Books to Celebrate Latine and Hispanic Heritage Month in Hawai‘i
From poetry to picture books, read through these titles to celebrate our local Latine and Hispanic cultures!
Sept. 15 marks the start of Latine and Hispanic Heritage Month. Celebrations are as diverse as the multitude of identities, communities, and lived experiences honored today. Here in Hawai‘i, we remember the Mexican vaqueros invited by King Kamehameha III to share cattle ranching knowledge in the era of paniolo (a Hawaiian adaptation of the word “español”), the migration of Puerto Rican laborers during the rise of sugar in the islands and more.
From the early Boricua Hawaiiana to new Latine generations, these titles explore the vast histories and deep intersectionality of Hispanic and Latine locals through a poetry collection that considers mothering and mother tongues, an award-winning YA novel-in-verse about finding one’s voice and a beloved local picture book forthcoming in Spanish. We at Da Shop: Books + Curiosities hope these titles inspire learning, connection and celebration during Latine and Hispanic Heritage month.
Photo: Courtesy of Da Shop: Books + Curiosities
Aloha Compadre: Latinx in Hawai‘i
by Dr. Rudy P. Guevarra Jr.
This thoughtful and stunning tome documents the 200-year history of Latine and Hispanic peoples in Hawai‘i. Dr. Rudy P. Guevarra Jr. is a Mexican-Filipino scholar whose seminal work narrates the events, notable figures and socio-political context for centuries of Latinx migration and community building, while addressing complicated settler colonial structures, racism, and prejudices that challenge us to consider who we call “local” and who this definition continues to exclude.
Photo: Courtesy of Da Shop: Books + Curiosities
Where My Umbilical Is Buried
by Amanda Galvan Huynh
This beautiful collection by local Xicana poet Amanda Galvan Huyhn is a moving ode to the heartache of mothering in both its abundance and its absence. In visceral text, Huynh considers the menacing calculations of assimilation cast against her cultural inheritance and the heft of carrying heritage forward to new generations and an imagined future. A powerful collection that is not to be missed.
Photo: Courtesy of Da Shop: Books + Curiosities
Una ‘Ohana Normal
Written by Lee Cataluna
Illustrated by Cheyne Gallarde
Translated by Aythana Castillo Flores
“Vivo en Hawái. Tengo una ‘ohana,” says young Kainoa in this forthcoming Spanish-language translation of the beloved Ordinary ‘Ohana. The successive show-and-tell is an invitation of belonging, made warm and welcoming by the young narrator’s nonchalance: His big, diverse family is entirely normal, ordinary. This empowering and relatable story cheerily illustrates how our ‘ohana often expand beyond the definitions of bloodlines to those who lovingly show up in our lives. A joyful place-based picture book for Spanish language learners and native speakers alike!
Photo: Courtesy of Da Shop: Books + Curiosities
The Poet X
by Elizabeth Acevedo
While not rooted in Hawai‘i, The Poet X, written by former Youth Poet Laureate Afro-Latina Elizabeth Acevedo, navigates a coming-of-voice narrative of first generation Xiomara Batista that is relatable and accessible to our ‘ōpio here in the islands. Winner of the National Book Award and the prestigious Pura Belpré award, this novel-in-verse paces Xiomara’s hopes, rage, fear and angst with a masterful tempo. And P.S. you can grab an autographed copy at our shop that Elizabeth was so kind to sign when she visited!
Archives of Blase Camacho Souza
It is not often we recommend a non-book item, but here is where publications fall short: Blase Camacho Souza, a trailblazing second-generation Boricua Hawaiiana, wrote extensively about the Puerto Rican experience in Hawai‘i. Her vast writing lives primarily in digital archives. Souza not only pursued her BA from the University of Hawai‘i but additionally gained a degree in Library Information and Sciences from the Pratt Institute. A longtime teacher for the Hawai‘i Department of Education, she also was a co-founder of the Hawai‘i Association of School Librarians, an organization that continues to enrich our library professionals today. For how she championed the preservation of her cultural history as an author, archivist, and advocate, and additionally built communities through her librarianship, we encourage you to peek into the online archives, read her work and celebrate her legacy.
SEE ALSO: 5 Hawai‘i and Oceania Books to Take You on an Odyssey
Da Shop: Books + Curiosities, 3565 Harding Ave., Kaimukī, open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., (808) 421-9460, dashophnl.com, @dashophnl
