book, which follows three generations of a Mexican family, as they make their way from Northern Mexico to South Texas. Its young protagonist, Joaquin, comes of age in the 1960s. He grows up ashamed of being poor, of working the strawberry fields, and is determine to have a different life. “The short stories of STRAWBERRY FIELDS,” said Jose Ramirez, Jr., author of SQUINT, “are like beautiful and colorful blouses made of delicate chiffon--revealing. The stories reveal the transformation of a young child becoming a man....a man appreciative of his raiz (roots). This is a book that crosses color and geographic boundaries. It is a book that will touch the soul of its reader.” Chuy i

   30,000 people cannot be wrong. That’s how many are expected to attend the 5th Annual Brooklyn Book Festival on Sunday, September 12, at Borough Hall (209 Joralemon Street). The Festival will feature 200 authors, 175 vendors and 13 venues to explore. This will be my first Festival, and I am looking forward to all of it – the signings, readings, and meeting Latino authors like Charlie Rice-Gonzalez, Esmeralda Santiago, Brando Skyhorse, Daniel Serrano, Dahlma Llanos Figueroa, Christina Garcia, Torrey Maldonado, Daisy Martinez and Sofia Quintero. Torrey Maldonado (SECRET SATURDAYS) has gone in years past when he was a “fresh-face” teacher dreaming of becoming a novelist. Now he is a participating author on a panel next to his idol Jacqueline Woodson and Pulitzer Prize-winner Charles Fuller. “I’ve invited my school’s students and their families to show them that dreams come true. Magic will happen on that stage.” A veteran of the literary festival circuit, hometown author Sofia

In case you haven’t heard, Brooklyn is hosting its Fifth Annual Book Festival on September 12 at Borough Hall/ Columbus Park. The Festival is presented by Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, the Brooklyn Literary Council and Brooklyn Tourism. The Brooklyn Book Festival is going to be an outdoor literary marketplace with 200 Authors, as well as 175 booksellers, publishers, presses and organizations….and about 30,000 visitors! The Latina Book Club is proud to chat today with Marcela Landres , a member of the Brooklyn Literary Council and an editorial consultant, who works with Latino authors to bring their books to print. Q: How did the Brooklyn Book Festival come to be? New York City is the book publishing capital of the U.S., if not the world. While the major publishers are located in Manhattan, many publishing professionals such as agents and editors actually live in Brooklyn. Numerous authors live in Brooklyn, and several highly-regarded independent publishers, such

       Brewing your sabor for sweet bread and books of color. THE DULCE BREAD AND BOOK SHOP Teresa Carbajal Ravet Multicultural E-bookstore http://www.dulcebreadandbookshop.com/ http://www.sententiavera.com/ Q:   When and how did you start the Dulce Bread and Book Shop? Are you a physical bookstore or just an online bookstore? Dulce Bread & Book Shop, LLC was formed in February 2009 when I made the decision to dedicate myself to work on the venture full time. My first business, Sententia Vera , Spanish Language Services initiated the thought of an independent bookstore specializing in multicultural and multilingual literature. For some time, clients of Sententia Vera had been requesting literary sources to continue their need for additional independent education and reference guides. I would research available resources on the internet and often found myself frustrated at not being able to find a diverse and worthy selection. This dissatisfaction sparked the though

  WHERE: Southridge Mall at SE 14th and Army Post Road WEBSITE: http://www.latinoheritagefestival.org/ FACEBOOK:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Latino-Heritage-Festival/323494428282 BLOG:  http://iowalatinotalk.blogspot.com/ TRAILER:  http://www.youtube.com/user/IowaLatinoTalk The program looks great – Charro (Mexican cowboys) shows, children presentations, a Latino Talent Search and all sorts of dance presentations – salsa, bachata, danzas, etc. I wish New York was closer to Iowa. Have fun everyone, and... Happy Festival and Hispanic Heritage Month.

  Our book for September is A.E. Roman's CHINATOWN ANGEL: A CHICO SANTANA MYSTERY, a finalist of the 2009 Shamus Award from the Private Eye Writers of America.  (Wiinners announced in October.) Following in the footsteps of Michele Martinez, Steven Torres and the late Jerry A. Rodriguez, Roman brings us a satiric hero, whose search for a missing teen leads him into big trouble where even the clients are suspect. FREE BOOK GIVEAWAY! Read the book and let us know what you thought of it.  Leave your comments by September 30, and one lucky commentator will receive a free copy of the next book in the Chico Santana Mystery series, THE SUPERMAN PROJECT.  Good luck!