THE LATINA BOOK CLUB

    The Latina Book Club congratulates ALL the Winners and Finalists of the 2015 International Latino Book Awards . The Awards are produced annually by Latino Literacy Now, and were presented on Saturday, June 27 th , at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis Hotel during this year’s American Library Association's Annual Conference. 2015 ILBA Winners, Finalists and Presenters I was happy to be part of the Las Comadres Para Las Americas Team that helped present the awards, and especially proud to be able to present the Best Young Adult eBook Award to my friend author Dania Ramos for WHO’S JU? (Northampton House Press).  It was a spectacular evening, complete with a special salute to past award winning author Juan Felipe Herrera, who was named U.S. Poet Laureate by the Library of Congress.  He is the first Latino to hold this honored position in 78 years. Other notable winners included: MICAELA by Adalucia (Cholito Prints and Publishing...

    This year, the International Latino Book Awards were presented during the American Librarians Association Conference in Las Vegas on Saturday, June 29.   (Viva Las Libraries!)  The list of winners contains some of my favorite authors and some new ones I look forward to reading.  I especially look forward to reading the two winning books by Shanaya Fastje and Alina Gonzalez, both 14-years-old with a lot of confidence and charm. Below are some of the winners: Best Young Adult Fiction Book – English Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass, Meg Medina; Candlewick Press; Cuba Best Young Adult Fiction Book – Spanish or Bilingual La Guarida de las Lechuzas, Antonio Ramos Revillas; Ediciones El Naranjo; México Most Inspirational Young Adult Book Salvation, Anne Osterlund; Penguin Group; USA Best Book Written by a Youth Bully in the Mirror, Shanaya Fastje; Changing Lives Press; USA Best Poetry Book Written by a Youth ...

      The 14th Annual International Latino Book Awards were held at the Instituto Cervantes in New York City on June 5, 2012. The auditorium was packed with authors, family, friends, publishers, sponsors, readers, etc. The main sponsors were Libros Publishing, Scholastic, Simon & Schuster/Atria Books, The University of Arizona Press and the Arte Publico Press. Our hosts for the evening were Kirk Whisler and Jim Sullivan of Latino Literacy Now and Nora de Hoyos Comstock, President of Las Comadres Para las Americas. And the winners are: THE MARIPOSA AWARDS (for Best First Book) Best First Book in English – OCOTILLO DREAMS by Melinda Palacio (Bilingual Review Press) Best First Book in Spanish -- EL TIEMPO ENTRE COSTURAS: UNA NOVELA by Maria Dueñas (Atria Books) BOOK AWARDS (various categories) Best Children’s Education Book in English -- THE DREAMER by Pam Munoz Ryan (Scholastic) Best Young Adult Fiction in English – THE LAST SUMMER OF THE DE...

  BARRIO BUSHIDO By Benjamin Bac Sierra El Leon Literary Arts “No one got the answers, so I made up my own answers. Cause when God stops loving you there aint nothing you can do but go on.”                  El Lobo Bac Sierra’s debut is raw, harsh and hellishly disturbing. It’s gruesome and yet you can’t stop reading. It’s like a car accident that you have to slow down for and watch. And watch we do as Bac Sierra’s three homeboys are caught in an endless circle of violence and despair. There may be no honor among thieves, but there is a code of loyalty among the homeboys. And where one leads the other two follow, no questions asked. There’s El Lobo, the undisputed leader, whose thirst for violence leads to the homeboys eventual downfall. Then there’s El Toro, the enforcer. He left the hood for a stint in the Marines, and came back a proficient killing machine. Finally, there’s Santo,...

  CROSS OVER WATER: A NOVEL By Richard Yañez University of Nevada Press “Success or failure do not matter for it is the journey that is important.”                                                Raul Luis “Ruly” Cruz Raul Luis “Ruly” Cruz is a new, unique voice in literature. It was a pleasure to read his journey from childhood to manhood, and how he learned to navigate between two worlds, two cultures. Set in El Paso, Texas, this novel crosses borders in more ways than one. As Ruly goes back and forth between Mexico and the U.S. to visit relatives, he learns about his roots, his traditions, his culture. And back in the U.S., with his trusty Map Book at his side, Ruly learns to identify his place in American Society, the Chicano community and...

The Latina Book Club congratulates ALL the winners.  We look forward to seeing you at the movies! From Latino Literacy Now's press release:  The second edition of the Latino Books Into Movies Awards were held on April 21st at the University of Southern California as part of the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. The awards were presented from the HOY Stage during the very active weekend of book related activities. The judges for these awards are film industry professionals: Producers, Directors, Screenwriters, and Film Financiers. The judges were Ruben Arvizu, Kevin Bender, Nora de Hoyos Comstock, Benjamin Esparza, Paul Espinosa, Evelina Fernandez, Jackie Gil, Marcos Gonzalez, Danny Haro, Bel Hernandez, Ruth Livier, Alma Martinez, Dave Mendez, Lymari Nadal, Luis Orozco, Gabriel Reyes, Baldemar Rodriguez, Carlina Rodriguez, Margarita de la Vega-Hurtado, and Richard Yñiguez. Kirk Whisler and Annie Perez oversaw the awards process. The Latino Books i...

    If you are anywhere near Los Angeles this weekend, do consider visiting THE 13th ANNUAL LATINO BOOK & FAMILY FESTIVAL at Greenlee Plaza at California State University.  It promises to be a fun-filled weekend full of books!  And, artists, arts & crafts, story-telling, music, folklorico dancing, exhibits and Mexican food. The Latino Book & Family Festival is spearheaded by Latino Literacy Now, in partnership with actor and community activitist Edward James Olmos .  Author Reyna Grande is this year's Program Coordinator, and she has lined up many wonderful authors, including Belinda Acosta, Julia Amante, Kathy Cano-Murillo, Victor Cass, Margo Candela, Alex Espinosa, Stephen Gutierrez, Josefina Lopez, Rafael Navarro, Thelma Reyna and Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez.   For the complete list of authors, click here . For more information and the Festival's website, click here . For directions to the Festival, click here . If...

The International Latino Book Awards are presented during BookExpo America by Latino Literacy Now.  LLN is a a non-profit organization that supports and promotes literacy and literary excellence within the Latino community.  The organization created the Latino Book Awards in 1999.  This year's awards were presented on May 25, 2010.  Awards were given to English, Spanish and Bilingual books.  Below is a short list of the winners.  Congratulations to All the Winners!! --mcf BEST FIRST BOOK -- ENGLISH Damas, Dramas and Ana Ruiz by Belinda Acosta (Grand Central Publishing) BEST FIRST BOOK -- SPANISH  -- A tie! La Estrella de David by Daniel de Cordova (Anura Group) and Cuentos del Norte, Historia del Sol Hemi by Garcia Linares (Casa Tomada) BEST NOVEL -- ROMANCE -- ENGLISH Vigil by Cecilia Samartin (Atria Books) BEST YOUNG ADULT FICTION -- ENGLISH Clara...Encountering Life by Gabriela Garcia-Williams (self published) BEST CHILDREN'S PICTU...