Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month

Try these exciting middle-grade (3rd-6th) fiction titles by Latinx writers!

The first rule of punk

Celia C. Pérez

jFICTION Perez Celia
Fiction

Twelve-year-old María Luisa O'Neill-Morales (who really prefers to be called Malú) reluctantly moves with her Mexican-American mother to Chicago and starts seventh grade with a bang--violating the dress code with her punk rock aesthetic and spurning the middle school's most popular girl in favor of starting a band with a group of like-minded weirdos.

Lucky broken girl

Ruth Behar

jFICTION Behar Ruth
Fiction, Historical Fiction

In 1960s New York, fifth-grader Ruthie, a Cuban-Jewish immigrant, must rely on books, art, her family, and friends in her multicultural neighborhood when an accident puts her in a body cast.

Marcus Vega doesn't speak Spanish

Pablo Cartaya

jFICTION Cartaya Pablo
Fiction

After a fight at school leaves Marcus facing suspension, Marcus's mother takes him and his younger brother, who has Down syndrome, to Puerto Rico to visit relatives they do not remember or have never met, and while there Marcus starts searching for his father, who left their family ten years ago and is somewhere on the island.

The moon within

Aida Salazar

jFICTION Salazar Aida
Fiction

Eleven-year-old (nearly twelve) Celi Rivera, who is a mix of Black-Puerto Rican-Mexican Indian is uncomfortable about her approaching period, and the changes that are happening to her body; she is horrified that her mother wants to hold a traditional public moon ceremony to celebrate the occasion--until she finds out that her best friend Magda is contemplating an even more profound change of life.

Esperanza rising

Pam Muñoz Ryan

jFICTION Ryan, Pam Muñoz
Fiction

Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression.

Me, Frida, and the secret of the peacock ring

Angela Cervantes

jFICTION Cervantes, Angela
Fiction, Mystery

When Lizzie and Gael share an irresistible challenge, to find the peacock ring that once belonged to artist Frida Kahlo, Paloma decides it is the perfect way to honor her father.

Sal & Gabi break the universe

Carlos Alberto Pablo Hernandez

jFICTION Hernandez, Carlos
Fiction, Fantasy

In order to heal after his mother's death, Sal learned how to meditate. But no one expected him to be able to take it further and 'relax' things into existence. Turns out he can reach into time and space to retrieve things from other universes,

The storm runner

Jennifer Cervantes

jFICTION Cervantes, Jennifer
Fiction, Fantasy

To prevent the Mayan gods from battling each other and destroying the world, thirteen-year-old Zane must unravel an ancient prophecy, stop an evil god, and discover how the physical disability that makes him reliant on a cane also connects him to his father and his ancestry.

Efrén divided : a novel

Ernesto Cisneros

jFICTION Cisneros Ernesto
Fiction

While his father works two jobs, seventh-grader Efrén Nava must take care of his twin siblings, kindergartners Max and Mia, after their mother is deported to Mexico. Includes glossary of Spanish words.

Stella Diaz has something to say

Angela Dominguez

jFICTION Dominguez Angela
Fiction

Stella Diaz wants to be friends with the new boy in class, but sometimes she accidentally speaks Spanish instead of English and pronounces words wrong, which makes her turn roja. In addition, she has to get over her fear of speaking in front of the class.

Charlie Hernández & the league of shadows

Ryan Calejo

jFICTION Calejo Ryan
Fiction, Fantasy

"Steeped in Hispanic folklore since childhood, middle schooler Charlie Hernández learns the stories are true when, shortly after his parents disappearance, he grows horns and feathers and finds himself at the heart of a battle to save the world."--Colophon.

The land of the cranes

Aida Salazar

jFICTION/Salazar Aida
Fiction

Nine-year-old Betita and her parents fled Mexico after her uncle was killed by the cartels, and settled in Los Angeles seeking political asylum and safety in what her father calls Aztlan, the land of the cranes; but now they have been swept up by by the government's Immigration Customs Enforcement, her father deported back to Mexico, and Betita and her mother confined in a family detention camp--Betita finds heart in her imagination and the picture poems her father taught her, but each day threatens to further tear her family apart.

Ana María Reyes does not live in a castle

Hilda Eunice Burgos

jFICTION Burgos Hilda
Fiction

"With a new sibling (her fourth) on the way and a big piano recital on the horizon, Dominican-American Ana María Reyes tries to win a scholarship to a New York City private school"--

The total eclipse of Nestor Lopez

Adrianna Cuevas

jFICTION/Cuevas Adrianna
Fiction, Fantasy

A Cuban-American boy must use his ability to communicate with animals to save the inhabitants of his town when they are threatened by a witch that transforms into animals.

Dactyl Hill Squad

Daniel José Older

jFICTION Older Daniel
Fiction, Adventure, Historical Fiction

It is the summer of 1863, and as the Civil War rages between dinosaur-mounted armies down south, and a tense New York City seems on the brink of exploding into riots, Magdalys Roca and the other children at the Colored Orphan Asylum are trying to survive; but when she receives a letter telling her that her brother Montez was wounded, Magdalys knows that somehow she must reach him--and just possibly her ability to communicate telepathically with dinosaurs may come in handy.

Ghost squad

Claribel A. Ortega

jFICTION Ortega Claribel
Fiction, Mystery

"For Lucely Luna, ghosts are more than just the family business. Shortly before Halloween, Lucely and her best friend, Syd, cast a spell that accidentally awakens malicious spirits, wreaking havoc throughout St. Augustine. Together, they must join forces with Syd's witch grandmother, Babette, and her tubby tabby, Chunk, to fight the haunting head-on and reverse the curse to save the town and Lucely's firefly spirits before it's too late."--Jacket flap.

The wind called my name

Mary Louise Sanchez

jFICTION Sanchez Mary
Fiction, Historical Fiction

When ten-year-old Margaríta Sandoval's family moves to Wyoming during the Great Depression, she faces racism, homesickness, and the possibility that her grandmother's land in New Mexico may be lost.--

The other half of happy

Rebecca Balcárcel

jFICTION Balcarcel Rebecca
Fiction

Twelve-year-old Quijana is a biracial girl, desperately trying to understand the changes that are going on in her life; her mother rarely gets home before bedtime, her father suddenly seems to be trying to get in touch with his Guatemalan roots (even though he never bothered to teach Quijana Spanish), she is about to start seventh grade in the Texas town where they live and she is worried about fitting in--and Quijana suspects that her parents are keeping secrets, because she is sure there is something wrong with her little brother, Memito, who is becoming increasingly hard to reach.--

The fresh new face of Griselda

Jennifer Torres

jFICTION Torres Jennifer
Fiction

After her father's landscaping business fails and the family loses their house, sixth-grader Griselda Zaragoza follows her sister's example and begins selling Alma cosmetics while hiding her changed circumstances from friends.

Merci Suárez changes gears

Meg Medina

jFICTION Medina Meg
Fiction

Merci Suárez knew that sixth grade would be different, but she had no idea just how different. For starters, Merci has never been like the other kids at her private school in Florida, because she and her older brother, Roli, are scholarship students. They don't have a big house or a fancy boat, and they have to do extra community service to make up for their free tuition. So when bossy Edna Santos sets her sights on the new boy who happens to be Merci's school-assigned Sunshine Buddy, Merci becomes the target of Edna's jealousy. Things aren't going well at home, either: Merci's grandfather and most trusted ally, Lolo, has been acting strangely lately -- forgetting important things, falling from his bike, and getting angry over nothing. No one in her family will tell Merci what's going on, so she's left to her own worries, while also feeling all on her own at school.

Lowriders

Cathy Camper

jGRAPHIC NOVEL Camper Lowriders
Graphic Novels

Lupe, Flapjack, Elirio customize their car into a low rider for the Universal Car Competition to win the cash prize that will enable them to buy their own garage.

Maximilian & the mystery of the Guardian Angel : a bilingual lucha libre thriller

Xavier Garza

j468.65 Garza
Fiction, Mystery

Eleven-year-old Maximilian, a big fan of the form of wrestling known as lucha libre, begins to suspect that he has a close connection with his favorite luchador, El Angel de La Guardia, the Guardian Angel.

A dash of trouble

Anna Meriano

jFICTION Meriano Anna
Fiction, Fantasy

Wanting to be a part of her family's Dia de los Muertos preparations, Leonora sneaks out of school to discover her mother, aunt, and older sisters have been keeping a secret.

Each tiny spark

Pablo Cartaya

jFICTION Cartaya Pablo
Fiction

Sixth-grader Emilia Torres struggles with ADHD, her controlling abuela, her mother's work commitments, her father's distance after returning from deployment, evolving friendships, and a conflict over school redistricting.

Paola Santiago and the river of tears

Tehlor Kay Mejia

jFICTION Mejia Tehlor
Fiction, Fantasy

In Silver Springs, Arizona, her mother's stories of the monstrous La Llorona are thrilling but unbelievable to science-loving Paola until she and her best friends Dante and Emma take a walk through a cactus field near the Gila River.

Lupe Wong won't dance

Donna Barba Higuera

jFICTION/Higuera Donna
Fiction

"Lupe Wong is going to be the first female pitcher in the Major Leagues. She's also championed causes her whole young life. Some worthy ... like expanding the options for race on school tests beyond just a few bubbles. And some not so much...like complaining to the BBC about the length between Doctor Who seasons. Lupe needs an A in all her classes in order to meet her favorite pitcher, Fu Li Hernandez, who's Chinacan/Mexinese just like her. So when the horror that is square dancing rears its head in gym? Obviously she's not gonna let that slide."--Provided by publisher.