LATINO HERITAGE MONTH - September 15 to October 15

	monthly features
	at the movies
	adult picks
	teen picks
	kid picks
	family picks
	especially for teachers
	español
	best of...
	award winners
	build your own

Hispanic Heritage Month begins on September 15, the anniversary of independence for five Latin American countries—Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico declared its independence on September 16, and Chile on September 18.

Children

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	F is for Fiesta by Susan Elya
This story of a Hispanic boy's birthday party starts with A is for adornos (decorations) hung up by Papá. and ends with Z is for zorro (fox) from Dad. A glossary at the books beginning helps with the pronunciation and meaning of the Spanish words.

	Juan and the Chupacabras by Xavier Garza
Cousins Luz and Juan are thrilled by the wild stories their grandfather tells them of his own life-and-death battles with the infamous Chupacabras. They decide to track the demon down with suprising results!

	Sparky's bark = El ladrido de Sparky by Mimi Chapra
A bilingual picture book that focuses on little Lucy and her mother, who journey from a Latin American country to visit their relatives in Ohio and learn American customs during their stay.

	Once upon a Cuento by Lyn Miller-Lachmann
A collection of 17 diverse short stories that speak to the difficulty of changing homes and living between two cultures.

	The Kite by Luis Garay
Since his father's death, Francisco's small earnings from working in the marketplace are essential for the family's livelihood yet he wishes for a kite to herald the birth of a new sister.

	A Fire in My Hands by Gary Soto
These simple, free-verse selections skillfully capture that which is commonplace and transforms it into something mesmerizing!

	The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child by Francisco Jimenez
Francisco Jimenez was born in Mexico, entered California illegally as a very young child, and spent his boyhood alternating between migrant farm work and the classroom. Some critics have compared this autobiography to The Grapes of Wrath.

	Felipa y el Día de los Muertos by Birte Muller
The story of a child who begins to accept the death of her grandmother on the Day of the Dead

	A Pen Pal for Max by Gloria Rand
Maximiliano who lives with his family on a farm in Chile, becomes a penpal with an American girl and they develop an enduring freindship.

	The Galapagos Islands by James Barter
Exposes the delicate balance of this fragile ecosystem.

	Isabel Allende : Award-winning Latin American Author by Mary Main
An engaging biography that provides a fascinating glimpse of Allende's Chilean influences.

	Chile by Renee Russo Martinez
An overview of the country's geography, history, government, economy, people, and culture with excellent color photographs and maps.

	Bandit's Moon by Sid Fleischman
Spirted story teller Fleishman relates a rollicking adventure revolving around the Mexican bandit Joaquin Murieta who roamed Northern California during the time of the California Gold Rush.

	To go singing through the world : the childhood of Pablo Neruda by Deborah Kogan Ray
Examines the people and events that influenced Neruda's writing and shaped his political ideals.

Young Adult

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	The Killer's Tears by Anne-Laure Bondoux
A haunting, blend of allegory, social commentary, and magic realism in the tale of parentless Paolo Poloverdos.

	City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende
A thrilling tale about an adventure along the Amazon to search for a legendary nine-foot-tall "Beast."

	Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez
Writer Julia Alvarez and her family escaped from the Trujillo regime in the Dominican Republic when she was 10, but in Before We Were Free she portrays, through the stories of her family and friends, how it was for those who stayed behind.

	The Republic of East L.A. : Stories by Luis J. Rodriguez
Chronicles the lives of drifters, gangbangers, the homeless, and other hard-luck residents of East Los Angeles.

	Accidental Love by Gary Soto
Marisa Rodriguez, 14, meets geeky Renee and love blossoms.

	Sweet fifteen by Diane Gonzales Bertrand
When seamstress Rita Navarro makes a quinceańera dress for fourteen-year-old Stefanie, she finds herself becoming involved with the girl's family and attracted to her uncle.

Adult

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	The Essential Neruda : Selected Poems by Pablo Neruda
A bilingual presentation of the poet's most famous poems.

	Memoirs by Pablo Neruda
Neruda's memoirs of his travels and his equisite native Chile.

	Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende
Follows unlikely fortune seeker Eliza Somers from Chile to Califronia, illuminating Chile's nineteenth century importance as a world trade center, and bringing alive the Gold Rush era of California.

	The South American table : the flavor and soul of authentic home cooking from Patagonia to Rio de Janeiro, with 450 recipes by Maria Baez Kijac
Part reference book and part cookbook - a wonderful introduction to a little-known culinary tradition.

	My Invented Country : A Nostalgic Journey Through Chile by Isabel Allende
Allende explores Chile, where she was raised, showing, in the process, how the country has served as her inspiration.

	Farmworker's Daughter : Growing Up Mexican in America by Rose Castillo Guilbault
With honesty and candor, Guilbault relates the story of her immigrant experience from its beginning in the sonoran desert of Mexico, to California's Salinas Valley, and finally to a career as a celebrated Bay Area journalist.

	Searching for Joaquin : Myth, Murieta and History in California by Bruce Thornton
Examines the part that Joaquin Murieta has played in the myth of the old California of Ranchos and Desperados.

	How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
Four sisters who must adapt to life in America after escaping from the Dominican Republic chronicle their adjustments through a series of stories that begin in adulthood and move back to their wealthy childhood on the island.

	Malinche : A Novel by Laura Esquivel
Malinche was sold into slavery as a child and later became "The Tongue," Cortés's interpreter, leading to a life torn between two cultures.

	Living to Tell the Tale by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
A captivating memoir of the young artist through the 1950s.

	Lost City Radio : A Novel by Daniel Alarcon
Daniel Alarcón's engaging first novel is set in a fictitious South American country reminiscent of the recent history of Argentina, Chile and, most particularly, Alarcón's native country, Peru.

	Brown : the Last Discovery of America by Richard Rodriguez
A stirring meditation on racial identity in America.

Selected by Kathleen Beasley, San Mateo County Library, 9.2007

EVENTS

•	Hot Salsa Nights
•	One Book One Community presents Isable Allende

WEB RESOURCES

•	Chicano-Art-Life
•	infoplease
•	KQED
•	Andanzas al Web Latino
•	Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
•	Art Gallery Sweeney
•	Hispanic Scholarship Fund
•	USA Latino
•	Latin World
•	42 eXplore
•	Chicanas
•	azcentral.com
•	Hispanic Online
•	Scholastic

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