Hispanic Heritage Month - September 15 to October 15

Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.

Great Books For You (Teens)!

Learning to Die in Miami: Confessions of a Refugee Boy by Carlos M. Eire

Following the National-Book-Award-winning Waiting for Snow in Havana, comes the story of a stranger in a strange land, Eire (Waiting for Snow in Havana), one of 14,000 children airlifted out of Cuba in Operation Peter Pan in 1962, describes the classic American immigrant experience in Miami, Fla., with a mix of insightful observation, humor, and heartfelt emotion.    

Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

Living on the University of Colorado-Boulder campus with his older brother Alex, a college student and ex-gang member, high school senior Carlos is not ready to give up his wild ways until he meets a shy classmate named Kiara and becomes unwillingly involved in a drug ring.   

Messed Up by Janet Nichols Lynch

With his father out of the picture and his mom in prison, Mexican American fifteen-year-old R. D. has been living with his grandmother and her boyfriend, Earl. RD is repeating the eighth grade and planning to have an easy year. But after his grandmother takes off with a new boyfriend and Earl, unexpectedly dies heartbroken but determined to stay out trouble and a group home, R.D. is left to fend for himself while avoiding being caught. But how long can R. D. keep up the front?

Carmen: An Urban Adaptation of the Opera by Walter Dean Myers

Intense and gritty, the latest young adult novel from award-winning, critically acclaimed author Myers updates Bizet's opera with a hot, urban beat. A policeman's obsessive love for a tempestuous wig factory worker ends in tragedy in this updated version of Bizet's Carmen, set in Spanish Harlem, and told in screenplay format. 

Look out for these ...

♦ The Fortune of Carmen Navarro by Jen Bryant

♦  You Don't Have a Clue: Latino mystery stories for teens: credited by Sarah Cortez

♦ Sweet 15 by Emily Adler and Alex Echevarria

♦ Addicted to Her by Janet Nichols Lynch

♦ What Can (t) Wait by Ashley Hope Perez

♦ The Last Summer of the Death Warriors by Francisco X. Stork

♦ The Fortune of Carmen Navarro by Jen Bryant

♦ He Forgot to Say Goodbye by Benjamin Alire Sá enz

♦ Mexican Whiteboy by Matt de la Peña

♦ Cuba 15: a novel by Nancy Osa

♦ Estrella’s Quinceañera by Malín Alegría