National Hispanic Heritage Month is here! We'll be celebrating Hispanic authors and cultures from September 15 to October 15. Today there are over 65 million Hispanic Americans, so let’s celebrate this heritage with books from our collection! I will only be highlighting four books, but there are so many more books written by and celebrating Hispanic American heritage.
Just help! How To Build a Better World by Sonia Sotomayor, illustrated by Angela Dominguez
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor takes young readers on a journey through a neighborhood where kids and adults, activists and bus drivers, friends and strangers all help one another to build a better world for themselves and their community. Find a copy of Just help! How To Build a Better World here.
Dolores Huerta Stands Strong: the Woman Who Demanded Justice by Marlene Brill
Today, we know Dolores Huerta as the cofounder, with Cesar Chavez, of the National Farmworkers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers of America. We know her as a tireless advocate for the rights of farmworkers, Mexican American immigrants, women, and LGBTQ populations. And we know her as the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama in 2012. Find a copy of Dolores Huerta Stands Strong here.
Iveliz Explains It All by Andrea Beatriz Arango
Twelve-year-old Iveliz is trying to manage her mental health and advocate for the help and understanding she deserves, but in the meantime her new friend calls her crazy and her abuela Mimi dismisses the therapy and medicine Iveliz needs to feel like herself. Find a copy of Iveliz Explains It All here.
Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir by Pedro Martin
Pedro/Peter Martín is a Mexikid, or a kid born in the U.S. to parents from Mexico, a kid who doesn't quite belong to either place. So he's not sure what to expect when his dad announces that the whole family (all 11 of them!) will be piling into their Winnebago to drive 2,000 miles down to Mexico with a mission: bring their mysterious, Mexican-Revolution-era abuelito home to live with them But their grandfather has a mission of his own and he won't leave Mexico until it's complete. Find a copy of Mexikid here.