Lucky
7! The Latina Book Club is proud to
release its 7th Annual Books of the Year List.
This year’s
Books of the Year have something for everyone and for every age -- fiction,
young adult, historical novels, memoirs, children, horror, mystery, scifi, short
stories, LGBTQ, poetry, graphic novels and more!
We are just sorry we couldn’t include every book by and for Latinos
published this year.
We are super
excited to see that many of the books on our list are being published in
Spanish, like Nina Moreno’s Don’t Date Rosa Santos and Carolina De Robertis’
Cantoras; and one – Elizabeth Acevedo’s With The Fire On High – may even become
a movie. Wepa!
Congratulations
again to our literary award winners, including Meg Medina who won the John
Newberry Medal for outstanding contribution to children’s literature; Sandra
Cisneros who won the PEN/Nabokov Award for (Lifetime) Achievement in
International Literature; and Elizabeth Acevedo whose winning streak continued in
2019 with a trifecta – the Pura Belprè Award, National Book Award and Carnegie
Medal.
Special
mention must be made of Anika Aldamuy Denise’s biography of New York’s First
Puerto Rican Librarian -- Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian and
Storyteller Pura Belprè is a beautiful portrait of a woman with a strong commitment
to reading, her community and her city. Another special mention goes to Juan Pablo Villalobos' The Other Side: Stories of Central American Teen Refugees Who Dream of Crossing the Border, which is full of emotionally gripping stories of teens in search of the elusive American Dream.
With the
New Year upon us, please consider donating books to your child’s/ niece’s
school or neighborhood library. You can
also share books with friends at the office or at social functions, or leave one or two at the doctor’s
office, DMV or jury room.
Please
think of The Latina Book Club when promoting your book. We would love to help you spread the word across
our social networks; maybe do a quick interview or run an excerpt. Email your information and book release date(s) to latinabookclub@aol.com.
From The Latina Book Club Family to Yours.....
.......Happy
Reading. Happy Holiday. Happy New Year. Happy Everything. Happy 2020!
2019 BOOKS OF THE YEAR
68: The Mexican Autumn of the
Tlatelolco Massacre by Paco Ignacio Taibo II (Seven Stories Press) – non
fiction
A Cuban Refugee’s Journey to
the American Dream: The Power of Education by Gerardo M. Gonzalez (Well House
Books) – memoir
A Peculiar Kind of Immigrant’s
Son by Sergio Troncoso (Cinco Punto Press) – fiction
Alienation by Inės Estrada (Fantagraphics)
– graphic novel
All of Us with Wings by
Michelle Ruiz Keil (SohoTeen) – young adult, scifi
American Dreamer (Dreamers
series) by Adriana Herrera (Carina Press) – romance, LGBTQ
Barely Missing Everything by
Matt Mendez (Atheneum Books) – young adult
b.b. free (series) by Gabby
Rivera (Boom! Boom! Box) – graphic novels
Be Recorder by Carmen Gimėnez
Smith (Graywolf Press) – poetry
Becoming Beatriz by Tami
Charles (Charlesbridge Teen) – young adult
Bicycle in a Ransacked City:
An Elegy by Andrės Cerpa (Alice James Books) – poetry
Blizzard Besties by Yamile
Saied Mèndez (Scholastic) – children, middle grade
Blood on the Canvas: The Life
& Legacy of Boxing Icon, Canto “TNT” Robledo by Joseph C. Robledo (Golden
Foothills Press) – biography
Bruja Born (Brooklyn Brujas
series) by Zoraida Córdova (Sourcebooks Fire) – young adult, fantasy
Cabaňuelas by Norma Elia Cantŭ
(University of New Mexico Press) – historical fiction
Cantoras by Carolina de
Robertis (Knopf) – historical fiction
Carved in Bone: A Henry Rios Novel
by Michael Nava (Persigo Press) – mystery, LGBTQ
Chilling Effect by Valerie
Valdes (Harper Voyager) – scifi
Color Me In by Natasha Diaz
(Delacorte Press) – young adult
Coney Island Siren by Theresa
Varela (Pollen Press) – fiction, suspense
Crashing Into Her: Love on Cue
by Mia Sosa (Avon Impulse) – romance
Cuicacalli/ House of Song by
Ire’ne Lara Silva (Saddle Road Press) – poetry
Dactyl Hill Squad: Freedom
Fire by Daniel Josė Older (Arthur A. Levine Books) – children, middle grade
Dancing Hands: How Teresa
Carreňo Played the Piano for President Lincoln by Margarita Engle (Atheneum
Books) – children, middle grade
Daughters of the Stone by
Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa (indie) – historical fiction
Dealing in Dreams by Lilliam
Rivera (Simon & Schuster) – young adult
Disquieting: Essays on Silence
by Cynthia Cruz (FourWay Books) – essays
Dominicana by Angie Cruz
(Flatiron Books) – fiction
Don’t Date Rosa Santos by Nina
Moreno (Disney-Hyperion) – young adult
Dreams from Many Rivers by
Margarita Engle (Henry Holt & Co.) – children
Each Tiny Spark by Pablo
Cartaya (Kokila) – children, middle grade
Explicit Content: A Black
Artemis Novel by Sofia Quintero (Blackstone Audio) – young adult, audiobook
Five Midnights by Ann Dávila
Cardinal (Tor Teen) – young adult, thriller
Flashed (Happy Endings series)
by Zoe Castile (Kensington Books) --
romance
Gods of Jade and Shadow by
Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Del Rey) – fiction, magical realism
Gracias / Thanks by Pat Mora
(Lee & Low) – children
Hijito by Carlos Andrės Gómez
(Platypus Press) – poetry
Hipster Death Rattle by Richie
Narvaez (Down & Out Books) – crime thriller
Ignacio in the Dark by Dania
Ramos (Overdue Books) – children, middle grade
In the Dream House by Carmen
Maria Machado (Graywolf Press) – memoir, LGBTQ
It Would be Night in Caracas
by Karina Sainz Borgo (HarperVia) – historical fiction
Juana & Lucas: Big Problemas
by Juana Medina (Candlewick) -- children
Lety Out Loud by Angela Cervantes (Scholastic) – children, middle grade
Like This Afternoon Forever by
Jaime Manrique (Kaylie Jones Books) – historical fiction, LGBTQ
Lima:: Limón by Natalie
Scenters-Zapico (Copper Canyon Press) – poetry
Love, Sugar, Magic: A Sprinkle
of Spirits by Anna Meriano (Walden Pond Press) – children, middle grade
Luna, Yes! Luna, Si! By
Jessica Gonzalez (Kaleidoscope Vibrations) – children
M is for Movement by Innosanto
Nagara (Triangle Square) – children, middle grade
Malcriada & Other Stories
by Lorraine Avila (DWA Press) – short stories
Mangos & Mistletoe by
Adriana Herrera (indie) – romance, novella
Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak
Spanish by Pablo Cartaya (Puffin Books) – children, middle grade
Maria The Wanted and the
Legacy of the Keepers by V.Castro (indie) – fiction, horror
Me, Frida, and the Secret of
the Peacock Ring by Angela Cervantes (Scholastic) – children, middle grade
Meditación Fronteriza: Poems
of Love, Life, and Labor by Norma Elia Cantŭ (University of Arizona Press) –
poetry
Mi Papi Has A Motorcycle by
Isabel Quintero (Kokila) – children, middle grade
Miami Midnight: A Pete
Fernandez Mystery by Alex Segura (Polis Books) – mystery
Mouthful of Birds: Stories by
Samantha Schweblin (Riverhead Books) – short stories, magical realism
My Time Among the Whites by
Jennine Capó Crucet (Picador) -- memoir
Outbursts of Horror by Manuel
A. Melėndez and El David (indie) -- horror
íPa’Que Tu Lo Sepas! Latinx
Fiction for Puerto Rico edited by Angel Luis Colón (Down & Out Books) –
short stories
Planting Stories: The Life of
Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belprè by Anika Aldamuy Denise (HarperCollins) –
biography
Revolution Sunday by Wendy
Guerra (Melville House) – suspense
Sabrina & Corina: Stories
by Kali Fajardo-Anstine (One World) – short stories, fiction
Sal and Gabi Break the
Universe by Carlos Hernandez (Rick Riordan Presents) – children, middle grade
Silver Meadows Summer by Emma
Otheguy (Knopf Books) – children, middle grade
Soaring Earth by Margarita
Engle (Atheneum Books) – young adult
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge: A
Crash of Fate by Zoraida Córdova (Disney Lucasfilm Press) – young adult, scifi
Superman: Dawnbreaker (DC
Icons Series) by Matt de la Peňa (Random House Books) – young adult, scifi
Taina by Ernesto Quiňonez
(Vintage) – young adult
Tame Your Heart (Bounty Bay
series) by Tracey Alvarez (Icon Publishing) – romance
Tears of the Truffle-Pig by
Fernando A. Flores (FSG) – fiction
Teen Titans: Raven by Kami
Garcia (DC Ink) – graphic novel
The Affairs of the Falcóns by
Melissa Rivero (Ecco/ HarperCollins) – fiction
The Book of Lost Saints by
Daniel Josė Older (Imprint Books) – paranormal
The Book of Ruin by Rigoberto
González (Four Way Books) – poetry, LGBTQ
The Chronicles of The Black
Fist: F.U.R.I. of the People by Kevin Sabio (indie) – fiction
The Cuban Comedy by Pablo
Medina (The Unnamed Press) – fiction
The Fire Keeper (A Storm
Runner Novel) by J.C. Cervantes (Rick Riordan Presents) – children, middle
grade
The Fresh New Face of Griselda
by Jennifer Torres (Little, Brown Books) – children, middle grade
The Friend Zone by Abby
Jimenez (Forever) – romance
The Grief Keeper by Alexandra
Villasante (G.P. Putnam) – young adult, LGBT
The Internet Is For Real by
Chris Campanioni (C&R Press) -- philosophy
The Last Eight by Laura M.
Pohl (Sourcebooks Fire) – young adult
The Library of Lost Things by
Laura Taylor Namey (Inkyard Press) – young adult
The Moon Within by Aida
Salazar (Arthur A. Levine Books) – children, middle grade
The Other Side: Stories of
Central American Teen Refugees Who Dream of Crossing the Border by Juan Pablo
Villalobos (Farrar, Straus & Giroux) – non fiction
The Perfect Date by Evelyn
Lozada (Griffin) – romance
The Piňata that the Farm
Maiden Hung by Samantha R. Vamos (Charlesbridge) -- children
The Price of Grace (Black Ops
Confidential series) by Diana Muňoz Stewart (Sourcebooks Casablanca) – thriller
The Price of Paradise by
Susana López Rubio (indie) – women’s fiction
The Storm by Tomas Gonzalez
(Archipelago) – mystery
The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring
(Imprint) – young adult, thriller
The Truth Is by NoNieqa Ramos
(Carolrhoda Lab) – young adult
The Universal Laws of Marco by
Carmen Rodriguez (Simon Pulse) – young adult, romance
The Withered King: Tempest
Blades by Ricardo Victoria (Shadow Dragon Press) – fantasy
Their Perfect Melody by
Priscilla Oliveras (Zebra Books) – romance
They Could Have Named Her
Anything by Stephanie Jimenez (Little A) – young adult
This American Autopsy: Poems
by Josė Antonio Rodriguez (University of Oklahoma Press) – poetry
This Train is Being Held by
Ismėe Williams (Amulet Books) – young adult, romance
Tracing the Horse by Diana
Marie Delgado (BOA Editions) – poetry
Travel Secrets: New York City
(series) by Shar Lemond (indie) – women’s fiction
We Are La Cocina: Recipes in
Pursuit of the American Dream edited by Caleb Zigas and Leticia Landa
(Chronicle Books) – cookbook
We Set the Dark on Fire by
Tehlor Kay Mejia (Katherine Tegen Books) --- young adult, LGTBQ
When We Left Cuba by Chanel
Cleyton (Berkley) – fiction
Where Are You From? By Yamile
Saied Mèndez (HarperCollins) – children
Where I Come From: Life
Lessons from a Latino Chef by Aarón Sánchez (Abrams Press) – memoir
While They Sleep (Under the
Bed is Another Country) by Raquel Salas Rivera (Birds LLC) – poetry
With the Fire on High by
Elizabeth Acevedo (HarperTeen) – young adult
Zombies Don’t Eat Veggies! by
Megan & Jorge Lacera (Children’s Book Press) – children
#HappyReading
#ReadLatinoLit
#ReadLatinx
#HAPPYNEWYEAR