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Book Displays: Hispanic Heritage 10/24

A historical file on books on display at the Monroe University Libraries - and the occasion for which they were displayed

Monroe University Libraries - Hispanic Heritage Month - Oct. 2024

Books at the Dr. Donald E. Simon Memorial Library (BX)

What It Means to Be a Man

Rafael L. Ramírez presents an insightful examination of Puerto Rican culture and the ways in which Puerto Rican masculinity is constructed. What It Means to Be a Man begins with a discussion of machismo set in the context of the social construction of masculinity. Ramírez presents his interpretation of what it means to be a Puerto Rican man, discussing the attributes and demands of masculinity, and pointing out the ways in which strength, competition, and sexuality are joined with power and pleasure. Finally, Ramírez draws on the literature of the recent men's movements, offering Puerto Rican men the possibility of constructing a new masculinity, liberated from power games.

Latin American Heroes

These profiles of twenty-three history makers offer a unique view of Latin America through the eyes of men and women who devoted their lives to their countries, and to the freedom of their people. Here are fascinating mini-biographies of such influential and important subjects as Dona Marina (La Malinche), a former slave, born in 1505, who became an invaluable translator for Cortes; Toussaint L'Ouverture, who led Haitians to rebel against their French masters in the first major slave revolt in the new world, Jose Marti, the journalist, revolutionary, poet, orator, and charismatic leader of the fight to free Cuba from Spanish domination, and the modern martyr Bishop Romero, who, as an outspoken Catholic clergyman opposed to the abuses of the rightist regime in El Salvador, was murdered for his beliefs. You'll also learn about Brazil's Emperors Pedro I and Pedro II, the Women of the Mexican Revolution, Argentina's Juan and Eva Peron, Mexico's Emiliano Zapata, Venezuela's Simon Bolivar, and Cuba's Che Guevara. A straightforward and thoroughly researched biographical reference that amplifies some of the most significant voices in Latin America, past and present.

The Mexican Day of the Dead

This anthology celebrates the [Day of the dead, November 2,] with poems and prose, photos and art.

The Pride of Havana : A history of Cuban baseball

From the first amateur leagues of the 1860s to the exploits of Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez, here is the definitive history of baseball in Cuba.  What emerges is more than a story of balls and strikes, but a richly detailed history of Cuba told from the unique cultural perch of the baseball diamond. Filling a void created by Cuba's rejection of bullfighting and Spanish hegemony, baseball quickly became a crucial stitch in the complex social fabric of the island.  Indeed, readers will be introduced to several black ballplayers of Afro-Cuban descent who played in the Major Leagues before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier once and for all. Often dramatic, and always culturally resonant, It shows how Fidel Castro cannily associated himself with the sport for patriotic p.r.--and reveals that his supposed baseball talent is purely mythical.

Latina Performance : traversing the stage

"Latina Performance is a densely theorized treatment of rich materials." ?MultiCultural Review "Arrizón's important book revolves around the complex issues of identity formation and power relations for US women performers of Latin American descent." ?Choice Latina Performance examines the Latina subject whose work as dramatist, actress, theorist, and/or critic further defines the field of theater and performance in the United States. Alicia Arrizón looks at the cultural politics that flows from the intersection of gender, ethnicity, race, class, and sexuality.

True Love

This visually arresting autobiography is filled with intimate and electrifying never-before-seen photographs from Lopez s personal collection, revealing her behind the scenes life with her family away from the cameras. In this first autobiography from Lopez, she shares an honest and revealing personal diary filled with with hard-won lessons, heartfelt recollections and an empowering story of self-reflection, rediscovery and resilience.

Latin American Art : Ancient to Modern

An ambitious treatment of Latin American art through time and space ,.. This kind of comprehensive treatment is sorely needed in the fields of art history and cultural studies

Sudden Fiction Latino : Short-Short stories from the United States and Latin America

For readers who love great short-short stories, this bountiful anthology is the best of Latin American and U.S. Latino writers. Readers will delight in finding stars such as Junot Díaz, Sandra Cisneros, and Roberto Bolaño alongside recognized masters like Gabriel García Márquez, Isabel Allende, and Jorge Luis Borges. They will discover work from Andrea Saenz, Daniel Alarcón, and Alicita Rodriguez, as well as other writers on the rise. In Julio Ortega's "Migrations," a Peruvian writer explores how immigrant speech and ethnic origins are a force of meaning that evolves beyond language. In "Hair," by Hilma Contreras, a Caribbean pharmacist is driven mad by a young woman's luxuriant tresses. These stories stretch from gritty reality to the fantastical in a mix that is moving, challenging, humorous, artful, sometimes political, and altogether spectacular.

When Tito Loved Clara

Clara Lugo grew up in a home that would have rattled the most grounded of children. Through brains and determination, she has long since slipped the bonds of her confining Dominican neighborhood in the northern reaches of Manhattan. Now she tries to live a settled professional life with her American husband and son in the suburbs of New Jersey--often thwarted by her constellation of relatives who don't understand her gringa ways. Her mostly happy life is disrupted, however, when Tito, a former boyfriend from fifteen years earlier, reappears. Something has impeded his passage into adulthood. His mother calls him an Unfinished Man. He still carries a torch for Clara; and she harbors a secret from their past. Their reacquaintance sets in motion an unraveling of both of their lives and reveals what the cost of assimilation--or the absence of it--has meant for each of them.

Before We Were Free

Anita de la Torre never questioned her freedom living in the Dominican Republic. But by her 12th birthday in 1960, most of her relatives have emigrated to the United States, her Tío Toni has disappeared without a trace, and the government’s secret police terrorize her remaining family because of their suspected opposition of el Trujillo’s dictatorship. Using the strength and courage of her family, Anita must overcome her fears and fly to freedom, leaving all that she once knew behind. From renowned author Julia Alvarez comes an unforgettable story about adolescence, perseverance, and one girl’s struggle to be free.

La Comida del Barrio : Latin-American cooking in the U.S.A.

Presents 120 recipes reflecting the heritage and tastes of Latinos in the U.S., including roasted rabbit, fish in coconut broth, and black bean soup.

Latin American Studies : an annotated bibliography of core works

The Latin American studies collections at many community, junior and four year colleges, and large public libraries often contain materials that are too specialized, uneven, outdated, incomplete, or written in Spanish or Portuguese--thus rendering them essentially useless to English-reading patrons. Better materials are out there, but librarians simply have not had, until now, a good resource guide to help in locating them.  It is divided into chapters that deal with reference works, descriptive accounts and travel guides, the humanities, language and literature, the social sciences, and science and technology. For the purposes of this book, Latin America is defined as all geographic locations south of the Rio Grande. While these are chiefly Spanish and Portuguese speaking regions, works about French, English, and Dutch speaking areas are also included.

Books at the New Rochelle Campus Library

Latino Americans : The 500 year legacy that shaped a nation

Latino Americans chronicles the rich and varied history of Latinos, who have helped shaped our nation and have become, with more than fifty million people, the largest minority in the United States. This companion to the landmark PBS miniseries vividly and candidly tells how the story of Latino Americans is the story of our country. Author and acclaimed journalist Ray Suarez explores the lives of Latino American men and women over a five-hundred-year span, encompassing an epic range of experiences from the early European settlements to Manifest Destiny; the Wild West to the Cold War; the Great Depression to globalization; and the Spanish-American War to the civil rights movement. Latino Americans shares the personal struggles and successes of immigrants, poets, soldiers, and many others-individuals who have made an impact on history, as well as those whose extraordinary lives shed light on the times in which they lived, and the legacy of this incredible American people.

Living in Spanglish : the search for Latino identity in America

To be Latino in the United States in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries has meant to fierce identification with roots, with forbears, with the language, art and food your people came here with. America is a patchwork of Hispanic sensibilities-from Puerto Rican nationalists in New York to more newly arrived Mexicans in the Rio Grande valley-that has so far resisted homogenization while managing to absorb much of the mainstream culture. "Living in Spanglish" delves deep into the individual's response to Latino stereotypes and suggests that their ability to hold on to their heritage, while at the same time working to create a culture that is entirely new, He calls this sensibility Spanglish, one that is inherently multicultural, and proposes that Spanglish "describes a feeling, an attitude that is quintessentially American. It is a culture with one foot in the medieval and the other in the next century." 

From Colonia to Community : The history of Puerto Ricans in New York City

First published in 1983, this book remains the only full-length study documenting the historical development of the Puerto Rican community in the United States. Expanded to bring it up to the present, Virginia Sánchez Korrol's work traces the growth of the early Puerto Rican settlements--"colonias"--into the unique, vibrant, and well-defined community of today.

When I Was Puerto Rican

A young woman's journey from the mango groves and barrios of Puerto Rico to Brooklyn, and eventually on to Harvard In a childhood full of tropical beauty and domestic strife, poverty and tenderness, Esmeralda Santiago learned the proper way to eat a guava, the sound of tree frogs, the taste of morcilla, and the formula for ushering a dead baby's soul to heaven. But when her mother, Mami, a force of nature, takes off to New York with her seven, soon to be eleven children, Esmeralda, the oldest, must learn new rules, a new language, and eventually a new identity. In the first of her three acclaimed memoirs, Esmeralda brilliantly recreates her tremendous journey from the idyllic landscape and  family life of her earliest years, to translating for her mother at the welfare office, and to high honors at Harvard.

Just Like Us : The true story of four Mexican girls coming of age in America

In this eye-opening and poignant true story about the experiences of four young Mexican women coming of age in Denver--two who have legal documentation, two who don't--Helen Thorpe "puts a human face on a frequently obtuse conversation" Just Like Us tells the story of four high school students whose parents entered this country illegally from Mexico. We meet the girls on the eve of their senior prom in Denver, Colorado. All four of the girls have grown up in the United States, and all four want to live the American dream, but only two have documents.

East Los Angeles : History of a barrio

This is the story of the largest Mexican-American community in the United States, the city within a city known as "East Los Angeles." How did this barrio of over one million men and women--occupying an area greater than Manhattan or Washington D.C.--come to be? Although promoted early in this century as a workers' paradise, Los Angeles fared poorly in attracting European immigrants and American blue-collar workers. Wages were low, and these workers were understandably reluctant to come to a city which was also troubled by labor strife. Mexicans made up the difference, arriving in the city in massive numbers. Who these Mexicans were and the conditions that caused them to leave their own country are revealed in East Los Angeles.

Taco USA : How Mexican food conquered America

An entertaining, tasty trip through the history and culture of Mexican food, uncovering great stories and charting the cuisine's tremendous popularity in America. Gustavo Arellano presents an entertaining, tasty trip through the history and culture of Mexican food in this country, uncovering great stories and charting the cuisine's tremendous popularity in el Norte. Arellano's fascinating narrative combines history, cultural criticism, personal anecdotes, and Jesus on a tortilla. When salsa overtook ketchup as this country's favorite condiment in the 1990s, America's century-long love affair with Mexican food reached yet another milestone. As a result, Mexican food dominates American palates to the tune of billions of dollars in sales per year, from canned refried beans to frozen margaritas and ballpark nachos. It's a little-known history, one that's crept up on this country like your Mexican neighbors--and left us better for it.

Dominican Baseball

Pedro Martínez. Sammy Sosa. Manny Ramírez.  By 2000, Dominican baseball players were in every Major League clubhouse, and regularly winning every baseball award. In 2002, Omar Minaya became the first Dominican general manager of a Major League team. But how did this codependent relationship between MLB and Dominican talent arise and thrive?  He also addresses issues of identity fraud and the use of performance-enhancing drugs as hopefuls seek to play professionally.   Dominican Baseball charts the trajectory of the economic flows of this transnational exchange, and the pride Dominicans feel in their growing influence in the sport. Klein also uncovers the prejudice that prompts MLB to diminish Dominican claims on legitimacy.

A-Rod : The many lives of Alex Rodriguez

The highest-paid player in the history of baseball and widely regarded as the greatest in the modern game, the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez ensured his place in the record books in 2007 when, at thirty-two, he became the youngest player to hit five hundred home runs. But his reputation changed drastically two years later, when Selena Roberts broke the news in Sports Illustrated that he had used performance-enhancing drugs while playing for the Texas Rangers and later with the Yankees. In A-Rod, Roberts chronicles Rodriguez's extraordinary life, going beyond the sensational headlines to reveal a man torn by obligation to his family and the pull of insatiable hedonism. Ultimately, Roberts captures Rodriguez as a tragic figure in pinstripes: the man once considered the clean exception of the steroid generation revealed as an unmistakable product of its greed and dissolution.

Progress, Poverty and Exclusion : An economic history of Latin America in the 20th century

This economic history examines the political, institutional and economic forces that shaped Latin America's complex and often paradoxical development process over the 20th century. Quantitative data is examined alongside the region's political economies to provide a context for the successes and failures of the Latin American countries. A Statistical Appendix provides regionwide and country-by-country data in such areas as GDP, manufacturing, sector productivity, prices, trade, income distribution and living standards. Moving chronologically through the century, the book focuses on two dramatic waves of expansion that shaped regional growth: first, an export boom as the century began, and second, import-substitution industrialization corresponding to renewed expansion of the international economy following the depression and the two World Wars.

Frida : a biography

This engrossing biography of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo reveals a woman of extreme magnetism and originality, an artist whose sensual vibrancy came straight from her own experiences: her childhood near Mexico City during the Mexican Revolution; a devastating accident at age eighteen that left her crippled and unable to bear children; her tempestuous marriage to muralist Diego Rivera and intermittent love affairs with men as diverse as Isamu Noguchi and Leon Trotsky; her association with the Communist Party; her absorption in Mexican folklore and culture; and her dramatic love of spectacle.

Peppers Peppers Peppers

In more than 100 recipes, Peppers Peppers Peppers offers an eclectic mix of sweet and spicy with traditional and contemporary. A colorful celebration of the versatile pepper,  From the fiery hot Thai chile pepper to the mildly sweet and familiar red bell pepper, this cookbook accommodates all tastes with recipes originating in America, the Caribbean . Opening with a history of the pepper's "discovery" by Columbus and its subsequent introduction to European cooking , Peppers Peppers Peppers includes: extensive information on how to grow, store and dry peppers roasting and preserving peppers a directory of peppers listing all varieties of fresh sweet and chile peppers how to cook with - and safely eat - hot peppers The recipes include soups, appetizers, salads, poultry, meat, fish, sandwiches, pastries and accompaniments.

A Monroe University Research Guide

               THIS RESEARCH OR "LIBGUIDE" WAS PRODUCED BY THE LIBRARIANS OF MONROE UNIVERSITY             

    EMAIL: library@monroeu.edu -- Bronx Campus (646) 393-8333 / New Rochelle Campus (914)-740-6437