Selena Didn't Know Spanish Either

Selena Didn't Know Spanish Either
Author: Marisa Tirado
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
Total Pages: 42
Release: 2022-05-25
Genre: Poetry
ISBN: 1680032666

Selena Didn't Know Spanish Either is a debut poetry collection which seeks Tejano pop star Selena Quintanilla as a means of reconnecting to the speaker’s cultural identity. As Spanish language and culture becomes more accessible to non-Latinx populations, the speaker grapples with her own complex story of assimilation. Modern marginalization, appropriation, tokenizing, and fetishizing are examined in this multi-generational memoir tracking a Latinx family’s journey to assimilation. This dynamic collection is far-reaching, exploring BIPOC experiences in predominantly white cultures. from “Young Memoir” di·as·po·ra is silent. is spiritual. It is being robbed of memoir while you sleep in a suburb. it is nonconsensually sensual—it is a question. when it comes for you, what will you recover? what will you do to reclaim all that was forced lost?

Selenidad

Selenidad
Author: Deborah Paredez
Publisher: Duke University Press
Total Pages: 285
Release: 2009-08-12
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0822390892

An outpouring of memorial tributes and public expressions of grief followed the death of the Tejana recording artist Selena Quintanilla Pérez in 1995. The Latina superstar was remembered and mourned in documentaries, magazines, websites, monuments, biographies, murals, look-alike contests, musicals, drag shows, and more. Deborah Paredez explores the significance and broader meanings of this posthumous celebration of Selena, which she labels “Selenidad.” She considers the performer’s career and emergence as an icon within the political and cultural transformations in the United States during the 1990s, a decade that witnessed a “Latin explosion” in culture and commerce alongside a resurgence of anti-immigrant discourse and policy. Paredez argues that Selena’s death galvanized Latina/o efforts to publicly mourn collective tragedies (such as the murders of young women along the U.S.-Mexico border) and to envision a brighter future. At the same time, reactions to the star’s death catalyzed political jockeying for the Latino vote and corporate attempts to corner the Latino market. Foregrounding the role of performance in the politics of remembering, Paredez unravels the cultural, political, and economic dynamics at work in specific commemorations of Selena. She analyzes Selena’s final concert, the controversy surrounding the memorial erected in the star’s hometown of Corpus Christi, and the political climate that served as the backdrop to the touring musicals Selena Forever and Selena: A Musical Celebration of Life. Paredez considers what “becoming” Selena meant to the young Latinas who auditioned for the biopic Selena, released in 1997, and she surveys a range of Latina/o queer engagements with Selena, including Latina lesbian readings of the star’s death scene and queer Selena drag. Selenidad is a provocative exploration of how commemorations of Selena reflected and changed Latinidad.

Queen of Tejano Music: Selena

Queen of Tejano Music: Selena
Author: Silvia López
Publisher: little bee books
Total Pages: 48
Release: 2020-08-25
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 9781499811421

"There's a lot of text in the book, but it's smartly framed within two-page spreads, and very little of it feels extraneous. ...A worthy picture-book primer on the Queen of Tejano music."-Kirkus Reviews This is a moving and impassioned picture book about the iconic Queen of Tejano music, Selena Quintanilla, that will embolden young readers to find their passion and make the impossible, possible! Selena Quintanilla's music career began at the age of nine when she started singing in her family's band. She went from using a hairbrush as a microphone to traveling from town to town to play gigs. But Selena faced a challenge: People said that she would never make it in Tejano music, which was dominated by male performers. Selena was determined to prove them wrong. Born and raised in Texas, Selena didn't know how to speak Spanish, but with the help of her dad, she learned to sing it. With songs written and composed by her older brother and the fun dance steps Selena created, her band, Selena Y Los Dinos, rose to stardom! A true trailblazer, her success in Tejano music and her crossover into mainstream American music opened the door for other Latinx entertainers, and she became an inspiration for Latina girls everywhere.

Dumb Luck & other poems

Dumb Luck & other poems
Author: Christine Kitano
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
Total Pages: 36
Release: 2024-06-03
Genre: Poetry
ISBN: 1680033867

Christine Kitano’s Dumb Luck & other poems offers a portrait of a thirty-something Asian American woman who finds herself living in the relative safety of upstate New York before and during the pandemic. In one poem the speaker reflects on current events (the ongoing pandemic, the murder of George Floyd and the ensuing protests, the surge in anti-Asian sentiment in the U.S.) and contrasts these with the peace of rural New York, wondering, “Is this / the reward for good luck, just a more / comfortable survival?” The poems in this collection orbit around this question, providing both lyric and narrative explorations on luck, guilt, and survival. Ultimately, these poems delve into how the otherwise mundane questions of selfhood and identity for a gendered and racialized body take on greater urgency during times of increased social unrest, panic, and violence. Winner of The 2023 Robert Phillips Chapbook Prize, selected by Alison Pelegrin.

Verity

Verity
Author: Colleen Hoover
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Total Pages: 295
Release: 2021-10-05
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 153872474X

Whose truth is the lie? Stay up all night reading the sensational psychological thriller that has readers obsessed, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Too Late and It Ends With Us. #1 New York Times Bestseller · USA Today Bestseller · Globe and Mail Bestseller · Publishers Weekly Bestseller Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity’s notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn’t expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity's recollection of the night her family was forever altered. Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents could devastate the already grieving father. But as Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife’s words. After all, no matter how devoted Jeremy is to his injured wife, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue loving her.

What Would Frida Do?

What Would Frida Do?
Author: Arianna Davis
Publisher: Seal Press
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2020-10-20
Genre: Self-Help
ISBN: 1541646312

Having doubts about your next step? Ask yourself what artist Frida Kahlo would do in this “beautiful volume . . . sure to inspire” (Boston Globe). NAMED A BEST GIFT BOOK OF THE YEAR BY: Instyle, Oprah Daily, Business Insider, Esquire, Boston Globe, and Redbook Revered as much for her fierce spirit as she is for her art, Frida Kahlo stands today as a feminist symbol of daring creativity. Her paintings have earned her admirers around the world, but perhaps her greatest work of art was her own life. What Would Frida Do? celebrates this icon’s signature style, outspoken politics, and boldness in love and art—even in the face of hardship and heartbreak. We see her tumultuous marriage with the famous muralist Diego Rivera and rumored flings with Leon Trotsky and Josephine Baker. In this irresistible read, writer Arianna Davis conjures Frida’s brave spirit, encouraging women to create fearlessly and stand by their own truths.

With the Fire on High

With the Fire on High
Author: Elizabeth Acevedo
Publisher: Hardie Grant Publishing
Total Pages: 334
Release: 2019-06-01
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 1743586329

From New York Times bestselling author of POET X comes a story of a girl with talent, pride and a little bit of magic that keeps her fire burning bright. Ever since she got pregnant during freshman year, Emoni Santiago’s life has been about making the tough decisions, doing what has to be done for her daughter and her abuela. The one place she can let all that go is in the kitchen. There, she lets her hands tell her what to cook, listening to her intuition and adding a little something magical every time, turning her food into straight-up goodness. Even though she’s always dreamed of working in a kitchen after she graduates, Emoni knows that it’s not worth her time to pursue the impossible. But then an opportunity presents itself to not only enrol in a culinary arts class in her high school, but also to travel abroad to Spain for an immersion program. Emoni knows that her decisions post high school have to be practical ones, but despite the rules she’s made for her life — and everyone else’s rules that she refuses to play by — once Emoni starts cooking, her only choice is to let her talent break free.

The Buried Sea

The Buried Sea
Author: Rane Arroyo
Publisher: University of Arizona Press
Total Pages: 228
Release: 2008
Genre: Poetry
ISBN: 9780816527168

In Rane Arroyo's poetry we hear echoes of Whitman, Lorca, Neruda. But more important, we hear Arroyo's own song of self rendered with a lyricism that belies its astonishing and redolent honesty. The Buried Sea: New and Selected Poems is a powerful addition to the American literary landscape. --Connie May Fowler.

Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez
Author: Kathleen A. Tracy
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 140
Release: 2008-09-30
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0313355169

One of Hollywood's first openly Latin stars, Jennifer Lopez has held fast to her New York Bronx roots, while rising above them to become the highest paid Latina actress in history. Her expansive body of work-ranging from film, music, and dance to television production and fashion-has broken down long-standing racial barriers and earned her a place in Forbes' 2007 list of the Top 20 Richest Women in Entertainment. In spite of several box office and a dramatic personal life that has made her the frequent target of tabloid gossip, this determined artist has managed to retain her place at the top of her field and stands poised to make more significant contributions to the entertainment industry. Since bursting into the spotlight with her portrayal of deceased Latin superstar Selena in 1997, Jennifer Lopez has captivated the public eye and carved a niche for herself among Hollywood's elite. One of Hollywood's first openly Latin stars, Jennifer Lopez has held fast to her New York Bronx roots, while rising above them to become the highest paid Latina actress in history. Her expansive body of work-ranging from film, music, and dance to television production and fashion-has broken down long-standing racial barriers and earned her a place in Forbes' 2007 list of the Top 20 Richest Women in Entertainment. Her dramatic personal life-highlighted by a relationship with bad-boy Sean Puffy Combs, two divorces, a highly-publicized broken engagement to Ben Affleck, and marriage to Latin singer Marc Anthony-has earned her as much attention as her career and made her a frequent subject of tabloid gossip. Negative press and several box office flops, however, have done little to diminish J.Lo's popularity. This determined artist has managed hold her place at the top of her field and stand poised to make more important contributions to the entertainment industry. Hollywood journalist Kathleen Tracy explores Jennifer Lopez as both an individual and an entertainer, chronicling the triumphs and pitfalls of her groundbreaking career and intriguing personal life. Complete with a chronology of significant events, illustrations, and a bibliography of print and electronic resources, this detailed biography is ideal for general readers looking to learn more about their favorite star or for students researching the role of race in America's entertainment business.

Selena

Selena
Author: Joe Nick Patoski
Publisher: Berkley
Total Pages: 490
Release: 1997
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN:

Selena Quintanilla was a vibrant performer, wildly popular in the growing field of Tejano music. But her rising star suddenly fell when she was murdered at the age of 23. Now her life, her work, and her musical legacy have been documented. This work recounts Selena's tragically short life, from the ups and downs of her career to her stunning transformation into a sensual Latina superstar.