Tag Archives: 2014 reading challenge

Apr 4 2014

2014 Reading Challenge: March

We continue to be blown away by the number of books being read each month by participants of our 2014 Latin@s in Kid Lit Challenge. Thank you to everyone for participating in the challenge and purposely selecting books by/about/for Latin@s. Remember, you can join the challenge any time during the year, and you’re not required to review–only read and enjoy! If you do post a review somewhere, we will link it to the book covers below. If you choose not to review, we will link the covers to Goodreads. This month, we’d like to stand up and applaud Elisabeth Ellison and Cecelia Cackley for their vigorous reading (13 books total!) And since April is National Poetry Month, we suggest you try some novels in verse this month!

A note to participants: As you complete books, please send us the information, so we can share what you’re reading each month.

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Mar 4 2014

2014 Reading Challenge: February

February was a great month for our 2014 Reading Challenge. What a great mix of titles from award winners to debut novels, such as Bird by Crystal Chan and The Secret Side of Empty by Maria E. Andreu. Thank you to everyone for participating in the challenge and purposely selecting books by/about/for Latin@s. We even had a few newcomers this month, which is awesome! It’s never to late to join this fiesta! Also, remember that you’re not required to review the books you read. If you do post a review somewhere, we will link it to the book covers below. If you choose not to review, we will link the covers to Goodreads. This month, we have to give a special shout-out to Crystal Brunelle, who is a co-blogger at Rich in Color. She has already read 15 titles! WOW! We can’t wait to see what everyone reads next!

A note to participants: As you complete books, please send us the information, so we can share what you’re reading each month.

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Feb 6 2014

2014 Reading Challenge: January

We are one month into our Latin@s in Kid Lit Reading Challenge, and our participants have completed an awesome array of books! Below are the covers, which link to any reviews written. Some people have chosen to read and not review (which is fine). In these cases, when you click on the cover, you will go to the book’s general Goodreads page. Have fun browsing the books below. Maybe you’ll even add a few to your own TBR list!

A note to participants: As you complete books, please send us the information, so we can share what you’re reading each month.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns (Fire and Thorns, #1)   Maximilian & the Mystery of the Guardian Angel: A Bilingual Lucha Libre Thriller  Death, Dickinson, and the Demented Life of Frenchie Garcia  The Knife and the Butterfly  The Wild Book  The Vicious Deep (The Vicious Deep #1)  Fat Angie   Marcelo in the Real World  The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind   Colibri   Yes! We Are Latinos!   Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match / Marisol McDonald no combina   My Abuelita   Dear Primo: A Letter to My Cousin   Moony Luna/Luna, lunita lunera   What Can You Do with a Rebozo?   Everybody Cooks Rice (Picture Books)   Parrots Over Puerto Rico   A Leaf Can Be . . . (Millbrook Picture Books)

Also, since February is Black History Month, we propose a challenge within a challenge. This month, try to read a book by/for/about Afro-Latin@s. Here are some suggestions:

Pele, King of Soccer/Pele, El rey del futbol     Celia Cruz, Queen of Salsa     Grandma's Gift     Grandma's Records     Me Llamo Celia/My Name Is Celia: La Vida de Celia Cruz/The Life Of Celia Cruz     The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano     Secret Saturdays     Marisol and Magdalena   Efrain's Secret

Jan 13 2014

To Be Accurate in Writing, Recognize Truth While Reading

By Cindy L. Rodriguez

As a reading teacher, I often tell my students that the best way to become a better reader is to…wait for it…read. Seems obvious, right? And, of course, the best way to become a better writer is to write. After all, the more you write, the more you produce, the more you learn about writing and about yourself as a writer, and the more you improve.

During our “Road to Publishing” series, we focused on the writing process because, let’s face it, if the writing doesn’t get done, you’re not going to finish your book and become a published author. But, today we want to stress that to become a better writer, you also need to read. A lot.

This may seem obvious to many of us, since most writers I know buy more books than they could ever possibly read in a lifetime, but I’m thinking of my students and other young people who may become future novelists. I often hear students separate reading and writing, as in,”I like to read, but I hate to write” or “I love to write, but I hate to read.”

In response, I offer this quote from a text I use with my college composition students: “Reading and writing function much like breathing in & breathing out. They are inextricably linked” (McQuade/Atwan).

To be a better writer, you must read. Obviously, you read to do the necessary research, and you read within your genre to know what’s been done and what’s popular. But at some point, you’ll also start to read as a writer.

I was always an avid reader, but once I started to write a novel, I read books differently. Of course, at times, I just want to relax and escape and enjoy a good book. Oftentimes, though, I now read as a writer. I notice the structure of the work, vivid descriptions, great dialogue, and chapter endings that keep me reading. I underline beautifully crafted phrases and catch when someone is telling instead of showing. I also wonder if telling is fine in that moment or if my editor would have marked it with a note.

Reading and writing are linked, no question. And, since this is a place where we celebrate and highlight Latin@s in kid lit, I’ll further suggest that if you plan to write Latin@, then you should read Latin@, too. Every conference session I’ve attended or blog post I’ve read about diversity in children’s literature has emphasized the importance of being accurate and respectful when writers venture into territory outside their personal experiences. To be accurate and respectful in your writing, you have to recognize truth and respect while you read.

Part of our site’s mission is to promote literacy and the love of books within the Latin@ community and to encourage interest in Latin@ children’s, MG, and YA literature among non-Latin@ readers. In other words, we want everyone to read and write more Latin@ Lit. To support this, we are adding to our book lists, hosting a year-long reading challenge, and highlighting certain titles in our new weekly feature called “Libros Latin@s.”

Whether you’re reading for research, pleasure, or to become a better writer, we encourage you to add some Latin@ titles to your TBR list this year.

Here are some of the books we’re reading:

Mexican WhiteBoy     La Linea     Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Secret Saturdays     Confetti Girl     Under the Mesquite

What are you reading?

Jan 6 2014

A New Year = New Goals and Features

Happy New Year, Feliz Año Nuevo, Feliz Ano Novo from Latin@s in Kid Lit!

We’re excited to begin our first full year online. With this new year, we have added features and ambitious personal goals. First, though, let’s recap our last few months.

We launched on Sept. 16,2013,  to coincide with National Hispanic Heritage Month. Since then, we have published 20 posts, which included our “Road to Publishing” series, guest posts, and Q&As.

We gave away 12 awesome books during our 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway, and we’ve had more than 4,000 hits from visitors all over the world. Our top 10 countries are: U.S., Canada, Philippines,UK, Netherlands, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Uruguay, Spain, and Ireland. Our single best day was when we posted a Q&A with illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal, and our most popular post overall was about our 2014 Reading Challenge.

The Reading Challenge will be a year-long project. We’ll check-in on our participants and post links to reviews of books by/for/about Latin@s. So far, we have 22 official participants, although many others have spread the word and given us positive feedback. We’d love for more people to join us, which you can do any time during the year.

We were planning to craft a post about why it’s so important to support diversity in kid lit not only in general, but specifically through our purchasing and reading choices. But, then Kayla Whaley did it so well, we reblogged her post. If you haven’t read it, you should. She makes the point so well. We can SAY we support diversity in kid lit, but we should also DO something about it. What we all can do is be more conscious of what we buy, borrow from the library, read, and review/share.

To further celebrate Latin@ kid lit, we are adding a new feature on Thursdays called “Libros Latin@s.” These will be “book talks” of children’s, middle grade, and young adult books that are written by or feature Latin@s. The book talks will include: information about the book and author, teaching tips, Lexile level (if available), other books by the author, and links for more information.

Sujei Lugo, our newest member and a children’s book specialist, will handle the picture book “book talks.” She is also beefing up our Children’s Book Lists with English, Spanish, and bilingual titles. Because of her additions, we have split the category into two sections! We encourage authors, editors, and publishers to alert us about titles we should add to any of the lists.

In addition to working on the site, we each also have personal and professional goals. Here they are:

Yoda WisdomZoraida: In 2014 my motto is “Do or do not, there is no try.” It’s a reminder to myself to do my very best. Plus, wisdom from Yoda never hurt anyone. I’m going out with an adult contemporary romance proposal, as well as a YA urban fantasy that centers around a family of Brujas. If there is time (*has a Jesse Spano moment*) I want to revisit the first YA I ever wrote, about a rebellious Ecuadorian girl who turns her quinceañera upside down.

Then there’s the non-writing stuff: have a six pack (the ab kind, not the beer kind), go to the beach, visit Disney for my birthday, learn to play the ukulele (I already bought one), make more art (the painting kind), and you know, fall in love.

Also, Zoraida’s The Vast and Brutal Sea (The Vicious Deep 3) comes out July 1, 2014!

Stephanie: My resolution is to write a picture book for my daughter.

Ashley: Writing goal: take 15 minutes a day to plant and water seeds for novel #4. Personal goal: cook a wider variety of foods (using menus from “The Fresh 20”). Academic goal:  finish and defend my dissertation.

Cindy: Writing: I will do whatever’s needed to support my debut novel, which will be in production this year! I’ll also revise my second book and get it ready for submission. Reading: I’ll read 12 or more Latin@ kid lit books and as many debuts from the OneFour KidLit crew and ARCs from the Fearless Fifteeners. Personal: I’d like to lose 10-20 pounds, and as Zoraida said, you know, fall in love.

Lila: My resolutions are to finish the middle-grade novel I’m working on, to read 12 or more Latin@ kid lit books, and to lose ten pounds. Guess which will be toughest?

Quote for 2014

Best wishes to everyone this new year! May you reach all your goals and may all your dreams come true!

Dec 12 2013

JOIN OUR 2014 READING CHALLENGE!

2014 Reading Challenge

A year ago, The New York Times wrote about the lack of Latin@ literature in classrooms, which leaves the youngest members of the largest ethnic or racial minority in the U.S. with little chance to “see themselves in books.” The School Library Journal countered that the literature is there but needs to be promoted.

We believe both statements and would like to see more all around, meaning: more Latin@ children’s literature on bookshelves and in libraries and classrooms, more titles by and for Latin@s on year-end “Best of” lists and best-seller lists, more people buying, reading, and writing about Latin@ children’s literature.

We cannot control publishing and marketing, but we can read and write about Latin@s in children’s literature. So, as the new year approaches, we invite you to participate in our 2014 Reading Challenge. This would be a great way to diversify your reading lists and support already established and emerging writers who include Latin@s in their books. One of the best ways to express that diversity in kid lit is important is to buy, read, and write about these titles.

Here are the Guidelines:

  • This challenge will run from January 1, 2014-December 31, 2014.
  • Anyone can join! You don’t have to be a book blogger. WordPress doesn’t accept anything that uses JavaScript, so we can’t use a linky list. If you want to participate: post somewhere that you are joining the 2014 Latin@s in Kid Lit Reading Challenge, sign up in the comments, and include a direct link to your announcement. Copy and paste our reading challenge logo onto your site. If you don’t have a site, you can spread the word on Facebook, Twitter, or any other way.
  • The goal is one book per month. You may post reviews on GoodReads (use a shelf dedicated to 2014 Latin@s in Kid Lit Reading Challenge), Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Facebook, or wherever else you post your reviews. Again, link back to the challenge. Each month, we will check up on participants, but you can also send a direct link to our email at: latinosinkidlit@gmail.com whenever you read and review a book. We will have a monthly round-up post that lists all reviews available online.
  • Re-reads and crossovers from other challenges are fine.
  • You may select books as you go.
  • You can join at anytime during the year.  Any books you have read in 2014 can be added.
  • Prizes will be given to those who stick with it through the year!
  • Any format, level (children’s, MG, or YA), or  genre is welcome. The book, however, must be written by a Latin@ author and/or include Latin@ characters, settings, themes, etc.

“How will I find such books?” you ask.

“No problemo,” we say. Here are some suggestions:

Also, these titles were on “Best of” 2013 lists:

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina; SLJ, Kirkus

From Norvelt to Nowhere by Jack Gantos: PW

Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario, Kirkus

Death, Dickinson, and the Demented Life of Frenchie Garcia by Jenny Torres Sanchez, Kirkus

Niño Wrestles the World written and illustrated by Yuyi Morales, Horn

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson, Kirkus

If you’re like us, then you will be reading anyway because you’re a person who loves books and children’s literature, in particular. Why not challenge yourself to add some Latin@ literature to your TBR pile? We hope you join us!