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Alexander McCall Smith, Authors, Brandon Skyhorse, Jaime Becerra, Kathy Cano-Murillo, Matthew Munoz, Rebecca Skloot, Summer reads for adults, T. Soli

Toes in the Sand, Nose in a Book

Mona Alvarado Frazier

This catchy byline is the title for Border’s summer book list. Now if we could just find the time to read the entire list and have the money to buy all the books. Since that’s not happening for most of us, let’s see what we can do with a shortage of time and money.
The following books are award winners, an Oprah pick, or on Amazon’s four and five starred review list. There are multi-cultural characters and settings that will take you from Bakersfield to Vietnam. Genres include adventure, biography, thriller, romance, and non-fiction. Best of all they are under $12 and two of them are available for e-reading devices.

Every night is Ladies Night by Michael Jaime Becerra. A humorous and poignant story collection by a writer who observes with great skill, leading him to portray ordinary scenes in the ongoing human drama. (Booklist)
What you see in the Dark by Matthew Munoz: In 1959, the Director (i.e., Alfred Hitchcock) arrives in Bakersfield, Calif., to film Psycho, along with the Actress (Janet Leigh). Providing counterpoint to the events surrounding the making of the iconic Hollywood film, including the search for a motel to serve as the exterior of the Bates Motel, is the story of locals Dan Watson and Teresa Garza, whose doomed love affair ends in murder. (Booklist)
Miss Scarlet’s School of Patternless Sewing by Kathy Cano-Murillo. The founder of popular http://www.craftychica.com pens her second Crafty Chica novel. Scarlet Santana has abandoned a promising engineering career to follow her passion for sewing. Cano-Murillo manages to extract much mirth from her cast of craftsters, each striving to transcend restrictive patterns in life and to defeat family expectations that are squelching self-expression. (Kirkus)

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. A fascinating story of medicine and family. Henrietta Lacks died from an aggressive cancer at the age of 30 in 1951. A sample of her cancerous tissue, taken without her consent, turned out to provide one of the holy grails of mid-century biology. (Amazon)
The Double Comfort Safari Club by Alexander McCall Smith. The new installment in Smith’s bestselling series finds Mma Ramotswe traveling to the north of Botswana to visit a safari lodge, where there have been several unexplained and troubling events–including the demise of one of the guests. (Amazon)
Madonna’s of Echo Park by Brandon Skyhorse. Echo Park, the LA neighborhood down the hill from Chavez Ravine, is the setting for this novel-in-stories—a vivid portrayal of the lives of Mexican Americans who live and work there. Skyhorse weaves his characters—migrant farm workers, gardeners, dishwashers, bus drivers, house cleaners, gang members—in and out of his stories in various time frames. (Booklist)
The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli. A unique debut novel that follows an American female combat photographer in the Vietnam War as she captures the wrenching chaos and finds herself torn 
between the love of two men.(Amazon)

There are tons of books out there for equal or less prices at swap.com, .99¢ Store, used book stores and for free (library). There is no excuse to relax and get your read on. So put your toes in the sand, your nose in a book, and don’t forget the sunblock.

Amada Irma Perez, Americas Award Books, Books, Summer reads for children

Summer Reads for Children

Mona Alvarado Frazier
Studies show that children who read four or more books over the summer fare better on reading-
comprehension tests in the fall than their peers who read one or no books.

Here are some Américas Award book recipients, given in recognition of U.S. works of fiction or poetry published in English or Spanish that authentically portray Latin America, the Caribbean, or Latinos in the United States. The National Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs (CLASP) sponsors the award. These recipients rated excellent in: 1) distinctive literary quality; 2) cultural contextualization; 3) exceptional integration of text, illustration and design; and 4) potential for classroom use.

Clemente! by Willie Perdomo, 2010. This is a tribute to a man considered by many to be one of the finest baseball players ever–Roberto Clemente. A little boy who is the son of the president of “The Greatest Fans of Roberto Clemente Club, Boogie-down Bronx chapter,” tells the book in the first person. The story illustrates how this outstanding athlete lived his life amidst discrimination and troubles. His life had a tragic ending when the plane he was on, bound for Nicaraguan earthquake victims, crashed and disappeared.

 The Dreamer by Pam Muñoz Ryan. Inspired by the life of Chilean poet, Pablo Neruda, the book’s prose is dream-like and lyrical. This is a wonderful introduction to the early life and work of Neruda. The main character, Neftali Reyes (Neruda’s real name), is a lonely boy with a stuttering problem. He is a child who experiences the world differently than most, and who is criticized by his domineering father for “foolishness.” Though written for children, it is a story readers of all ages will find engaging.

 My Diary from Here to There by Amada Irma Perez, Illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzales, Children’s Book Press, 2009. This Ventura County author also wrote “My Very Own Room,” a Tomas Rivera Award winner and Américas Honor Award and “Nana’s Big Surprise.”   http://tiny.cc/rsjzk 


“My Diary from Here to There” is inspired by the author’s childhood and explores her feelings as she leaves Juarez, Mexico for Los Angeles. Her five brothers are excited but she has some concerns, which she keeps to herself in her journal. Her father tells her, “You are stronger than you think,” but Amada isn’t so sure. In this emotional journey, she discovers her strength, as well as a way to keep friends and relatives back in Mexico “in my memories and in my heart.” Any child who has moved and left a best friend or neighborhood can relate to this story. The book is beautifully illustrated and is bilingual.

You can find other award winning books at your local library. Better yet, take your child for an afternoon of browsing through the shelves of your favorite bookstore or the library. Make it enjoyable and make it a summer of reading.