Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
by Kaitlyn Ring, Readers’ Advisory Librarian
In September we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month to give special recognition to the amazing Hispanic and Latine members of our community. While we like to celebrate Hispanic culture and identities throughout the year, this month gives us the extra opportunity to showcase the many wonderful authors and stories that we have in our collection at the Manhattan Public Library.
All information about these books has been taken from our catalog, which you can visit at https://catalog.manhattan.lib.ks.us/polaris/default.aspx.
Adult Fiction
“Malinalli” by Veronica Chapa
“A real-life historical figure, the woman known as Malinalli, Malintzin, La Malinche, Dona Marina, and Malinalxochitl was the Nahua interpreter who helped Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes communicate with the native people of Mexico. When indigenous leaders observed her marching into their cities, they believed she was a goddess–blessed with the divine power to interpret the Spaniards’ intentions for their land. Later, historians and pop culture would deem her a traitor–the ‘Indian’ girl who helped sell Mexico’s future to an invader. In this riveting, fantastical retelling, Malinalli is all of those things and more, but at heart, she’s a young girl, kidnapped into slavery by age twelve, and fighting to survive the devastation wrought by both the Spanish and Moctezuma’s greed and cruelty.”
“Woman of Light” by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
“Luz ‘Little Light’ Lopez, a tea leaf reader and laundress, is left to fend for herself after her older brother, Diego, a snake charmer and factory worker, is run out of town by a violent white mob. As Luz navigates 1930’s Denver on her own, she begins to have visions that transport her to her Indigenous homeland in the nearby Lost Territory. Luz recollects her ancestors’ origins, how her family flourished and how they were threatened. She bears witness to the sinister forces that have devastated her people and their homelands for generations. In the end, it is up to Luz to save her family stories from disappearing into oblivion.”
“The Cemetery of Untold Stories” by Julia Alvarez
“When celebrated writer Alma Cruz inherits a small plot of land in the Dominican Republic, she turns it into a place to bury her untold stories–literally. She creates a graveyard for manuscript drafts and revisions and the characters whose lives she tried and failed to bring to life and who still haunt her. Alma wants her characters to rest in peace, but they have other ideas, and the cemetery becomes a mysterious sanctuary for their true narratives.”
Young Adult Fiction
“Salvacion” by Sandra Proudman
“Lola de La Pena yearns to be free from the societal expectations of a young Mexican lady of her station. She spends her days pretending to be delicate and proper while watching her mama cure the sick and injured with sal negra (black salt), a recently discovered magic that heals even the most mortal of sicknesses and wounds. But by night, she is Salvacion, the free-spirit lady vigilante protecting the town of Coloma from those who threaten its peace and safety among the rising tension in Alta California after the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.”
“This Is the Year” by Gloria Muñoz
“‘This is the year. Yes, Ofe, on this gloomy first day of my last year of high school, I swear before your grave, Hermana, this is the year I am getting out of here.’
So swears Julieta Villareal, a seventeen-year-old wannabe writer whose twin sister died in a hit-and-run a few months ago. Juli’s Florida home is crumbling in the face of climate disaster, and with Ofelia gone, Juli can’t stand to stay any longer in a place that doesn’t seem to have room for her. She’s not sure how she’s going to do it, everyone knows brown-skinned, poverty-stricken New Americans like Juli have no options, but she’s getting out.”
“These Vengeful Wishes” by Vanessa Montalban
“When her stepfather is arrested, aspiring artist Ceci moves back to her mother’s hometown of Santa Aguas, an eccentric small town steeped in the legend of La Cegua, the specter of a wronged witch who appears on lonely roads at night, luring untrustworthy men to their deaths. Ceci and her mother take up residence in the abandoned manor of the Sevilla family, rumored to have been cursed by La Cegua, where she begins to uncover a past connected to her mother.”
Children’s
Join us for bilingual stories and activities celebrating Spanish language and culture.
We will read picture books by Latinx authors and illustrators, followed by a fun craft or activity. “¡Cuenta cuentos! / Tell Tales!” is a collaboration with the K-State Department of Modern Languages. We welcome both Spanish speakers and English or other language speakers. Suggested for ages 5 and up.
¡Acompáñenos para disfrutar de cuentos bilingües y actividades que celebran las culturas y comunidades latinas! Vamos a leer libros álbumes de autores e ilustradores latinos y después divertirnos con manualidades o arte. “¡Cuenta cuentos!” es una colaboración con el Departamento de Lenguas Modernas de K-State. Hablantes de todos los idiomas son bienvenidos. Recomendado para niños de 5 años en adelante.
Our next “Cuenta cuentos! / Tell Tales!” Bilingual Storytime will take place at 2 p.m. Saturday, October 11, 2025.
Manhattan Public Library is a cornerstone of free and equal access to a world of ideas and information for the Manhattan, Kansas, community. Manhattan Public Library serves more than 75,000 people in the Riley County area through curated book and other media collections, knowledgeable staff, relevant programming for all ages, and meeting space. Learn more at mhklibrary.org.
