Picture Books for Hispanic Heritage Month

National Hispanic Heritage month recognizes the contributions and achievements of Latin Americans. These illustrated children's books about Hispanic heritage are available in both English and Spanish at the Forsyth County Public Library.

My Two Border Towns by David Bowles; Illustrated by Erika Meza

David Bowles' colorful picture books details life on a border town between the United States and Mexico and vividly describes a shopping trip on the Mexican side of the border.  

David Bowles is the author of the award-winning poetry collection for teens, They Call Me Guero and the 13th Street Series chapter books.  My Two Borders Towns is his first picture book.  

Science Fiction Novels by Latin American Authors

National Hispanic Heritage month recognizes the contributions and achievements of Latin Americans. Two of my favorite recent reads are science fiction novels that highlight environmental issues written by authors from Latin American.  

Pink Slime by Fernanda Trías; translated by Heather Cleary

Living in a nearly abandoned coastal South American city, a woman balances her relationship with her aging mother and hospitalized ex-husband while caring for a boy who suffers from a strange eating disorder. Pink Slime’s unnamed narrator watches the world around her deteriorating while struggling to maintain normalcy amid toxic winds, food shortages, power outages, and police patrols. As she recalls key moments from her past she wonders if there’s any connection between her town's new meat processing facility and some of the odd happenings. 

Author Fernanda Trías was born in Montevideo, Uruguay and currently lives in Bogotá, Colombia, where she teachers a creative writing MFA program. She is the award-winning author of three novels. Pink Slime has been Longlisted for the National Book Award for Translated Literature and named a Best Book of 2024 by NPR, Esquire, Publishers Weekly, and ScreenRant. 

Picture Books for Hispanic Heritage Month

National Hispanic Heritage month recognizes the contributions and achievements of Latin Americans. These are some of the illustrated children's books about Hispanic heritage that are available at Forsyth County Public Library.

Imagine by Juan Felipe Herrera; Illustrated by Lauren Castillo

If I let the stars at night paint my blanket with milky light
with shapes of hungry birds while I slept outside, 
imagine what you could do... 

Juan Felipe Herrera

Imagine

This picture book by U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera invites young readers to imagine who they can become. Evocative illustrations reveal Herreara's love of language and inspiring journey from picking flowers in a field and sleeping outside to moving to a new school, learning English, and collecting pens to create a stories and poems. 

Staff Picks: You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrique - Adult Fiction

You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue

In 1519 two worlds collided when Spanish conquistadors led by Hernán Cortés entered the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan. Álvaro Enrique’s novel You Dreamed of Empires describes the encounter from both sides, interjecting humor, hindsight, and modern perspectives.   

Arriving at Tenochtitlan, the Spaniards are amazed to find towering step pyramids, painted stone pathways, ornate palaces, pools, and gardens. The Aztec city is the largest and most impressive city on Earth, and the Europeans are offered fine robes, unusual local delicacies, and a sweet drink that is as treasured as gold. 

While Cortés and his entourage make themselves at home in luxury palace suites, Montezuma spends his time napping, dosing with hallucinogenic mushrooms, ordering executions, and frustrating his inner circle. Tactically, the Europeans' only advantages are their obedient antlerless deer and firepower.

You Dreamed of Empires humanizes the story's central players, including Montezuma’s sister/wife Atotoxlit and Gerónimo de Aguilar, the Franciscan friar who serves as a translator for the Europeans. The novel also richly imagines the lives of prisoners, confidantes, advisors, servants, and priests. 

Enrigue’s vision of the epic culture clash, skillfully translated into English by Natasha Wimmer, is both illuminating and wildly entertaining. Álvaro Enrigue is a award-winning Mexican writer who has authored novels, short stories, and essays. Enrigue lives in New York and teaches Latin American literature. 

Alicia Cavitt

Information Specialist 

Aztec Step Pyramid
Image credit: Forsyth County Public Library created in Canva.com