September 15 – October 15 is Hispanic Heritage Month. In honor of the National Month, I have collected my recommendations of 7 Hispanic Heritage Month Books for Teens you can add to your classroom library. I also challenge you to read them yourself.
In the first school I ever taught, I had classes of almost 100% Hispanic teens. I wish I could say that at the time I actively looked for books for my students to read that had Hispanic characters, but I didn’t. We read very few books with diverse characters. It is something that I regret. But I am trying to do better. If I were to go back and redo those first few years, the literature I chose to read in class would be completely different.
The following list of books ranges from myth to horror. Fiction to non-fiction. And covers Latinx culture across Central and South America. The stories take place in the past and in the Dystopian future. There really is something for everyone.
1. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Part mystery, part gothic horror story. Can Noemí save her cousin’s life before her husband succeeds in killing her? A beautiful mansion in the Mexican countryside hides dark secrets. With strange dreams and visions, Noemi is forced to stay. Will she survive this curse that haunts this house as well?
2. Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
Camila is a soccer powerhouse helping her team qualify for the South American tournament. However, her parents don’t know she plays fútbol and she needs their permission. Will her abusive father allow her to go after her dreams?
3. Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
When Papi Rios’s plane doesn’t land Camino and Yahaira’s lives are changed. They are forced to face their father’s, who was their hero, secrets. But one lives in New York and the other lives in the Dominican Republic. These two half-sisters lose their father but find each other in their search for truth.
4. Charlie Hernández and the League of Shadows by Ryan Calejo
Charlie loves the myths and folklore of his Latin American Heritage. Suddenly he experiences manifestations and is swept into a world where the monsters he knows from Hispanic folklore have come to life. Now it is up to Charlie and his friend Violet to save the Land of the Living from La Mano Negra (The Black Hand). I am super excited for this series because of its connection to mythology!
5. Path to the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist by Sylvia Acevedo
Sylvia’s life was changed when she joined the Brownies after growing up in a traditional Mexican-American family. Sylvia’s love of numbers and Girl Scouts helped her to make her own path, defy her family’s expectations of her, and become a rocket scientist for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
6. Sanctuary by Paola Mendoza and Abby Sher
Vali is an undocumented immigrant in the Dystopian future of 2032, where all citizens are chipped and tracked. On the run, Vali and her family try to make it to California, a sanctuary state, that is being walled off from the rest of the country. Will they make it to safety before it is too late?
7. I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez
Julia is not like her sister Olga. She wants to leave home after high school and go to college. When Olga dies unexpectedly, Julia discovers that her sister wasn’t perfect either. Julia continues to have conflicts with her parents who end up sending her to stay with family in Mexico hoping her behavior will change.
Check out these great titles of Hispanic Teens that are a perfect addition to any High School ELA classroom!
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