Celebrating literature for, by, and about Latinas
 

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to highlight and celebrate the books and voices of latina writers and readers.

 
 
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NYCBOOKOWL

Happy Wednesday everyone! I hope you’re having a wonderful week! 😊It’s been a little while but I wanted to share some of the book spoils from my recent trip to Albany📚 • I picked these books up from my favorite of the four stores we visited, the Dove & Hudson, a cozy and well curated used bookstores that had an incredible history, philosophy and policial science section that made me drool 🤤 • We also inadvertent stumbled into the store during their 30th anniversary sale and got to chat with the owner who was really nice and recommended other great bookstores in the Hudson River area, including one that is located in a refurbished farm! Unfortunately it was closed while we were there but I definitely plan on going back! . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #bookporn #booklover #vscobooks #booknerd #bookish #booklove #bookhaul #booknerdigans #indiebookstore #unitedbookstagram #bookaddict #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
Happy Monday everyone! Where did the weekend go? 😦I feel really lucky that at work there are a lot of fellow book lovers always up for a chat about what they’re reading. For the summer, one of my colleagues even organizes a book club and this time she choose: Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng which follows the Lee family in the aftermath of the death of their favorite child Lydia, as well as flashbacks to events leading up to her sudden death. I just finished it this weekend and oh boy, I have all the feelings! • Time for an unpopular opinion: I couldn’t really get into Little Fires Everywhere🔥. I started reading it when it came out and it just didn’t hook me, it felt very slow and meticulous. I put it down vowing to return to it one day. What was interesting to me was that Everything I Never Told you is very similar in this regard, but for some reason this one DID work for me. I appreciated Ng weaving meditations on assimilation, racism, interracial relationships and parental and gender expectations throughout the narrative. Perhaps it is because all of these issues are particularly important to me that I enjoyed this story more, BUT I also think that the mystery fan🕵🏽‍♀️ in me was intrigued enough by the question of what happened to Lydia to keep turning pages until the end. Overall I think Ng has won me over and the think it might be time to give Little Fires Everywhere another chance. • Have you ever put a book down by an author only to find that another one of their books resonates with you? . . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #weneeddiversebooks #booklover #vscobooks #everythinginevertoldyou #bookish #celesteng #instabooks #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #flowers #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
Happy Wednesday everyone! I’m back, slightly sunburned and tired but happy 😊 also I picked up more books than I was expecting during my trip to Albany 😅 • I think I’ve mentioned it before but one of my absolute favorite things to do when traveling is to visit locals bookstores, chat with the book sellers and browse the local history, staff recs or local author section. 🤓I think it’s a really fun way to learn about a place your are visiting and find books you might not otherwise come across. • Our first bookstore stop was this super cozy and well stocked indie called Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza they had the comfiest couches and an adorable kids section too. I had to be dragged out of this one otherwise I would have happily spent the whole afternoon browsing ☺️You can see more pics of the stores saved in my highlights! Do you have any things you like to do when traveling? . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #albany #booklover #vscobooks #booknerd #bookish #booklove #instabooks #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #independentbookstore #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #indiebookstore #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
Happy hump day! I wish the day was as bright as these flowers but here we are 🌧 • I feel like I’ve started so many books recently but haven’t finished one in a while. I generally have 3-4 books that I have started but switch between them depending on my mood, which sometimes means it takes me forever to finally finish a book. Other times if I’m really absorbed in a book I will drop everything else and just focus on that one. Are you a book monogamist or a do you read multiple books at once? . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #booksandflowers #bookporn #booklover #vscobooks #booknerd #booksandcoffee #booklove #coffee #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #bookaddict #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
Happy Sunday everyone! I’m kind of sad that the weekend is over but I am so glad I got a chance to enjoy a mini vacation with my family and that the weather was absolutely gorgeous! ☀️ • We went to the beach, stumbled upon a library book sale and ate all the things🙌🏽 what a great way to kick off the summer! Can’t wait to go back to this wonderful reading spot🏖 what are your summer reading plans? . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #summerreading #booklover #vscobooks #booksonthebeach #bookish #booklove #instabooks #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #bookaddict #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
Happy Saturday everyone! I hope you’re having a great weekend! I am finally awake, fully caffeinated and ready to read🙌🏽 • And now because of my inability to leave @strandbookstore empty handed I have plenty more to read! Check out my IG stories to see exactly what books I ended up with. • Oh boy, I really need to go on a book buying ban. Ok I am going to another event/bookstore tonight but after that I really should go on a book buying ban 😅 • Have you ever gone on a book buying ban? Give me all your tips! 🙏🏽 . . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #nyc #bookhaul #booklover #vscobooks #booknerd #indiebookstore #booklove #instabooks #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #coffee #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
I hope everyone is doing well in this gorgeous Tuesday!☀️ • So Memorial Day weekend kinda snuck up on me, I completely forgot about the three day weekend! 😱 I am so excited and hope to get a lot of reading done. In the mean time I can day dream about the lazy Saturday morning I plan on spending like this. • Do you have any reading plans for Memorial Day weekend? . . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #bookporn #booklover #vscobooks #booknerd #bookish #booklove #instabooks #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #coffee #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #booksandcoffee #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
Happy Monday 😴☕️ everyone! Summer has finally arrived in NYC and I am sooo excited for this iced coffee weather!🙌🏽 • Did you know that May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month? What better way to celebrate than by reading Asian American and Pacific Islander authors? 📚There are plenty of incredible Asian and Pacific Islander authors who write fiction that I absolutely love but for some reason, this year I've been drawn to non-fiction and when I saw the synopsis for this book I knew I had to request it from the library, and my hold finally came in! • Synopsis: Ghosts of Gold Mountain: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad by Gordon H. Chang. In this groundbreaking account, award-winning scholar Gordon H. Chang draws on unprecedented research to recover the Chinese railroad workers’ stories and celebrate their role in remaking America. An invaluable correction of a great historical injustice, The Ghosts of Gold Mountain returns these “silent spikes” to their rightful place in our national saga. • I remember learning about Chinese laborers working on the Transcontinental Railroad in High School 🚂It was a footnote on a paragraph and that was it. I felt baffled since it was clearly an incredible story especially given hostile context of the later Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and wanted to know more. I am so happy that on the 150th anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad, Chang's book is giving voice to these workers who quite literally built the future of American with their hands. • If you want to learn more, Buzzfeed news also has an excellent article on how the stories of these workers and their descendants are finally being centered. . . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #nonfiction #booklover #vscobooks #booknerd #asianamericanandpacificislanderheritagemonth #booksandcoffee #instabooks #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #bookaddict #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
Happy Sunday everyone! Summer is apparently here in NYC! ☀️It's a perfect day to browse the Strands outdoor carts. You never know what hidden gems you might find! . . . . #Book #books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #thestrand #bookporn #booklover #vscobooks #booknerd #nyc #nycbookstore #instabooks #booknerdigans #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #indiebookstore #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #bookgasm #bookstagramer
 
 

Latinas Leyendo

Happy Sunday everyone! 🌼I hope you’re doing well! So I’ve come to a conclusion that I came to was that I need to adjust the ratio at which I acquire new books and read the books I already have. I am realizing that a lot of the books that I eagerly bought a couple of years ago are still waiting on my shelf! 🙈Not only that but the giant shelf I acquired that I assumed was going to hold “All the Books” is already quite crowded and small piles of books are starting to mysteriously appear around the house. See the current top of the dressers.👆🏽 • All this to say that I am going to try a new ‘reading challenge’ in which I can only acquire a new book for every two books I already own for the rest of the calendar year. Two books, because I know myself and my complete inability to stick to a complete book buying ban😅 especially where there are a lot of upcoming books that I want to acquire. • I am hoping that this will not only cut down on my embarrassingly long list of unread books that I currently own but also make the books that I DO buy feel more special. Does anyone else struggle to read their owned books? What are some systems or challenges that have worked for you?🤔 . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #leyendo #TBR #vscobooks #bookish #booklove #instabooks #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #readingchallenge #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
Happy Thursday everyone! In a little over a week the #24in48 readathon will be taking place! What is this you ask? Well, it is a readathon hosted by @rachelmanwill who like myself, found out that trying to stay up for 24 hours to complete the Dewey's 24 hour readathon was challenging when you are a grandma at heart and like to be in bed at 10 at the latest 👵🏽 • So instead of reading for 24 hours straight, the objective is to read 24 hours over the weekend, which allows for things I like, like sleep. Like all readathons it's main goal is to encourage participants to read more engage with fellow readers, there's no pressure to complete the 24 hours, but there are prizes and lots of fun mini social media challenges. If you're interested I definitely recommend checking out their IG page! @24in48 • I'll be participating in the July #24in48 readathon which will take place on Saturday, July 20th and Sunday, July 21st by posting updates here on Instagram as well as on Twitter. This year I decided to go with an Angie Cruz themed #TBR for this readathon and read her backlist as well as her upcoming title Dominicana 🇩🇴 coming out 9/3! Angie Cruz is one of the authors I am so excited to read/can’t believe I haven’t read yet. I don't know if I will finish all of these books (I am historically terrible at readathons because I have the attention span of a hamster) BUT I will definitely have fun participating. • Have you ever participated in a readathon? or are you planning on participating in this one? Let me know down below! . . . #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
Happy Tuesday everyone and a BIG Happy Book Birthday to Knitting the Fog by Claudia D. Hernández! 🎉Knitting the Fog is an own voices memoir out today from @feministpress. This amazing debut blends English and Spanish, poetry and prose to create a work that is as important as it is beautiful. This is a must read, particularly in today's political climate. Thank you so much to @feministpress for my copy of Knitting the Fog ❤️ you can find a full review on the Latinas Leyendo blog! Link is in the bio👆🏽 • Also did you know that Claudia is not only a great writer, but is also an incredible photographer? 📸Her photo is on the cover of her book, how cool is that?😍 • ✨Synopsis: Seven-year-old Claudia wakes up one day to find her mother gone, having left for the United States to flee domestic abuse and pursue economic prosperity. Claudia and her two older sisters are taken in by their great aunt and their grandmother, their father no longer in the picture. Three years later, her mother returns for her daughters, and the family begins the month-long journey to El Norte. But in Los Angeles, Claudia has trouble assimilating: she doesn’t speak English, and her Spanish sticks out as “weird” in their primarily Mexican neighborhood. When her family returns to Guatemala years later, she is startled to find she no longer belongs there either. A harrowing story told with the candid innocence of childhood, Hernández’s memoir depicts a complex self-portrait of the struggle and resilience inherent to immigration today.✨ . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #guatemala #leyendo #ownvoices #vscobooks #weneeddiversebooks #booklove #instabooks #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #memoir #knittingthefog #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
I hope everyone is having a great weekend! ❤️I can't believe it's July already, I swear time is speeding up😅I was thinking back on the first half of the year reading wise and It's been such a good year for new releases. We got great books like The Affairs of the Falcóns, Sabrina & Corina and With the Fire on High just to name a few. • BUT the year isn't over yet and it there are a TON more amazing books coming our way! I've put together a list of 16 upcoming titles that I'm personally super excited about that are coming out in the second half of the year 🙌🏽To give you a bit of a teaser these three incredible title are on the list 😍 • If you're curious about the rest, the link to the blog is in the bio! 👆🏽I apologize in advance for your TBR/Library hold list which might grow significantly as a result😜Are there any upcoming titles that you're excited about? Let me know what they are in the comments! . . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #flowers #leyendo #booklover #vscobooks #bookish #arc #instabooks #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #bookblogger #booksandflowers #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #TBR #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
New week, new book! 📚I came back home to some great book mail 🙌🏽 from @feministpress! Knitting the Fog is a debut memoir by Claudia D. Hernández that seamlessly blends poetry and prose, English and Spanish, as Claudia recounts her memories of her mother leaving Guatemala 🇬🇹 to escape an abusive relationship and to head north, and then later returning for her and her sisters to make the cross continental journey. The Feminist Press is one of my favorite smaller publishing houses, they always produce gorgeous, urgent and hard hitting books with incredible voices and this book is no exception. • I am absolutely love Claudia's voice and lyrical blend of poetry and prose and clearly I'm not the only one! Knitting the Fog is the winner of the Louise Meriwether First Book Prize, a prize awarded for debut works by women and non-binary authors of color 🏆#latinxexcellence Knitting the Fog comes out next week on 7/9! . . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #booksandcoffee #leyendo #booklover #vscobooks #ownvoices #weneeddiversebooks #instabooks #latinx #arc #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #bookblogger #coffee #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
Hi everyone! I hope you're having a great weekend! It's been a little while! My sister, husband and I took a road trip to Albany and did an indie bookstore crawl among other things (you can check the adorable indies we found on my highlights at @nycbookowl !) 📚We came back a little sunburned and a lot tired but 12 hours of sleep and lots of coffee later I finally feel human again ☕️ • I didn't get a lot of reading done on the trip and TBH had a pretty bad reading hangover after finishing Cantoras. It's soo good 🙌🏽 I'm still trying to gather my thoughts on it but it is definitely my top book of the year at the moment. What was the last book that gave you a book hangover? • I do have some new blog posts coming soon that I am really exited about so keep an eye out! . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #leyendo #booklover #vscobooks #bookish #booklove #instabooks #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #bookblogger #weneeddiversebooks #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
Happy Monday everyone! I hope you had a relaxing weekend☕️ • My sister is visiting so a lot of quality family time/barbecuing occurred instead of reading which I am totally ok with BUT I did pick up the first print edition of Latino Book Review from the Strand and I am hooked ❤️This amazing publication covers the creations of Latino artists. It contains poetry, comics, visual art, short stories from authors like @kalimaja, book reviews, interviews and more! (It is also just a visually stunning magazine) 😍 • You can find many of their articles and more content for free online (they started out as an online publication) and I highly recommend checking them out! Flipping through the pages of this magazine just filled my heart with joy at seeing a whole magazine created by and for Latinos to share and celebrate our art ❤️ . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #leyendo #booklover #vscobooks #magazine #flowers #instabooks #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #bookblogger #ownvoices #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #latinx #igreads #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
Happy almost Friday! 🙌🏽 I cannot wait to the weekend so I can finally get some reading done. It's been busier than I expected and all I want is to get back to this spot and read Cantoras❤️ • So far, I've been utterly enthralled with the story. This is truly a once in a blue moon read. I love absolutely everything about this book. From the plot which manages to be simultaneously soothing and a page-turner, to the characters each unique and complex and all of whom I've fallen hard for. But above all, I am in love with de Robertis' writing. She manages to make astonishing prose look effortless. Personally, I prefer simple yet powerful language that does not need to lean on ornate structure or language to be beautiful. When an author manages to craft simple yet breathtaking prose that fills you up as you read it is truly a delight to read. De Robertis nails this on every page and I am seriously in awe❤️ • Beyond this, it has just been a delight to immerse myself in Uruguayan 🇺🇾 culture through all the little details in the book. It feels at times familiar (like when a character eats Maria cookies with dulce de leche made me smile because that was my favorite snack as a kid) and other times very different (like having Winter in July!). This is honestly a book that reminds me why I love reading and just how much a good story can fill your heart. I cannot wait for this book to be out in the world for you to experience! • Thank you so so much to @aaknopf for providing me with an early review copy! . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #plants #leyendo #booklover #vscobooks #bookish #booksandcoffee #instabooks #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #weneeddiversebooks #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #booksandcoffee #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer
Happy Wednesday! It's another rainy day, and I'm kinda over this weather 😒at least my garden is happy🌿 • I am a little over halfway done with Cantoras and I promise to share more thoughts soon! but for now I will say that all other reading has been put on hold. It has been a long time since I have read a book that has gripped me with such urgency to keep reading. It is just that good🙌🏽 • On a separate note, I have a short trip coming up to Albany soon. It'll be my first time in the state's capital and I am definitely planning on hitting up some local bookstores! 📚I think I've mentioned before that one of my favorite things to do on vacation is to visit local indie bookstores (like this adorable book store in CT!) I feel that this gives an interesting perspective on the local community and is a great way to find books and meet people that you might not otherwise come across. If anyone have any recommendations of what to do or bookstores to visit let me know below! . . . . #Books #bookstagram #vscocam #vsco #bookworm #leyendo #booklover #vscobooks #bookish #indiebookstore #bookstore #latinx #bookphotography #unitedbookstagram #latinxreads #bookblogger #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #read #reading #vscobook #reader #igreads #igbooks #latinasleyendo #bookstagramer #latina #libros #leer