NCW Libraries

High school seniors Aristotle and Dante find ways to spend time together despite being at different schools, having to keep their love secret, and nightly news of gay men dying from AIDS.

"The first time she left Freedom, Kansas, behind, she did it by doing everything right. This time, she'll hide from the large Mexican American family welcoming her home and work in secret to break the curse that's erased her magical life. Only by doing it all wrong can Gillian get herself and her two children away from the ghosts of her hometown by summer's end. Nicky Mendoza is an answer to her prayers. He was the practical solution to the problem...

"A child dreams of a life without borders after he and and his parents are forced to leave their home during the Mexican Repatriation"--

The second Christmas after their mother has died, Josefina and her three sisters find that participating in the traditions of Las Posadas helps keep memories of Mamá alive.

"Colin Hancock is giving his second chance his best shot. At 28, he's focused only on walking a straight line - getting his teaching degree, working out at the gym religiously, and avoiding all the places and people that proved so destructive in his earlier life. The last thing he's looking for is a serious relationship. But when Maria Sanchez crosses paths with him on a rainswept night in North Carolina, his plans are upended in a way that will rattle...

Josefina hopes to become a "curandera" or healer like Tía Magdalena, and she is tested just before her tenth birthday when a friend receives a potentially fatal snakebite.

"Little Lobo and his friends are excited for the out-of-this-world book festival that the Guadalupian Library hosts every year! Everyone has a special book they're looking for, but there's so much to see and do first"--

"From award-winning artist John Parra comes a touching and deceptively simple picture book based on his childhood experience about the bond between a father and son, hard work, and the links between nature, art, and creativity. Today is a big day--the first time Juanito gets to help his papi on the job as a landscape architect! Throughout the day, Juanito sketches anything that catches his eye: a nest full of baby birds, a nursery with row upon row...

In the two years since his mother left him with his grandparents in Des Moines, Washington, Sam has avoided making friends and perfected the art of being a slacker, but being paired with a frightening new student for a slam poetry unit transforms his life.

"Celina and her family are bilingual and follow both Mexican and American traditions. Celina revels in her Mexican heritage, but once she starts school it feels like the world wants her to erase that part of her identity. Fortunately, she's got an army of family and three fabulous new friends behind her to fight the ignorance. But it's her Gramma who's her biggest inspiration, encouraging Celina to build a shield of joy around herself. Because when...