THE LATINA BOOK CLUB

   The Latina Book Club congratulates Sabrina on the October 15 release of her book, INK. It’s a scary book because this  could happen. Think Holocaust. Fans of AMERICA LIBRE will enjoy this apocalyptic book. INK by Sabrina Vourvoulias Crossed Genres Available in paper and e-book What happens when rhetoric about immigrants escalates to an institutionalized population control system? The near-future, dark speculative novel INK opens as a biometric tattoo is approved for use to mark temporary workers, permanent residents and citizens with recent immigration history – collectively known as inks. Set in a fictional city and small, rural town in the U.S. during a 10-year span, the novel is told in four voices: a journalist; an ink who works in a local population control office; an artist strongly tied to a specific piece of land; and a teenager whose mother runs an inkatorium (a sanitarium-internment center opened in response to public health concerns ab...

   By Raul Ramos y Sanchez The Latina Book Club welcomes the author of AMERICA LIBRE and HOUSE DIVIDED to its Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration. Hispanic Heritage Month is a much-deserved commemoration of the nation’s fastest-growing ethnic group. But it’s more than opportunity to celebrate. It’s also an opportunity to educate, a chance to dispel the many widespread myths about Latinos. Ironically, many of these misconceptions are often perpetuated by other Latinos. The most common source is the “Hispanic marketing expert” who conjures imaginary characteristics about all Latinos to assert their expertise. Here are just a few actual examples: “Hispanics tend to place less importance on time as a concept. This can be frustrating to many non-Hispanics who are used to a fast moving world and are constantly rushing and planning for the future.” “Discussions with Hispanics tend to be more emotional and less rational. Understanding this will allow you to build powerfu...

     Last November, we featured author Raul Ramos y Sanchez and his book AMERICA LIBRE . I found the book in turns, passionate, vivid, and terrifying.  It was a totally engrossing and emotional tale about Hispanics in search of justice and a country of their own. Unfortunately, the rebels’ quest leads to the imprisonment of all Latinos in Quarantine Zones. At the end, the battle is lost and the rebels jailed along with all the other Hispanics in the U.S. BUT THE BATTLE CONTINUES…. Manolo Suarez is back and still fighting.  But now, trouble comes from the home front as his teenage son joins the battle but on the side of extremists attacking innocent civilians.  Is this what Manolo fought so hard for -- to lose his son?  Is this the lesson his struggles taught his children?  his people? Here is a sneak peek at the sequel: HOUSE DIVIDED .    HOUSE DIVIDED will be on sale from Grand Central Publishing on Janu...

( Also, Today, Nov 30 --Raul will be discussing the Latino Vote on HITN cable TV. See bottom of this post for more details.) AMERICA LIBRE By Raul Ramos y Sanchez Grand Central Publishing To watch Book Trailer, click here . To read the Book Review, click here . Q:   You started writing AMERICA LIBRE in 2004. Your America has an ex-black president and a lot of civil unrest due to prejudice against Hispanics. That’s about 4 years before Obama was even on the Democratic Ticket’s radar, before the Texas border wall, before the Arizona immigration controversy. Where did you get the idea for the book?            A:   For over 20 years, I’ve made a living in advertising. In that business, it’s important to spot trends. And one of the trends I noticed were early reports from the 2000 about the explosive growth of the Latino population in the United States. As a student of U.S. history, I sensed this might create...

(Part II: Q&A with author Raul Ramos y Sanchez will be posted tomorrow, November 30 .  Join us!) AMERICA LIBRE By Raul Ramos y Sanchez Grand Central Publishing Like the thirteen English colonies huddled along the coast of North America in 1776, the countries of Latin America will one day reach an epiphany of consciousness and unite into a single nation. This is their inevitable destiny. –Jose Antonio Marcha, JUSTICIA Hispanics in America have come to accept the way things are, not because they’re fair or just, but because it’s the way things have been for a very long time . –Josefina Herrera Being Latino was something he’d simply learned to endure with dignity, like a handicap. The revelation shamed him . –Mano Suarez During WWII, the U.S. government imprisoned many Japanese-Americas in concentration-liked camps, even as many of them fought in the war. The government did it in the name of homeland security. Could it happen again on American soil? Could one group ...