National Hispanic Heritage Month (NHHM) is observed every year from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 to celebrate the culture, achievements and contributions of Latino communities. This month, we are celebrating Latino literature on NHHM by spotlighting five enchanting books from five talented Latino authors.
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz
From the beloved Aristotle and Dante series, “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe” is the first book of the series by Mexican-American author Benjamin Alire Saenz. Set in 1987 in El Paso, Texas, Dante and Aristotle, also known as Ari, are two polar opposite teenage boys who meet and almost immediately develop a deep, special bond with each other. Throughout the story, both boys embark on a journey filled with self-discovery. Despite the many obstacles presented to them, both boys have each other and believe in one another to overcome these challenges. Earlier this month, the movie adaptation of this novel hit movie theaters on Sept. 8, 2023. Directed by Aitch Alberto, it has an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Saenz’s coming-of-age romance novel has won multiple awards including the Stonewall Book Award for LGBT Fiction in 2013 and Pura Belpré Narrative Medal for Latino fiction in 2013. Audiences give this magical novel a rating of 4.3/5 on Goodreads.
Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
The young adult contemporary-based novel “Clap When You Land” is written by Dominican-American poet and writer Elizabeth Acevedo. From New York City, Teenage girl Camino Rios is extremely excited for summer because of her annual travel to the Dominican Republic. However, sudden tragedy strikes when her mother tells her the most shocking, tragic news of her life. Not only does this completely ruin her entire plans for the summer but also her whole life completely becomes forever altered. Throughout the story, Rios deals with grief, forgiveness and love that ultimately help her shape her life. Acevedo won multiple awards such as The Goodreads Choice Award for Best Young Adult Fiction in 2020 and two Audie Awards for both Multi-voiced Performance and Young Adult in 2021. Audiences have reviewed this realistic fiction novel with a rating of 4.2/5 on Goodreads.
Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan
An inspiring story from riches to rags set after the Mexican Revolution in the 1930s, “Esperanza Rising” is a classic historical fiction novel by Mexican-American author Pam Muñoz Ryan. It tells the story of a young Mexican girl, Esperanza Ortega, who has to face multiple hardships and changes from her luxurious lifestyle to her and her mama, Ramona Ortega, being forced to flee Mexico to California to settle down in a camp for Mexican farm workers. Throughout the story, Esperanza must learn how to constantly deal with these sudden changes and hardships and persevere through them, hopefully leading her to the better future she long yearns for. This inspiring story won multiple awards such as the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award for Book for Older Children in 2001 and the Pura Belpré Award for Writing in 2002. Audiences reviewed this realistic fiction novel with a rating of 4/5 on Goodreads.
Eva Luna by Isabel Allende
Inspired by her own experiences concerning the realism behind womanhood, Chilean feminist, philanthropist and novelist Isabel Allende Llona crafted the enchanting tale of “Eva Luna.” Beyond just being a poor orphan and servant, Eva Luna is a girl filled with dreams along with her extraordinary gift of storytelling. Luna recalls all of her experiences throughout her life in the complexities of the South American nation dealing with growing up, love, grief, and poverty through her work as a writer. Throughout her life, she also meets significant characters such as her Middle Eastern friend, Riad Halabí who takes her in his home and who she sees as a fatherly figure and her long-time pretty criminal of a friend, Huberto Naranjo, who guides her as a brotherly figure, both of whom play a crucial part in the story of her life. Allende’s magical realism novel was awarded the American Book Award in 1989 and audiences reviewed this literary fiction novel with a 3.9/5 rating on Goodreads.
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez
In a novel dealing with conflicts of yearning for both love and solitude, “Cien Años de Soledad,” or in English, “One Hundred Years of Solitude” is written by Nobel Prize in Literature winner Gabriel García Márquez, a Colombian short-story writer, screenwriter, journalist and novelist. This magical realism fantasy tells the story of many complex fortunes and misfortunes of the seven generations of the Buendía family living in the fictional town of Macondo, Columbia, along with the chaotic, postcolonial history of Latin America from the 1820s to the 1920s. Besides this novel helping Márquez become an internationally famous figure in literature, this story has won countless awards including the French award, Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger, or in English, Best Foreign Book Prize, in 1969 and the Rómulo Gallegos Prize in 1972. Audiences reviewed this classic historical fiction novel with a 4.1/5 on Goodreads.
