Culture

10 Exciting Books by Latinos Coming Out in the Second Half of 2019

Lead Photo: Art by Alan López for Remezcla
Art by Alan López for Remezcla
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Whether you’re looking to beef up your summer reading list or you’re trying to race to meet your 2019 reading goal, June’s a perfect time to look at new releases. Many exciting new books will come in the second half of 2019, and they should be on your radar.

RELATED: 8 Books by Latinx Authors That Should Be on Your Reading List This Year

We’ve already been blessed with amazing Latinx literature this year, with new books from Elizabeth Acevedo and Lilliam Rivera. And there’s even more amazing works coming in the near future. Below, check out a list of YA, middle grade, poetry books, and more that will make the second half of 2019 LIT-erary.

1

Ann Dávila Cardinal's Five Midnights

Release Date: June 4, 2019
Publisher: Tor Teen

Based on el Cuco, Lupe Dávila and Javier Utierre find themselves having to solve a string of murders taking place in Puerto Rico.

2

Michelle Ruiz Keil's All of Us With Wings

Release Date: June 18, 2019
Publisher: Soho Press

In this YA novel, 17-year-old Mexican-American Xochi is on her own in San Francisco. One day, she becomes the governess for 12-year-old Pallas, who lives with her rockstar family. Xochi loves her new life, but one night, after accidentally summoning a pair of ancient creatures, she might risk losing everything she loves.

3

Claudia D. Hernández's Knitting the Fog

Release date: July 9, 2019
Publisher: The Feminist Press at CUNY

In this memoir, Claudia D. Hernández tells the story of her life before and after moving to the United States from Guatemala. Told through short stories and poetry, Knitting the Fog talks about the immigrant experience, while documenting the difficult moments, as well as capturing her childhood travesuras.

4

Stephanie Jimenez's They Could Have Named Her Anything

Release date: August 1, 2019
Publisher: Little A

From her Queens home, 17-year-old Maria Anís Rosario commutes to a private school on the Upper East Side. There, she learns about the kind of life she could have if she were wealthy like her peers. When she becomes friends with classmate Rocky, she is jealous of her privilege and wealth and is willing to do whatever she can to get closer to her goal.

5

Natasha Díaz's Color Me In

Release Date: August 20, 2019
Publisher: Penguin Random House

Inspired by her life, Natasha Díaz’s debut novel follows Nevaeh Levitz, a biracial girl – whose mom is Black and dad is Jewish. When her parents split up and she moves to Harlem, she’s forced to think of the privilege she has. “So often I find that narratives about biracial/multiracial, white-passing characters delve deeply into their internal struggle but rarely touch on the privileges and colorism that are inherently tied to those of who are mixed and also pass as white,” Díaz told Underlined.

6

Ibi Zoboi's My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich

Release date: August 27, 2019
Publisher: Penguin Random House

Growing up with her grandfather, one of the first black engineers to integrate NASA, 12-year-old Ebony-Grace Norfleet has been encouraged to explore her love for the universe and sci-fi. When she has to spend a few weeks in Harlem with her dad, she wants to retreat into her imagination.

7

NoNieqa Ramos' The Truth Is

Release date: September 3, 2019
Publisher: Lerner/Carolrhoda Lab

After the death of her best friend, 15-year-old Verdad is in the middle of processing her emotions while also juggling her mom’s expectations and her dad’s new spouse. She doesn’t think she has time for a relationship, but then she meets Danny, a new trans guy at school.

8

Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite's Dear Haiti, Love Alaine

Release Date: September 3, 2019
Publisher: Inkyard Press

Written by sisters Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite, Dear Haiti, Love Alaine chronicles the two months Alaine Beauparlant spends in Haiti after “the incident.”

9

Yesika Salgado's Hermosa

Release Date: September 9, 2019
Publisher: Not a Cult

Following up Corazón and Tesoro, Hermosa is a book of poetry about who she is and who she has been.

Editor’s Note: Yesika Salgado writes Suelta, a monthly love and relationship column on Remezcla.

10

Carmen Maria Machado's In the Dream House

Release date: November 5, 2019
Publisher: Graywolf Press

In Carmen Maria Machado’s memoir, In the Dream House, the reader will see a same-sex relationship fall apart, and the psychological abuse she endured.