All the Stars Denied by Guadalupe Garcia McCallWhen resentment surges during the Great Depression in a Texas border town, Estrella, fifteen, organizes a protest against the treatment of tejanos and soon finds herself witih her mother and baby brother in Mexico.
Cemetery Boys by Aiden ThomasYadriel, a trans boy, summons the angry spirit of his high school's bad boy, and agrees to help him learn how he died, thereby proving himself a brujo, not a bruja, to his conservative family.
Clap When You Land by Elizabeth AcevedoSixteen-year-olds Camino Rios, of the Dominican Republic, and Yahaira Rios, of New York City, are devastated to learn of their father's death in a plane crash and stunned to learn of each other's existence. A novel in verse told in two voices.
The Distance Between Us by Reyna GrandePresents a middle-grade adaptation of the memoir of Reyna Grande about her childhood longing for her absent father, who left Mexico to find work in America to make a dream life for his family. She dreamed of his return, but things didn't work out like that--instead, Reyna found herself following him on her own dangerous journey from El Otro Lado to find him. Along the way, books and writing helped save her.
Don't Ask Me Where I'm From by Jennifer De Leon; Elena Garnu (Illustrator)While dealing with racism at her new nearly all-white school, Liliana Cruz must also face a family secret after it is exposed and her family must find a way to come together in order to survive the aftermath.
Enchanted Air by Margarita Engle; Edel Rodriguez (Illustrator)In this poetic memoir, Margarita Engle, the first Latina woman to receive a Newbery Honor, tells of growing up as a child of two cultures during the Cold War.
The House on Mango Street by Sandra CisnerosThe House on Mango Street is the remarkable story of Esperanza Cordero, a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago, inventing for herself who and what she will become.
In the Country We Love by Diane Guerrero; Michelle BurfordDiane Guerrero, television actress from the hits "Orange is the New Black" and "Jane the Virgin," recalls the day her parents were detained and deported when she was 14, and how she was able to remain in the country, finish her education, and build a successful acting career.
Mexican WhiteBoy by Matt de la PeñaSixteen-year-old Danny searches for his identity amidst the confusion of being half-Mexican and half-white while spending a summer with his cousin and new friends on the baseball fields and back alleys of San Diego County, California.
Never Look Back by Lilliam RiveraEury comes to the Bronx as a girl haunted. Haunted by losing everything in Hurricane Maria--and by an evil spirit, Ato. She fully expects the tragedy that befell her and her family in Puerto Rico to catch up with her in New York. Yet, for a time, she can almost set this fear aside, because there’s this boy . . .
The Poet X by Elizabeth AcevedoXiomara Batista is a teenage girl living in Harlem who's learned to use her fists to send messages. When she's invited to join her school's poetry club, she knows her religious mother will never allow it. But Xiomara is determined to find a way because she has something to say that can only be shared through her poetry.
Pride by Ibi ZoboiIn this reimagining of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice," teenager Zuri Benitez is deeply proud of her Afro-Latino roots in their Brooklyn neighborhood, and is disappointed as she watches Bushwick gentrify. And when the wealthy Darcy family moves in, Zuri wants nothing to do with them, especially their two teenage sons, even though her older sister, Janae, falls for the charming Ainsley. The other brother, Darius, is especially obnoxious, but her dislike shifts into understanding and even affection.
Soaring Earth by Margarita EngleCuban American poet Margarita Engle offers poems about her experiences in high school, how life changed when the war in Vietnam began, and how in a world surrounded by conflict she was able to find hope and love.
Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything by Raquel Vasquez GillilandArtemisia (Sia) Martinez's mother was deported to Mexico by ICE and disappeared in the Sonoran Desert trying to make it back to her American family. Sia believes that she was effectively murdered by ICE and the sheriff in their small Arizona town on the edge of the national park, and wants revenge against him and his son, Jeremy--but her search for the truth will uncover many more secrets than she counted on.
We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay MejiaAt the Medio School for Girls, distinguished young women are trained for one of two roles in their polarized society. Depending on her specialization, a graduate will one day run a husband’s household or raise his children. Both paths promise a life of comfort and luxury, far from the frequent political uprisings of the lower class. Daniela Vargas is the school’s top student, but her pedigree is a lie. She must keep the truth hidden or be sent back to the fringes of society. And school couldn’t prepare her for the difficult choices she must make after graduation, especially when she is asked to spy for a resistance group desperately fighting to bring equality to Medio. Will Dani cling to the privilege her parents fought to win for her, or will she give up everything she’s strived for in pursuit of a free Medio—and a chance at a forbidden love?
This Train Is Being Held by Ismee WilliamsWilliams's latest novel feels like if West Side Story were about two teens who met on a train. Alex and Isa are Latinx, but their families and lives could not be more different. After several chance-encounters on the New York City subway, they start seeing each other for real. With themes of privilege, mental health, and diaspora, this love story is bound to pack a punch.