Race & Social Justice Teacher Resources: Latino/a/e/x & Hispanic Experience

Non-Fiction
Age Range: 8 - 12
Lexile Measure: 840
Available in print.
"You can always recognize a painting by Kahlo because she is in nearly all--with her black braided hair and colorful Mexican outfits. A brave woman who was an invalid most of her life, she transformed herself into a living work of art. As famous for her self-portraits and haunting imagery as she was for her marriage to another famous artist, Diego Rivera, this strong and courageous painter was inspired by the ancient culture and history of her beloved homeland, Mexico. Her paintings continue to inform and inspire popular culture around the world"-- Provided by publisher.

Non-Fiction
Age Range: 9 - 14
Lexile Measure: 1010
Available through HSPLS: print
"Playwright and Broadway star Lin-Manuel Miranda is best known as the mind behind the smash-hit musical Hamilton. This title explores Hamilton and Miranda's other works, as well as his life off-stage" -- Provided by publisher

Non-Fiction
Available in print (US Library)
"Hailed as 'not only a gifted writer, but an absolutely essential one' (The New York Times Book Review), Sandra Cisneros has firmly established herself as an author of electrifying talent. Here are verses, comic and sad, radiantly pure and plainspoken, that reveal why her stories have been praised for their precision and musicality of language."

Poetry
Available in eBook (use 'Iolani login)
A translation of Pablo Neruda's early collections of odes, this book features poems that are addressed to hope and to gloom, to numbers and to the atom, to blue flowers and to artichokes. Reflecting the lucent, candid vitality driving Neruda's charming accounts, these poems celebrate things big and the small: even lamentations become commemorations. Compassionately amused one moment then sobered by injustice and supportive of resistance the next, this bilingual compilation will appeal to fans of one of the 20th century's most popular poets.

Fiction
Age Range: 2 - 5
Lexile Measure: AD580
Available through HSPLS: print.
"When a gust from her grandfather's blowgun causes Luna to tumble from the sky and fall into the ocean, the little fishes help her rise once again, in an updated retelling of a traditional Mopan Maya myth from Belize." --Provided by the publisher

Fiction
Age Range: 4-8
Lexile Measure: 490
Available through HSPLS: print, ebook.
A 2019 Caldecott Honor Book
What's in a name? For one little girl, her very long name tells the vibrant story of where she came from -- and who she may one day be.
[Read aloud video by Mr. Wil Turner at https://youtu.be/xJZV1eReZp0 ]

Non-Fiction
Age Range: 5 - 7
Lexile Measure: AD870
Available through HSPLS: print.
Seven years before Brown v. Board of Education, the Mendez family fought to end segregation in California schools. Discover their incredible story in this picture book from award-winning creator Duncan Tonatiuh. A Pura Belpré Illustrator Honor Book and Robert F. Sibert Honor Book.
[Read aloud by Alma Renteria, Principal at Rivera Elementary School, at https://youtu.be/O5QIv-2wxQ4 ]

Fiction
Age Range: 5 - 8
Lexile Measure: AD600
Available through HSPLS: print, ebook.
"Lola was just a baby when her family left the Island, so when she has to draw it for a school assignment, she asks her family, friends, and neighbors about their memories of her homeland ... and in the process, comes up with a new way of understanding her own heritage"--Provided by publisher.
[Read aloud by Mr. Manny of Los Robles-Ronald McNair Academy at https://youtu.be/VzLBrEHOxqE ]

Fiction
Age Range: 6 - 9
Guided Reading Level: Q
Available in print (LS Library).
"An inspiring collection of Pat Mora's own glorious poems celebrating a love of words and all the ways we use and interact with them: reading, speaking, writing, and singing... Poet Pat Mora has brought together a collection of her poems that celebrates engaging with words and books in all these ways and more. Vivid illustrations by Raúl Colón bring the poems to life and interpret the magic of the language with captivating images in a style influenced by Mexican muralists. Together the poems and illustrations are sure to inspire creative wordplay in readers of all ages." Provided by the publisher.

Non-Fiction
Age Range: 8 - 10
Lexile Measure: 730
Available through HSPLS: print.
Join a young boy and his father on a daring journey from Mexico to Texas to find a new life. They'll need all the resilience and courage they can muster to safely cross the border - la frontera - and to make a home for themselves in a new land.
[Read aloud video by Christina Fossel Kelso at https://youtu.be/K3rU1OOamXc ]

Fiction
Age Range: 8 - 12
Guided Reading Level: V
Lexile Measure: 750
Available in print and ebook (LS & US Library).
Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression.

Non-Fiction
Age Range: 8 - 12
Lexile Measure: 700
Available through HSPLS: print
Describes the life and accomplishments of the United States Supreme Court justice.

Fiction
Age Range: 12 - 14
Lexile Measure: 1030
Available through HSPLS: print, ebook.
Book 1 of 3 - Memories of the Eagle and the Jaguar series.
Fifteen-year-old Alexander Cold is about to join his fearless grandmother on the trip of a lifetime. An International Geographic expedition is headed to the dangerous, remote wilds of South America, on a mission to document the legendary Yeti of the Amazon known as the Beast. But there are many secrets hidden in the unexplored wilderness, as Alex and his new friend Nadia soon discover. Drawing on the strength of their spirit guides, both young people are led on a thrilling and unforgettable journey to the ultimate discovery.

Fiction
Age Range: 14 - 18
Lexile Measure: HL730
Available in print (US Library)
Perfect Mexican daughters do not go away to college. And they do not move out of their parents' house after high school graduation. Perfect Mexican daughters never abandon their family. But Julia is not your perfect Mexican daughter. That was Olga's role. Then a tragic accident on the busiest street in Chicago leaves Olga dead and Julia left behind to reassemble the shattered pieces of her family. And no one seems to acknowledge that Julia is broken, too. Instead, her mother seems to channel her grief into pointing out every possible way Julia has failed. But it's not long before Julia discovers that Olga might not have been as perfect as everyone thought. With the help of her best friend Lorena, and her first love, first everything boyfriend Connor, Julia is determined to find out. Was Olga really what she seemed? Or was there more to her sister's story? And either way, how can Julia even attempt to live up to a seemingly impossible ideal?

Fiction
Lexile Measure: 1010
Available in print (US Library).
Oscar is a sweet but disastrously overweight ghetto nerd who--from the New Jersey home he shares with his old world mother and rebellious sister--dreams of becoming the Dominican J.R.R. Tolkien and, most of all, finding love. But Oscar may never get what he wants. Blame the fukú--a curse that has haunted Oscar's family for generations, following them on their epic journey from Santo Domingo to the USA. Encapsulating Dominican-American history, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao opens our eyes to an astonishing vision of the contemporary American experience and explores the endless human capacity to persevere--and risk it all--in the name of love.

Non-Fiction
Available in print (US Library)
The archetypal creation story of Latin America, the Popol Vuh began as a Maya oral tradition millennia ago. In the mid-sixteenth century, as indigenous cultures across the continent were being threatened with destruction by European conquest and Christianity, it was written down in verse by members of the K'iche' nobility in what is today Guatemala. In 1701, that text was translated into Spanish by a Dominican friar and ethnographer before vanishing mysteriously. Cosmic in scope and yet intimately human, the Popol Vuh offers invaluable insight into the Maya way of life before being decimated by colonization--their code of ethics, their views on death and the afterlife, and their devotion to passion, courage, and the natural world... Popol Vuh: A Retelling is a one-of-a-kind prose rendition of this sacred text that is as seminal as the Bible and the Qur'an, the Ramayana and the Odyssey. Award-winning scholar of Latin American literature Ilan Stavans brings a fresh creative energy to the Popol Vuh, giving a new generation of readers the opportunity to connect with this timeless story and with the plight of the indigenous people of the Americas.

Non-Fiction
Available in print (US Library)
Latinos across the United States are redefining identities, pushing boundaries, and awakening politically in powerful and surprising ways. Many--Afrolatino, indigenous, Muslim, queer and undocumented, living in large cities and small towns--are voices who have been chronically overlooked in how the diverse population of almost sixty million Latinos in the U.S. has been represented. No longer. In this empowering cross-country travelogue, journalist and activist Paola Ramos embarks on a journey to find the communities of people defining the controversial term, "Latinx." ... Drawing on intensive field research as well as her own personal story, Ramos chronicles how "Latinx" has given rise to a sense of collectivity and solidarity among Latinos unseen in this country for decades. A vital and inspiring work of reportage, Finding Latinx calls on all of us to expand our understanding of what it means to be Latino and what it means to be American. The first step towards change, writes Ramos, is for us to recognize who we are.

Fiction
Available in print (US Library)
A special 25th anniversary edition of the extraordinary international bestseller, including a new Foreword by Paulo Coelho. Combining magic, mysticism, wisdom and wonder into an inspiring tale of self-discovery, The Alchemist has become a modern classic, selling millions of copies around the world and transforming the lives of countless readers across generations. Paulo Coelho's masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different--and far more satisfying--than he ever imagined. Santiago's journey teaches us about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, of recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life's path, and, most importantly, to follow our dreams.

Non-Fiction
Available in print (US Library).
"The 'Hispanic journey from darkness to light, from rejection to assimilation, from silence to voice,' in 25 diverse, eloquent voices."

Non-Fiction
Available in print (US Library)
This groundbreaking Norton Anthology includes the work of 201 Latino writers from Chicano, Cuban-, Puerto Rican-, and Dominican-American traditions, as well as writing from other Spanish-speaking countries... traces four centuries of writing, from letters to the Spanish crown by sixteenth-century conquistadors to the cutting-edge expressions of twenty-first-century cartoonistas and artists of reggaeton. In six chronological sections--Colonization, Annexation, Acculturation, Upheaval, Into the Mainstream, and Popular Traditions--it encompasses all genres, featuring such writers as José Martí, William Carlos Williams, Julia Alvarez, Oscar Hijuelos, Cristina García, Piri Thomas, Esmeralda Santiago, and Junot Díaz. -- Provided by the publisher.

Non-Fiction
Available in print (US Library)
The first Hispanic and third woman appointed to the United States Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor has become an instant American icon. Now, with a candor and intimacy never undertaken by a sitting Justice, she recounts her life from a Bronx housing project to the federal bench, a journey that offers an inspiring testament to her own extraordinary determination and the power of believing in oneself.

Non-Fiction
Available in print (US Library)
The first new edition in ten years of this important study of Latinos in U.S. history, Harvest of Empire spans five centuries--from the European colonization of the Americas to through the 2020 election. Latinos are now the largest minority group in the United States, and their impact on American culture and politics is greater than ever. With family portraits of real-life immigrant Latino pioneers, as well as accounts of the events and conditions that compelled them to leave their homelands, Gonzalez highlights the complexity of a segment of the American population that is often discussed but frequently misrepresented. This landmark history is required reading for anyone wishing to understand the history and legacy of this influential and diverse group.

"Collects the intergenerational voices of Latine women across time and space, capturing the power, strength, and creativity of these visionary writers, leaders, scholars, and activists—including 24 Indigenous voices. Several authors featured are translated into English for the first time...
An eclectic and inclusive time capsule spanning centuries, genres, and geographical and linguistic diversity, Daughters of Latin America is divided into 13 parts representing the 13 Mayan Moons, each cycle honoring a different theme...
More than a collection of writings, Daughters of Latin America is a resurrection of ancestral literary inheritance as well as a celebration of the rising voices encouraged and nurtured by those who came before them."