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BOOK OF THE MONTH: BLACK WIDOW BITCHES BY VICTOR CASS

Women who stepped up Were measured as citizens Of the nation, not as women… This was a people’s war, And everyone was in it. ---Colonel Oveta Culp Hobby First Director of the Women’s Army Corps, WWII Golden Foothills Press This quote from more than 60 years ago is so apropos today.  Women have always had a role in wars, but usually behind the scenes in medical units or where they weren’t at risk of being captured.  But earlier this year, women were finally approved for combat duty, specifically in the infantry, which is why Victor Cass’ new novel seems to be pulled right from the headlines, and maybe a little prophetic too. BLACKWIDOW BITCHES is a political thriller about the first all-female combat infantry unit of paratroopers; Not only soldiers but airborne soldiers! Be warned! This is a big book—846 pages!—about terrorism and war.  It’s raw, horrific, with “blood-soaked” images of war. There are also race issues, gang issues, bull...

BOOK OF THE MONTH: THE VEINS OF THE OCEAN BY PATRICIA ENGEL

Grove Press “You just want to go deep enough to arrive at that moment when your thoughts stop  and all you feel is the water and your heartbeat.” THE VEINS OF THE OCEAN is not a novel that is easy to put down or to forget once finished. Both a tragedy and a romance, Patricia Engel’s second novel stuns and warms the reader in equal measure. F rom Florida to Cuba to Colombia, our heroine – and the reader! – are taken on a hard journey to solace and redemption. This is a deep novel with lots of under currents, and just like the swimmer who sheds her clothing in preparation of jumping into the water, so does our heroine shed her past and her guilt, and dives into the ocean to cleanse her soul and spring forth reborn and renewed. SUMMARY:  For seven years, Reina Castillo visits her brother Carlito on death row for throwing his unfaithful girlfriend’s daughter off a bridge.  History had repeated itself, because the same thing had happened to Carlito...

15 NOTORIOUS LATINO BOOKS TO READ DURING BANNED BOOK WEEK

For centuries books have been “challenged.”  In some cases the books were stored away out of sight, out of mind; in worse cases, they were burned and lost forever.  Even today, books are “banned” for all sorts of reasons – violence, foul language, portrayals of abuse/drugs/alcoholism, religious points of view, sexual content, etc., etc., etc.  Believe it or not, even The Holy Bible was banned at one point for sexual content and violence.  No wonder it’s the number one bestselling book every year. So to Celebrate Banned Book Week (Sept 25 – Oct 1) and to Celebrate Our Right to Read, here are 15 “notorious” Latino Books that have been banned at one time or another for all sorts of reasons.  We encourage you to add them all to your Library and read them in public.  Happy Reading! NOTORIOUS BANNED LATINO BOOKS 1.              …And the Earth Did Not Devour Him by Tomás Rivera ...

BLOG TOUR: Q&A WITH RENÉ COLATO LAÍNEZ (New Book!)

The Latina Book Club  welcomes author René Colato Laínez  and  chats with him about his new book and illegal aliens.     Q:  Congratulations on your new book, MAMÁ THE ALIEN/ MAMÁ LA  EXTRATERRESTE.  We love how your books are bilingual.  Do you write the Spanish version first or the English? René Colato Laínez :  Thank you! I am so happy that MAMÁ THE ALIEN/ MAMÁ LA EXTRATERRESTE is ready to fly and visit homes, classrooms and libraries. When I am writing a story for the first time, I write it in English or Spanish. When it is time to submit the manuscript for publication, my agent always submit an English manuscript. I work on that manuscript with my editor until it is ready to print. It is until then, when I translate the manuscript from English to Spanish. Q:  Thanks to you and many other diverse authors, our children are finally seeing books with heroes that look like them.  When you were growing up...

WE’RE ALL LIVING TELENOVELA LIVES BY JONISHA RIOS (New Release!)

The Latina Book Club congratulates actress-writer-comedian Jonisha Rios , whose book, CURSE OF THE BLUE VAGINA AND OTHER STORIES, was just released. Jonisha  shares with us a funny story of a Mom at a supermarket short on funds who ends us with more than she bargain for.  Welcome! “WE’RE ALL LIVING TELENOVELA LIVES….” by Jonisha Rios I’m in line at Winn Dixie here in Orlando, in one hand is a box of no frills pull-up pampers, in the other a basket with a half gallon of milk, cereal for the baby, an iced tea- and my guilty pleasure - an “US weekly magazine”.  I’m a sucker for those mags, especially when my life sucks.  I just look at the photos of the rich and famous and realize we aren’t all that different.  They’re just as screwed up as poor people are. As I inch up to the cash register, I’m suddenly filled with dread “Will I have enough? Did my husband remember to refill the prepaid card? I look over at my child...

BOOK OF THE MONTH: THE SORROWS OF YOUNG ALFONSO BY RUDOLFO ANAYA

    “The world is full of sorrow,” Agapita whispered to Alfonso. Did she stamp those words into his destiny? University of Oklahoma Press The story of Alfonso, a Nuevo Mexicano, begins with his birth, when the   curandera  Agapita delivers these haunting words into his infant ear. What then unfolds is an elegiac song to the llanos of New Mexico where Alfonso comes of age. As this exquisite novel charts Alfonso’s life journey from childhood through his education and evolution as a writer, renowned Chicano author Rudolfo Anaya invites readers to reflect on the truths and mysteries of the human condition. Because Alfonso “didn’t write his own biography,” it falls to his childhood friend, the anonymous narrator here, to tell his story, through a series of letters addressed to a mysterious figure named K. The narrator depicts young Alfonso caught between dual influences: his beloved, devout Catholic mother, Rafaelita, and the folk healer Agapita. Aft...

CUBA WEEK! FUN FACTS ABOUT CUBA

Cuba.  The name alone conjures up images of beautiful women, dashing men, smoldering cigars and savory dishes.   All true, and luckily Cuba is no longer forbidden territory.  More than 10 major airlines have direct flights to Cuba,  and there is even a brand new US-owned hotel on the island.  Havana is once again open for business. To Celebrate Cuba, The Latina Book Club has put together some fun facts.  How many do you know?### FUN FACTS ABOUT CUBA Cuba is 90 miles from Miami. It’s the largest island in the Caribbean. Fidel Castro took over the country in 1959. Baseball is the most popular sport in Cuba and yet by National Decree 83a, passed in 1962, professional sports are illegal. As of 2013, Cuba has nine sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Manjuari fish can only be found in Cuba. Ernest Hemingway wrote THE OLD MAN & THE SEA and FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS while living in Cuba. There is a John Le...