The distinct rhythm of Latine music and culture hums through this vibrant verse collection.
Seventeen authors, including highly recognizable names and newer voices, celebrate Latine culture and music in verse.
In her introduction, editor and contributor Salazar describes this work as “a playlist of stories, about music, for music, because of music, through the music of poetry.” The collection spans a range of poetic styles, geographical locations, and time periods. The authors represent distinct cultural and ethnic backgrounds and include Indigenous and Afro-Latine writers and those with ties to Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Costa Rica. The theme of music as a cultural gift enjoyed via dances, songs, and instruments passed down from the ancestors forms a throughline. Latine musical legends past and present, like Ricky Martin, Selena, and Bad Bunny, are given their moments to shine. Standouts include the poignant “Ala’s Song” by Ari Tison (Bribri)—“…I sing words I know are older than me. / Words as old as flowers. / I pick them like a bouquet. / Weave them together in my heart”—and the moving “Altagracia’s Saturday Surprise” by Jasminne Mendez—“…when I hold Juliana’s guitar in my hands / it’s like pouring water on thirsty soil / and I know making music / is something I need.” In these stories, music works as a balm to heal or overcome family issues as well as to help people discover and remember who they really are.
The distinct rhythm of Latine music and culture hums through this vibrant verse collection. (contributor bios) (Verse anthology. 8-12)Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2026
ISBN: 9780593617151
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: July 6, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2026
The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans—are as often...
A successful juvenile by the beloved New Yorker writer portrays a farm episode with an imaginative twist that makes a poignant, humorous story of a pig, a spider and a little girl.
Young Fern Arable pleads for the life of runt piglet Wilbur and gets her father to sell him to a neighbor, Mr. Zuckerman. Daily, Fern visits the Zuckermans to sit and muse with Wilbur and with the clever pen spider Charlotte, who befriends him when he is lonely and downcast. At the news of Wilbur's forthcoming slaughter, campaigning Charlotte, to the astonishment of people for miles around, spins words in her web. "Some Pig" comes first. Then "Terrific"—then "Radiant". The last word, when Wilbur is about to win a show prize and Charlotte is about to die from building her egg sac, is "Humble". And as the wonderful Charlotte does die, the sadness is tempered by the promise of more spiders next spring.
The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans—are as often informative as amusing, and the whole tenor of appealing wit and pathos will make fine entertainment for reading aloud, too.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 1952
ISBN: 978-0-06-026385-0
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1952
PERSPECTIVES
SEEN & HEARD
Telgemeier’s bold colors, superior visual storytelling, and unusual subject matter will keep readers emotionally engaged and...
Catrina narrates the story of her mixed-race (Latino/white) family’s move from Southern California to Bahía de la Luna on the Northern California coast.
Dad has a new job, but it’s little sister Maya’s lungs that motivate the move: she has had cystic fibrosis since birth—a degenerative breathing condition. Despite her health, Maya loves adventure, even if her lungs suffer for it and even when Cat must follow to keep her safe. When Carlos, a tall, brown, and handsome teen Ghost Tour guide introduces the sisters to the Bahía ghosts—most of whom were Spanish-speaking Mexicans when alive—they fascinate Maya and she them, but the terrified Cat wants only to get herself and Maya back to safety. When the ghost adventure leads to Maya’s hospitalization, Cat blames both herself and Carlos, which makes seeing him at school difficult. As Cat awakens to the meaning of Halloween and Day of the Dead in this strange new home, she comes to understand the importance of the ghosts both to herself and to Maya. Telgemeier neatly balances enough issues that a lesser artist would split them into separate stories and delivers as much delight textually as visually. The backmatter includes snippets from Telgemeier’s sketchbook and a photo of her in Día makeup.
Telgemeier’s bold colors, superior visual storytelling, and unusual subject matter will keep readers emotionally engaged and unable to put down this compelling tale. (Graphic fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-545-54061-2
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2016
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