Skip to main content

Display: Influential Hispanic American Voices

Shakira
By Ma Isabel Sánchez Vegara
Beverly, MA: Frances Lincoln Childrens' Books, 2023. Informational. 

As a child, Shakira was obsessed with singing, writing songs, and dancing whenever she could. She recorded her first album at the age of 13 and soon became a star, winning many awards and creating hits enjoyed by people everywhere. With her fame, she started a foundation to help children in developing countries across the world. This amazing story of the Latin-American icon features a fact and photo section at the back. --Editor

Sonia Sotomayor
Written by Meg Medina
Illustrated by  Gillian Flint
New York Philomel Books, 2021. Informational. 52 pages.

Sonia Sotomayor is the first Latina Supreme Court Justice in the history of the United States, but her road there wasn't easy. She overcame many challenges along the way, including a diagnosis of diabetes at age seven. But, she didn't let that stop her from achieving her dream and inspiring children all over the world to work hard and believe in themselves. --Editor

Written by Isabel Thomas
Illustrated by Marianna Madriz
London: Laurence King Publishing, 2018. Informational. 63 pages.

Frida Kahlo was a colorful Mexican artist who endured great pain and hardship, but used her bright, vivid brushstrokes to express her emotions and reveal her true personality. She created over 50 self-portraits, and is considered to be one of the most influential and inspirational artists of the 20th century. --Publisher

By Penelope Nelson
North Mankato, Minnesota: Capstone Press, 2019. Informational. 32 pages.

Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical Hamilton is a national hit. Read about how he got his start on Broadway and his rise to fame! --Editor

By Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez
New York: Downtown Bookworks, 2022. Informational. 48 pages.

Bilingual mini biographies (in English and Spanish) introduce young readers to groundbreaking Latino leaders--from Roberto Clemente and Cesar Chavez to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sonia Sotomayor. --Editor

By Cesar Alegre
New York: Children's Press, 2007. Informational. 288 pages.

Celebrates the lives of some famous and accomplished Hispanic Americans. --Editor

Written by Margartia Engle
Illustrated by Rafael López
New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2017. Informational.

Bold, graphic portraits and beautiful poems present famous and lesser-known Latinos from varied backgrounds who have faced life's challenges in creative ways --Publisher


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

If You Like...KPop Demon Hunters

KPop Demon Hunters has been one of the most talked-about movies of the summer. If you loved this movie as much as I did, you don't want the magic (or the music) to stop. Try reading these books that touch on some of the same topics and themes as the animated hit! Brick Dust and Bones By M. R. Fournet New York: Feiwel and Friends, 2023. Fiction. 247 pages. Orphaned Marius works in the family business--as their cemetery's ghost caretaker. However, Marius also moonlights as a monster hunter in order to earn the costly Mystic currency he needs to bring his mother back from the dead. As the window to bring his mother back begins to close, Marius's exploits get more and more dangerous, and he may have set his sights on a monster too big to handle on his own. Like Mira, Marius longs for familial connection, and his work as a monster hunter will satisfy the thrill of demon hunting for fans the movie. Where's Halmoni? By Julie J. Kim Seattle, WA: Little Bigfoot, 2017. Comics. W...

Review: The Library in the Woods

  The Library in the Woods Written by Calvin Alexander Ramsey Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie Minneapolis, MN : Carolrhoda Books, 2025. Picture Book. I am always intrigued by picture books that tell stories from the past in beautiful and meaningful ways, leaving the reader educated, and also hopeful and inspired. This book definitely did that for me! The cover is a beautiful peek into the story waiting on the pages. Junior and his family have lived on a farm that is having a hard time producing what it needs to for the family to survive economically. The parents make the hard decision to move away from the farm and into the city. Junior misses a lot of things about his life in the country. However, when Junior's friends tell him about a library in the woods, things change for him in the best way! He is amazed by the seemingly endless collection of books, and is eager to check some out for his family. Junior excitedly borrows a few books, including one about a farmer for his dad ...

Review: Tumblebaby

Tumblebaby Written by Adam Rex Illustrated by Audrey Helen Weber New York : Neal Porter Books/Holiday House, 2024. Picture book. I love a funky picture book. Slumbering Tumblebaby rolls out the door and into a wonderfully meandering yarn, thwarting scoundrels and coyotes, scaling unclimbable mountains, and even building a community center in Colorado City. Adam Rex's text reads like a folksy tall tale, punctuated by funny lines and rhyming chants.  Weber's colorful, round illustrations feel a little Fauvist, a little cubist. It's a sort of "Oh, The Places You'll Go!"  but in reverse - we learn in the last few pages that, in fact, that baby was YOU! This revelation made my young son gasp, which made me choke up.  Tumblebaby is a surreal delight perfect for reading together.