A Belated Congratulations And I Revisit More Latino Authors Please/Necesitamos mas autores Latinos

I've been awhile for minute and it that time the winner of the NerdsHeartYA, a tournament for underrepresented YA was announced. Congratulations to Renee Watson, who won for What Momma Left Me, one of my favorite reads of 2010. It was up against another 2010 Favorite of mine, Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John. Each year the tournament accomplishes its goal of bringing some much needed and well deserved attention to all nominated titles. NerdsHeartYA is in its third year, and I've yet to be disappointed or underwhelmed by a winning title.


We are right in the middle of Hispanic Heritage Month which started on Sept. 15 and runs until Oct 15. There are a lot of great blogs including Latin Baby Book Club and Bookjoy Ever year there seem to be more mainstream Spanish/English picture books which is a very good thing. I only wish that same increase could be seen with early readers, middle grade and young adult novels. As it is now there simply aren't enough books by Latino authors or featuring Latino characters to sustain a blog that isn't centered around picture books.

Last year I did a feature called More Latino Authors Please/necesitamos mas autores Latinos only 15 middle grade and young adult Latino authors were published last year. Initially it was 16 but Guadalupe Garcia McCall's debut, Under the Mesquite with pushed back to this Sept. (loved it) Only 15 authors is beyond ridiculous and lets not forget that's combining middle grade and young adult. There are 15 White young adult authors published any given Tuesday.

When I did that feature I was a bit worked up, seeing the hard facts of a marginalized group having less then 20 authors published in a year its difficult not to feel the injustice of it. But I kept my emotions in check.

Authors Alex Sanchez, Jennifer Cervantes, Christina Gonzalez, Caridad Ferrer and Francisco X. Stork were all kind enough to answers a few question about the issue. I learned something from all of their answers, if you missed it the first time around, the link to all of the authors answer can be found here

This year there were 13 novels published by Latino authors. I could've missed a few but even if one did a margin error of 5 that's still less then 20 titles. I am absolutely loving the fact that two of my favorite debuts are by Latina authors, What Can't Wait by Ashley Hope Perez and Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall.

For whatever reason the gatekeepers are doing their best to keep Latino authors out. So it pleases me to no end to see Hope Perez and Garcia McCall bring it hard. Like what? You can't deny my goodness.

The first chapter of What Can't Wait, my interview with the author

An excerpt from Under the Mesquite, the author's interview @ Bookjoy

Sunday - A Little of Everything (Including Borders)

On Tuesday I posted an interview with Farhana Zia the author of Hot Hot Roti for Dada- ji . the book is illustrated by Ken Min. Initially I had planned to post the author and illustrator interviews together. I wanted it look like the interview I did with Renee Watson and Shadra Strickland for When A Place Like Hurricanes Happen. Looking back on Watson's and Strickland I realize its a bit long. So in the end I think separate is better and this time it is equal. Min's is coming soon. I love his answers.

Finished WildCat Fireflies by Amber Kizer the other day. It was very good. I love this series. I especially enjoy that Kizer's story is its own thing and not more of the same. I will review in the release month of July. The first book is Meridian (which is out in paperback) my review.

Before the Borders I worked at closed, I purchased a Kobo reader at a good price. (personal severance). Now I don't have to read egalleys on my laptop anymore. Downloading the books was very easy. I just have to figure out how to increase the font for a pdf file.

Working at a store that is closing is actually a lot of fun. Its the one time when the seller has the power. All the customer threats made me laugh.

" I am never shopping here again" - Me too
"I am going to shop at amazon from now on" - Again, me too
" I demand you take back my year old return."

No more laughing at bad customer jokes. No more watching people come in 7 days a week to use the free Wi Fi and not buy anything. No more pretending to care. There are a lot of great customers but some people should not be allowed to shop in stores. Will be talking more about my time at Borders later.

Sunday - A Little of Everything

On Monday, I nominated four titles for Nerds Heart YA including three I mentioned in a previous post. The other book I nominated was What Momma Left Me by Renee Watson. You until March 7th to nominate books for Nerds Heart YA

Congratulations to author Shaun Tan for winning an Oscar for best animated flim for The Lost Thing. If you've never read Tan your missing out, his work is ridiculosuly good.


Author Neesha Meminger stopped by The Book Smugglers this week.

My biggest inspirations and influences were feminist writers. But wait – let me go back a bit. When I was younger, I really loved the tikki-tikki-tembo story. It’s the first story I remember really loving. I heard it in the library when I was, maybe, in third grade. The librarian read it aloud to the class and I was absolutely immersed. Could be because the story was about a boy with a name no one could pronounce, a name that was long and weird and foreign (like mine), but I completely related to that boy in the story.

If you plan on buying Jazz in Love please don't buy a used copy. The author doesn't get any credit for that resale. Self publishing is hard enough without authors having to contend with people selling a book for a profit. Jazz in love is only $11.00 new. Yet some people are selling their copies for more then that.

Don't forget to stop by Kidlit Celebrates Women's History Month , to read the daily post by authors and bloggers.

So far my favorite post was by Colleen,

Since then I have read about many women involved in aviation; one of the most obscure (and interesting) was early 20th century parachutist Elizabeth Shepherd. "Dolly" was a waitress at the Alexandra Palace in London when she met balloonist Auguste Gaudron who was looking for a girl parachutist for his act. In 1904 being a parachutist meant rising in the balloon basket to at least 2,000 feet then dropping down over the side and hanging from a trapeze bar to which she was attached with a safety strap. When she was ready to let go (and Dolly liked to go quite high) she would let go of the bar, releasing the strap. At that point all of her weight would be placed on the ropes attaching her to the parachute which hung limp from the balloon. If all was right, the parachute would open and Dolly would fall slowly back down to the ground.

There's a recent article at the School Library Journal called The Civil War: Beyond the Battlefield. Several titles are recommend. I was very disappointed that A Wish After Midnight by Zetta Elliott wasn't one of them. Even more so when I noticed there was a section called Looking Backward: History, Crafts, and Time Travel . In A Wish After Midnight, 15 yr old Genna loves to make wishes, one wish transports are back to civil war era Brooklyn.

I know its an irrational thought but I couldn't help but wonder if only I did a little more for A Wish After Midnight, the right person would've heard about it and it would've been included.

I recently finished and loved Learning to Swim by Sara J. Henry. I picked it up because of the cover by the second chapter, I wanted to hug the book. It was my kind of mystery. I even left a fan gush comment on the author's blog. Something I don't do often. read an excerpt

One YA novel I am really looking forward to reviewing when it gets closer to the release date is Huntress by Malinda Lo. It was so good. I loved it. For once a story lives up to its beautiful. cover.

Well Done, Bloomsbury

Recently, Justine Larbalestier's Liar was released in paperback. Before the book was released there was a cover controversy

Thankfully a enough people spoke out against a White girl on a cover of a book that featured a biracial protagonist the cover was changed.

I loved this new cover, and even better I didn't have to miss a great story. Liar was one of my favorite novels of 2010.

With the big push back over cover misrepresentation I thought Bloomsbury learned it's lesson. I was wrong. 11 months after writing that Dear Bloomsbury letter, I am very happy to have reason to write this.

Bloomsbury released two great Middle Grade novels by African American authors this year.

What Momma Left Me by Renee Watson

And Finding Family by Tonya Bolden


Now when I think of Bloomsbury Childrens my memory is linked to these very good stories, that are far from more of the same. I will never forget the cover controversies but I more than willing to move forward. Earlier in the year, I gave much space to the cover malfunctions. So it only seems fair to acknowledge Bloomsbury's move in the right direction. Well Done.

What Momma Left Me - Renee Watson

What Momma Left Me by Renee Watson

I loved Watson's picture book debut A Place Where Hurricanes Happen, which was released at the end of June, a few weeks before What Momma Left Me. Though I just now got around to reading Watson's middle grade novel debut. I didn't think I would like What Momma Left Me so I didn't seek it out. Thanks to the book description, I thought the story would be heavy on the lessons, the cover and main characters name Serenity, reinforced this idea.

When I finally picked up What Momma Left Me, I quickly realized how wrong I was. I really really enjoyed this story and loved Serenity's voice. Thirteen year old Serenity and her younger brother 12 yr old Danny move in with their grandparents after their mother is dies. The two are trying to find a new home with their grandparents.

To cope with her loss Serenity writes in a journal. At Serenity's new school, her English class will be studying poetry. The students are required to write a poem in whatever style they learned that week on Friday.

Serenity Evans

Mrs. Ross, 1 st Period

Poetry Workshop

List Poem: a form of free verse poetry. Write a list poem about ten things you know

10 things I know

Even Jesus wept

Everything tastes better when it's homemade

Passing notes in class will get you in trouble

Nobody likes to be made fun of

True friends come back to you

Saying "I'm sorry" is never easy

A touch from a boy can set your soul on fire

People who pass away

visit you in your dreams

Sometimes doing the wrong thing

is the only way people know how to survive

death is a sneaky thief,

stealing life when you don't expect it.

Each chapter begins with one of Serenity's poems in its own font. The poems were a wonderful surprise and another way to feel connected to Serenity.

Serenity's grandfather is a pastor and she finds herself going to church more than she ever did before. Serenity makes a new friend at Sunday school, Maria. Watson's seamlessly blends faith into the story. Serenity and Maria gossip, talk about boys and go to church on Sundays. Some young readers will be able to relate to their not so perfect behavior at times, talking a little to loud and passing notes in the pew.

Serenity has a crush on a boy names Jay, even though she knows he's trouble.

"Jay gets up and sits at the table. Mr. Nelson takes his math book and opens it to page twenty-five. "Let's start the year off right, " Mr. Nelson says. When Mr. Nelson turns his back to write on the board, Jay closes his book. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a stack of bills. He counts them. The green is moving so fast in his hands, I can't keep up with how much money he has. He must feel me staring at him because he looks across the aisle at me. I try to play it off, like I wasn't just looking at him, like I don't see all that green in his hands. Our eyes meet. I get hot all over and look away. "

Serenity is very vulnerable and here is this attractive badboy ready to sweet talk her. I really enjoyed watching this storyline play out. Waston doesn't ignore Danny, he's also going through it and getting caught up with a bad crowd.

Serenity's father killed her mother. The author doesn't say that Serenity's mother's was murdered or who was responsible until about midway in. This slow reveal worked very well. The information was held back not to tease the reader but because Serenity isn't ready to share or think about what happened to her mother. The first person Serenity tells is Maria. Serenity's mother loved to cook as does her grandmother. Cooking runs in the family. Serenity has fond memories of helping her mother in the kitchen. What Momma Left Me is well layered and very good. Watson is offically on my read it as soon as it comes out author list. ages 10 up

excerpt

teacher's guide - I thought this looked very good, so I decided to link to it.