More Contemporary Hispanic-American Fiction for Young Readers
Discover engaging contemporary Hispanic-American fiction for young readers with our curated list of top books. Perfect for young minds exploring diverse stories and cultures.
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Honey Blonde Chica
by Michele M. Serros
Evie Gomez, while trying to form her own identity, must decide if she wants to be a fun-loving, high-heeled, blonde-streaked Sangro, or a laid-back surfer chick Flojo, which are two very different worlds. Eve Gomez is one chill chica. She and best friend Raquel hang with the Flojos, A kick-back crew named for their designer flip-flops. and their habit of doing absolutely nothing. But the return of the long-lost amiga major Dee Dee wrecks Evie and Raquel's flojo flow. A few years in Mexico City have transformed their shy, skinny, brunette Dee Dee into a Sangro nightmare. Dee Dee has reinvented herself as "Dela, " complete with tight designer threads, freaky blue contacts, and the signature blonde hair.
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Estrella's Quinceañera
by Malin Alegria
In this touching debut novel, Estrella Alvarez is about to turn 15, and there's nothing her meddling mother and T'a Lucky want more than to throw her a gaudy "quinceaera"--a party that Estrella would rather avoid.
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The Trouble with Tessa
by Ofelia Dumas Lachtman
After Tessa's father inexplicably makes her change her summer plans, she spends the summer wondering what he is hiding, experimenting with magic spells, and making a new friend.
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It's Not about the Accent
by Caridad Ferrer
Caroline Darcy decides to explore--and exploit--her distant Cuban ancestry when she goes away to college, claiming to be half-Cuban, calling herself "Carolina," and dying her blond hair Havana Brown, but soon faces profound consequences.
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The God Box
by Alex Sanchez
In an unforgettable novel, a Lambda Award-winning author tells the story of Paul, a religious high-school senior whose life is turned upside-down when he meets Manuel, who says hes both Christian and gay--two things Paul didnt think could coexist.
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Getting It
by Alex Sanchez
15-year old Carlos Amoroso is a virgin - and he's desperate to change that. The object of his desire is Roxy, who doesn't even know Carlos exists. When he sees a television show where a clueless straight guy gets a makeover from a group of gay men, Carlos wonders if Sal, who's gay, might be able to help him. Even though things with Sal - and Roxy - don't turn out the way Carlos expected, through the course of the makeover Carlos learns about life and love, and finally starts to get it.
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Graffiti Girl
by Kelly Parra
Graffiti art. It's bold. It's thrilling. And it can get a girl into serious trouble.... Raised by her single mom (who's always dating the wrong kind of man) in a struggling California neighborhood, Angel Rodriguez is a headstrong, independent young woman who channels her hopes and dreams for the future into her painting. But when her entry for a community mural doesn't rate, she's heartbroken. Even with winning artist Nathan Ramos—a senior track star and Angel's secret crush—taking a sudden interest in Angel and her art, she's angry and hurt. She's determined to find her own place in the art world, her own way. That's when Miguel Badalin—from the notorious graffiti crew Reyes Del Norte—opens her eyes to an underground world of graf tags and turf wars. She's blown away by this bad boy's fantastic work and finds herself drawn to his dangerous charm. Soon she's running with Miguel's crew, pushing her skills to the limit and beginning to emerge as the artist she always dreamed she could be. But Nathan and Miguel are bitter enemies with a shared past, and choosing between them and their wildly different approaches to life and art means that Angel must decide what matters most before the artist inside of her can truly break free.
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Cinnamon Girl
by Juan Felipe Herrera
Yolanda, a Puerto Rican girl, tries to come to terms with her painful past as she waits to see if her uncle recovers from injuries he suffered when the towers collapsed on September 11, 2001.
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Sister Chicas
by Lisa Alvarado
Three Latina friends--Taina, dreading her quinceañera while hiding her secret Jamaican artist boyfriend from her family; Grachi, torn between duty and her dreams; and Leni, a rebel struggling to make sense of her roots and her growing feelings for a childhood friend--find their friendship with one another sustaining them as they search for their place in life. Original. 50,000 first printing.
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The Truth about Las Mariposas
by Ofelia Dumas Lachtman
When sixteen-year-old Caro Torres goes to help her Tia Matilda at her bed-and-breakfast in Two Sands, California, she ends up also helping her aunt fend off the attempts of her ex-husband to buy the property and steal the treasures that are hidden there.
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Prizefighter en Mi Casa
by e. E. Charlton-Trujillo
Following a car accident that left her with epilepsy, twelve-year-old Chula--with a little help from a visiting fearsome Mexican boxer--tries to deal with the repercussions her new condition has on her family, neighborhood, and school.
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Poe Park
by Agnes Martinez
Enoch Morales's summer gets off to a fantastico start, but as Enoch says, "Just when you think you have it made. It's like, got ya." The summer has barely started when a terrible event upsets Enoch's world. He must either accept the help of family and friends or sink deeper into his own sadness. In this warm and perceptive first novel, love tries its best to triumph in difficult conditions as a high-spirited boy grows up quickly.
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Call Me Henri
by Lorraine López
"In Call me Henri, Enrique, a boy in middle school, faces abuse at home and danger on the streets. Yet he is driven to succeed by the desire to find a better life and is aided in his quest by compassionate teachers. His ambition finds expression in his determination to drop his ESL class in favor of taking French, and so his story begins, "Call me Henri.""--BOOK JACKET.
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Taking Sides
by Gary Soto
"Fourteen-year-old Lincoln Mendoza, an aspiring basketball player, must come to terms with his divided loyalties when he moves from the Hispanic inner city to a white suburban neighborhood" -- Title page verso.
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A Good Place for Maggie
by Ofelia Dumas Lachtman
Sixteen-year-old Maggie Cruz leaves her mother's and stepfather's big city Los Angeles home in order to lead a simpler life in her grandfather's small town house and gains fresh perspective on her life.
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Suckerpunch
by David Hernandez
It's the summer before senior year, and Marcus should be hanging out, filling his sketchbook, maybe asking a girl out for once. So why is he in a car with his brother, his brother's girl, and the pistol, headed straight toward his dad? David Hernandez writes with striking lyricism and unfaltering poise. Suckerpunch marks the debut of a superb and important new literary talent.
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The Brothers Torres
by Coert Voorhees
Frankie Towers has always looked up to his older brother, Steve, and with good reason. Steve is a popular senior who always gets what he wants: girls, a soccer scholarship, and--lately--street cred. Frankie, on the other hand, spends his time shooting off fireworks with his best friend Zach, working at his parents' restaurant, and obsessing about his longtime crush, Rebecca Sanchez. Frankie has reservations about Steve's crusade to win the respect of the local cholos. He doesn’t think about them, though, until he gets into a fist fight John Dalton – the richest, preppiest kid in his New Mexican high school, and longtime nemesis of Steve. After the fight, Steve takes Frankie under his wing – and Frankie’s social currency begins to rise. The cholos who used to ignore him start to recognize him; he even lands a date to Homecoming with Rebecca. The situation with Dalton continues to simmer, and after another incident Steve is bent on retaliating. Frankie starts to think that his brother is taking this respect thing too far. He may have to choose between respecting his brother and respecting himself. In an honest and humorous debut novel, Coert Voorhees uses a coming of age story to look at where loyalty ends and the self begins.
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Love & Lies
by Ellen Wittlinger
Marisol Guzman has deferred college for a year to accomplish two things: She will write a novel and she will fall in love. How hard could that be? She gets her very own apartment (with her high school best friend as roommate) and a waitressing job at a classic Harvard Square coffeehouse. When she enrolls in an adult education class -- "How to Write Your First Novel" -- there are two big surprises waiting for her: John Galardi, aka "Gio," a fellow zine writer who fell head over heels for her last spring (despite the fact that she's a lesbian) and her instructor, Olivia Frost, the most exquisitely beautiful woman she's ever seen. But as Marisol ventures into what seems to be her storybook romance with Olivia, things start to go off track. Between the ups and downs of her new relationship, her strained friendship with Lee (a newly out lesbian who is crushing big-time on Marisol), and her roommate's new boyfriend (who is equally afraid of Marisol and their cat) moving in, Marisol starts losing sight of her goals. Is she too blinded by love to see the lies? In this long-anticipated companion novel to the Printz Honor Book Hard Love, which critics called "A bittersweet tale of self-expression and the struggle to achieve self-love," Ellen Wittlinger offers a novel just as emotionally honest and deeply felt.
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Going Going
by Naomi Shihab Nye
Florrie's favorite coffee shop, with its open mike night, dreamy candles, and cute waiters ... Going? The mysterious little hut selling fresh lemon ice on the west side of town ... Going? The boutique featuring clothes you don't find at the mall, allowing you to look like ... an interesting person ... Going? Individuality. Originality. Quality. Independence. Opportunity. Going, going, gone. What's a girl to do?
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Adios to My Old Life
by Caridad Ferrer
Does a seventeen-year-old from Miami have what it takes to be the next big Latin superstar? And does she really want it? As a talented singer-guitarist with a dream of going pro, AlegrÃa Montero is getting fed up with the endless, boring parade of quinceañeras and other family party gigs. She's longing for something bigger. And Oye Mi Canto—a new reality TV show that's searching for the next Latin superstar—is definitely that. Ali figures she'll never make the cut, but auditioning seems like a good way to get her overprotective father to take her ambitions seriously. To Ali's complete shock, she passes her audition. Next thing she knows, she's dealing with wardrobe fittings, cameras, reporters, vocal coaches, and websites designed by lovestruck fanboys. She's also dealing with jealousy, malice, and sabotage among the contestants, all of which has her wondering: Is it really time to shoot for the stars and try to win the whole competition, or is it time to say "Cut!" and become a normal teenager again?
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Sparrow Hawk Red
by Ben Mikaelsen
Thirteen-year-old Ricky, the Mexican American son of a former Drug Enforcement Agency man, tries to avenge his mother's murder by crossing over into Mexico to steal a high-tech radar plane from drug smugglers.
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Finding Miracles
by Julia Alvarez
Fifteen-year-old Milly Kaufman is an average American teenager until Pablo, a new student at her school, inspires her to search for her birth family in his native country.
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Trino's Choice
by Diane Gonzales Bertrand
Frustrated by his poor financial situation and hoping to impress a smart girl, seventh grader Trino falls in with a bad crowd led by an older teen with a vicious streak.
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Facts of Life
by Gary Soto
Children and teens from all walks of life deal with the dramas of growing up.
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A Crazy Mixed-up Spanglish Day
by Marisa Montes
In Northern California, Maritza Gabriela Morales Mercado struggles to deal with the third grade bully, to control her temper, and to remember to speak Spanish at home and English at school.
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Whatever!
by Diana G. Gallagher
What is Claudia supposed to do when her friend Adam wants to join the Whatever Club? He doesn't play by the club's rules, and he's making everyone miserable. But Claudia doesn't want to lose one of her best friends.
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The Secret Blog of Raisin Rodriguez
by Judy Goldschmidt
In a weblog she sends to her best friends back in Berkeley, seventh-grader Raisin Rodriguez chronicles her successes and her more frequent humiliating failures as she attempts to make friends at her new Philadelphia school.
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The Secret Story of Sonia Rodriguez
by Alan Lawrence Sitomer
Sonia Rodriguez was born in the United States, but her parents are Mexican immigrants who came to California before she was born. Her father has three Social Security numbers, her mother is pregnant (again), and neither of them speak English. Sonia's mother spends most of her time in bed, watching soap operas, and letting Sonia clean up after her brothers. Sonia's father works dutifully to support his family, but he knows that his daughter's dreams are bigger than making tamales for family get-togethers. When Sonia attempts to put school work before her familia, her mother decides that it's time for Sonia to visit her grandmother in Mexico to learn "the ways of the old world." While in Mexico, Sonia spends time with her wise grandmother and her cousin Maria who teach her that while familia is important, the most important thing is to follow your heart. Sonia returns to the States determined to succeed in school, but the birth of her new twin siblings, inappropriate advances from her drunk uncle (Drunkle), and a forbidden relationship with an El Salvadorian boy push school to the back burner. If only Sonia can find the time to cook dinner, secretly meet with her boyfriend, avoid her Drunkle, AND finish her homework, she just might be able to graduate from high school...
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Melonhead
by Katy Kelly
In the Washington, D.C. neighborhood of Capitol Hill, Lucy Rose's friend Adam "Melonhead" Melon, a budding inventor with a knack for getting into trouble, enters a science contest that challenges students to recycle an older invention into a new invention.
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Behind the Eyes
by Francisco X. Stork
Sixteen-year-old Hector is the hope of his family, but when he seeks revenge after his brother's gang-related death and is sent to a San Antonio reform school, it takes an odd assortment of characters to help him see that hope is still alive.
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Fat Hoochie Prom Queen
by Nico Medina
Madge Diaz and her long-time rival, student-body president Bridget Benson, make a drunken agreement that whoever is named prom queen will rule the school, and the other has to back off for good, leading to a no-holds-barred popularity contest.
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Accidental Love
by Gary Soto
The award-winning author of "Baseball in April and Other Stories" deftly captures all the angst, expectation, and humor that comes with first love in this swift, lighthearted romance.
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Billy
by Laura Roybal
Billy, a sixteen-year-old boy who becomes reunited with the family he was kidnapped from by his natural father six years earlier, tries to sort out his identity.
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Riding the Universe
by Gaby Triana
ChloÉ Rodriguez values three things above all else—her family; her best friend, Rock; and Lolita, her Harley-Davidson 1200 Sportster. With a black body, blue airbrushed flames, and perfect sloping ape hangers, Lolita is ChloÉ's last connection to her beloved uncle, Seth, who left her the bike when he died last summer. So when a failing chemistry grade threatens to separate ChloÉ from her motorcycle, she vows not to let that happen . . . no matter what. Enter Gordon. Ridiculously organized, Übersmart, and hot in a casual, doesn't-know-it kind of way, ChloÉ's peer tutor may have a thing or two to teach her besides chemistry. But she has to stop falling for Gordon . . . and get Rock to act mature whenever he's around . . . and pass chemistry so she doesn't lose Lolita forever. Just when ChloÉ thinks she's got it all figured out, a bump in the road comes out of nowhere and sends her skidding.
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Wild Girl
by Patricia Reilly Giff
When twelve-year-old Lidie leaves Brazil to join her father and brother on a horse ranch in New York, she has a hard time adjusting to her changed circumstances, as does a new horse that has come to the ranch.
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Something Wicked's in Those Woods
by Marisa Montes
When their parents are killed in an accident, eleven-year-old Javier and his younger brother leave their home in Puerto Rico to go live with their aunt in Northern California, where a ghost from an unsolved crime and Javi's new-found psychokinetic powers make their adjustment all the harder.