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Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month, a reading list

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September 15 to October 15 is National Hispanic American Heritage Month.

The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to the generations of Hispanic Americans who have positively influenced and enriched our nation and society.

Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

The observation started in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week under President Lyndon Johnson and was expanded by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 to cover a 30-day period starting on September 15 and ending on October 15. It was enacted into law on August 17, 1988, on the approval of Public Law 100-402.

The day of September 15 is significant because it is the anniversary of independence for Latin American countries Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on September 16 and September 18, respectively. Also, Columbus Day or Día de la Raza, which is October 12, falls within this 30-day period.

For more information, visit HispanicHeritageMonth.gov, enjoy our display inside the Library, and check out some of our books listed below, such as the newly released My Broken Language by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and co-writer of In the Heights, Quiara Alegría Hudes. Hudes tells her lyrical story of coming of age against the backdrop of an ailing Philadelphia barrio, with her sprawling Puerto Rican family as a collective muse.

In addition, you may search our catalog for our large collection of Spanish language materials, or contact the Heritage Room to view local Hispanic heritage items, such as these photos featured in our previous blog post, Honoring the Hispanic Heritage of Redlands.

 

Biography

¡Hola papi! : how to come out in a Walmart parking lot and other life lessons / Brammer, John Paul, 2021

The crusades of Cesar Chavez : a biography / Pawel, Miriam, 2014

The universal tone : bringing my story to light / Santana, Carlos, 2014

Clemente : the true legacy of an undying hero / Clemente (Family), 2013

My beloved world / Sotomayor, Sonia, 2013

Beyond rain of gold / Villaseñor, Victor, 2011

And a voice to sing with : a memoir / Baez, Joan, 2009

Roberto Clemente : the great one / Markensen, Bruce, 1998

Dreaming with his eyes open : a life of Diego Rivera / Marnham, Patrick, 1998

 

Arts and Recreation

Trejo : my life of crime, redemption, and Hollywood / Trejo, Danny, 2021

In the Heights : finding home / Miranda, Lin-Manuel, 2021

Joan Baez : the last leaf / Thomson, Elizabeth, 2020

Writing the future : Basquiat and the hip-hop generation / Munsell, Liz, 2020

Spirit run : a 6,000-mile marathon through North America’s stolen land / Álvarez, Noé, 2020

Goya : a portrait of the artist / Tomlinson, Janis A., 2020

Frida in America : the creative awakening of a great artist / Stahr, Celia, 2020

They bled blue : the 1981 Los Angeles Dodgers : Fernandomania, strike-season mayhem, and the weirdest championship baseball had ever seen / Turbow, Jason, 2019

Frida Kahlo at home / Barbezat, Suzanne, 2016

Frida Kahlo’s garden / Zavala, Adriana, 2015

Goya : his life and works in 500 images : an illustrated account of the artist, his life and context, with a gallery of 300 paintings and drawings / Hodge, Susie, 2015

Salvador Dalí / Shanes, Eric, 2014

Why soccer matters / Pelé, 2014

True love / Lopez, Jennifer, 2014

Rita Moreno : a memoir / Moreno, Rita, 2013

I’m not gonna lie : and other lies you tell when you turn 50 / Lopez, George, 2013

Salvador Dali : 1904-1989 / Wolf, Norbert, 2008

Diego Rivera : his art and his passions / Souter, Gerry, 2007

American dream : ten years of prints, books & drawings = diez años de grabados, libros y dibujos / Rodríguez, Artemio, 2006

Pablo Picasso : a modern master / Leslie, Richard, 2006

The Baroque world of Fernando Botero / Sillevis, John, 2006

The diary of Frida Kahlo : an intimate self-portrait / Kahlo, Frida, 2005

Chicano visions : American painters on the verge / Marin, Cheech, 2002

Mexican muralists : Orozco, Rivera, Siqueiros / Rochfort, Desmond, 1998

Picasso / Lévy, Lorraine, 1991

Art in Latin America : the modern era, 1820-1980 / Ades, Dawn, 1989

Diego Rivera : a retrospective / Rivera, Diego, 1986

Texas-Mexican cancionero : folksongs of the lower border / Paredes, Americo, 1976

 

Spanish Language Materials –

Trejo : mi vida de crimen, redención y Hollywood /  Trejo, Danny, 2021

 

Literature and Poetry

My broken language : a memoir / Hudes, Quiara Alegría, 2021

A farewell to Gabo and Mercedes : a son’s memoir of Gabriel García Márquez and Mercedes Barcha / García, Rodrigo, 2021

Between two fires : intimate writings on life, love, food & flavor / Esquivel, Laura, 2000

Postcolonial love poem / Diaz, Natalie, 2020

Every day we get more illegal / Herrera, Juan Felipe, 2020

Thrown in the throat / Garcia, Benjamin, 2020

Native country of the heart : a memoir / Moraga, Cherríe, 2019

Lima : limón / Scenters-Zapico, Natalie, 2019

Black dove : essays on mama, mi’jo, and me / Castillo, Ana, 2016

A thousand forests in one acorn : an anthology of Spanish-language fiction / Miles, Valerie, 2014

Cubanisimo! : the Vintage Book of contemporary Cuban literature / García, Cristina, 2003

 

Fiction

Chola salvation / Gonzalez, Estella, 2021

Las biuty queens / Ojeda, Iván Monalisa, 2021

The five wounds : a novel / Quade, Kirstin Valdez, 2021

The rock eaters : stories / Peynado, Brenda, 2021

Gordo : stories / Cortez, Jaime, 2021

The president and the frog / De Robertis, Carolina, 2021

Songs for the flames : stories / Vásquez, Juan Gabriel, 2021

 

Science Fiction

(Star Wars) Last shot / Older, Daniel José, 2018

Infomocracy / Older, Malka, 2016

 

History

Horizontal vertigo : a city called Mexico / Villoro, Juan, 2021

Virtual tour of Redlands historical sites now available!

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Redlands Unified goes virtual for Smiley Heritage Tour

Source: Redlands Community News

A.K. Smiley Public Library, pictured here in 1901, is one of the landmarks featured on the Smiley Heritage Tour

The Redlands Unified School district has been sending fourth-grade students on the Smiley Heritage Tour since the early 1980s. Due to COVID-19, last year was the first time students could not participate.

This year, the district decided to go virtual to keep the history alive.

“A whole grade level lost the experience last year,” said Jamie Cortz, director of instructional technology and accountability. “It was a big deal to the district, and when this school year began, all field trips were canceled again. So, we decided to make the tour virtual so students still had the opportunity to have this experience even though they can’t go in person.”

The tour is hosted by A.K. Smiley Public Library Heritage Tours. It features 17 historical stops around the city, such as the Library, Mill Creek Zanja, Burrage Mansion, and Kimberly Crest. Cortz said the district and library representatives Serena Davis and Tish Sandos spent six months collaborating to gather information, video, and photos for the virtual experience. It went live on the website in May, 2021.

“We made trips to locations and recorded drone footage,” said Cortz. “We reached out to people in the community to get voice audio and recreated the entire tour virtually. We even added ArcGIS elements and incorporated fun educational materials like an escape room game where students had to answer questions about the tour to ‘get off the bus.’ Our mindset this year was we didn’t want COVID to take away the tradition from kids, so we used an innovated approach to overcome it.”

Project leads Olivia Davison and Jennifer Hunt wanted to make the virtual tour as robust as the in-person one.

“It’s a half-day tour when kids go in-person,” said Davison. “We wanted all of the 17 stops on the virtual tour. However, on the normal tour, kids only get off the bus at six locations. A lot of it is driven. But we still wanted to incorporate all the locations and not take away anything. At the beginning of the virtual tour, students have a numbered map that shows all of the locations with facts about each.

“For the six stops, it is interactive with an introduction and welcome videos from library docents, photos, drone footage, and ArcGIS story maps. We went to each stop and took 365-degree images of every room the students would see if they were off the bus. We added click points to take them to new rooms and give information about each. Not only can they see outside but inside of the buildings as well. We also got students to narrate some of the information.”

Davison said the virtual tour was made as inclusive as possible.

“For our English as a Second Language (ESL) students, they can have all of the text on the screen read to them by a digital translator,” she said. “They are able to choose the language they want which was something they couldn’t do on the in-person tour.”

Unlike the in-person tour, the virtual tour is available for students to take on their own time, as many times as they want.

“We made the map easy to follow so students could drive along with their parents if they wanted,” said Davison. “We actually got quite a few emails from parents saying they did visit the locations in-person.”

If possible, the district is hoping to resume the in-person tour next year. But have no plans to take the virtual tour down.

“We see this as more of a community resource now,” said Cortz. “Kids can look at it prior to the field trip and get excited, but also families can share this with kids of all ages. Even adults are interested.

“We have talked about sharing this with our new teachers when they are hired so they can virtually tour the city and know a little bit about the community.”

As of June 2, 2021, the virtual tour has hosted almost 7,000 visitors.

To take the virtual tour, visit https://sites.google.com/redland…/smiley-heritage-tours/home

For more information, or to volunteer with Smiley Heritage Tours, contact smileyheritagetours@akspl.org.

Teens, don’t read this… especially if you don’t want to win a prize by reading books!

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Teens, in the following article I will attempt to read your mind multiple times. Please proceed with caution if you wish to keep your thoughts private.

The Dig Deeper Summer Reading Program at A.K. Smiley Public Library is in full swing. If you are thinking, “Eh…that’s kid stuff,” please, teens, think again. Here’s how the Summer Reading Program works for teens: for every 50 pages you read between now and August 3rd, you earn a ticket. Each earned ticket offers you a chance to win one of twelve cool prizes.

My telepathic powers tell me you are skeptical about these alleged “cool” prizes. Would a voucher for Open Door Escape Games for you and your friends excite you? How about a gift card to A Shop Called Quest comic bookstore? Would you enjoy a close-up look at the disturbing micro-organisms that surround you with your very own cell phone microscope? Does your mouth water at the mention of a refreshing pint of gelato from Happy Camper Creamery? Are you craving the special variety of brain freeze only a scoop of Salted Caramel from À La Minute can deliver? Is your stomach pitifully lacking a breakfast burrito from Burger Town U.S.A. right at this very moment?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, then join the Dig Deeper Summer Reading Program immediately. All of these prizes and more are on the line exclusively for teens. To get started, simply visit the Young Readers’ Room at A.K. Smiley Public Library, pick up a Teen Reading Log, grab some books, and let your eyeballs do the rest. You could also download the reading log from the Teens’ page of our website (www.akspl.org/teens) or even just record the titles and pages you read on a regular old scrap of paper or the back of your hand…we’re not picky!

My sixth sense indicates you are slowly coming around to this whole Summer Reading Program idea, but you still don’t know what to read. Teens, we’ve got you covered! From anime to career idea guides, the Teen Underground, located in the basement level of the Library, has something for you.

Want a page-turner that involves a mysterious bequest, a love triangle, an inscrutable riddle, and attempted murder? Try “The Inheritance Games” by Jennifer Barnes. How about a twist on a classic in the form of the new Jane Austen-esque murder-mystery, “Pride and Premeditation” by Tirzah Price? Are you more of a modern fairy-tale fan? “Tokyo Ever After” by Emiko Jean may be up your alley. Or maybe you’d like to take a stab at horror with the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” series by Scott Cawthorn? No? You want to laugh? I thought so (still mind-reading). Try “This Will Be Funny Someday” by Katie Henry, a coming-of-age story about a model high school student turned stand-up comic. 

Teens, I don’t need a Magic 8-Ball to tell you that letting your eyeballs loose on some good books this summer may result in a win-win for you; not only will you be transported/enlightened/made brilliant by the pages you consume, but you may also end up with a mouth full of smoothie from Badger Bowls (yet another one of our cool prizes). Of course the rewards of reading transcend a paleta from Nicho’s Ice Cream or a street taco from Taco Shack (cool prizes numeros once y doce), but I predict you are open to a chance at having it all. You have two weeks left, teens…read with us! And I promise I will now stop reading your minds.

 

Participate and win! Adult Summer Reading Program now underway through August 2

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The grand prize is a $100 shopping spree at Gerrards Market in Redlands!

All you have to do is read and review books that you have checked out from A.K. Smiley Public Library and enter to win gift cards and goodies from your favorite local businesses!

Upon returning your book or books, pick up a review slip from the Circulation Desk, fill it out, and drop it in our raffle box at the Reference Desk.

Besides the Gerrards shopping spree, other prizes include those from Bricks and Birch, Saverino’s Italian Deli & Market, Olive Ave. Market, Oscar’s Mexican Restaurant, a la Minute Ice Cream, Martha Green’s The Eating Room, The Gourmet Pizza Shoppe, Carolyn’s Cafe, and Breakfast Shack.

So join in on some summer fun! The more you read, the better your chances of winning!

Juneteenth, the celebration of emancipation from slavery, now recognized as a federal holiday

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From its very founding, the United States had a precarious relationship with freedom. While the Declaration of Independence clearly stated that “all men are created equal,” the actual practice of enslaving people tested whether, in practice, that ideal could ever be a reality. Enslavement was the single most divisive issue of the early republic. When Southern states perceived that Abraham Lincoln’s election threatened what they believed was their “right” to enslave others, those states attempted to break the bonds of the United States to each other. The result was civil war, with some 800,000 or more Americans perishing.

President Abraham Lincoln issued his Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, declaring that all enslaved people located within states in rebellion against the United States “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”

Before that, some enslaved people had already found ways to emancipate themselves, with groups like the Underground Railroad, by finding a detachment of the United States Army, or simply fleeing those who enslaved them and making it successfully to a free state. As the United States Army liberated states in rebellion, enslaved people there were freed. However, not everyone was aware of emancipation, even after the Civil War was over. In Texas, it wasn’t until US General Gordon Grainger issued General Order #3 on June 19, 1865 that:

“The people are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property, between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them, become that between employer and hired labor.”

From that day, June 19, came a jubilee celebration for the last of the enslaved people of the United States, who finally learned of their new freedom. Juneteenth, as it became known, commemorates this day.

Just a few days ago, the importance of what Juneteenth represents was recognized by the United States with the designation of June 19, “Juneteenth,” as a federal holiday.

Learn about “The Historical Legacy of Juneteenth” at the National Museum of African American History & Culture: https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/historical-legacy-juneteenth.