#yamile saied mendez

[the-final-sentence]

‘One for all, all for one!’

Yamile Saied Méndez, from “All for One”

[biwifeenergia]

Yamile Saied Méndez.

[illustration-alcove]

Rachelle Baker’s illustrated book cover for Yamile Saied Méndez’s Furia.

[readtilyoudie]

"Death is a labor of love. A mother receives you into the world. A godmother ushers you out.”

Our Shadows Have Claws: 15 Latin American Monster Stories: La Madrina by Yamile Saied Méndez

[pipperoni32-blog]

Furia

by Yamile Saied Méndez / 4 stars

I definitely wouldn't have found this if not for the "Oregon Battle of the Books", and my mom starting the program up at the school library. The culture and language barrier was definitely strong, keeping me from fully getting a lot of references, or understanding parts of the book. Listening to the audiobook was a great choice, as it kept me from stumbling over Spanish sentences, and kept the listening experience smooth and fluid.

Having the book set in Argentina made such an impact. It's also somehow stealing my words to describe just how powerful the challenges that Camila faced were. While this book didn't always keep a tight grip on my attention, I still felt strongly throughout it. As the ending neared, I was sucked in and hoping that everything would work out.

Definitely a book to give a try! It may not be a popular enough choice to make it a common name, but what a strong, beautiful story.

[randomreferencesandquotes]

hmm you know, I don't think it works like that. just a hunch

[alexisrosemullens]

Rules: Answer and tag 9 people you want to get to know better and/or catch up with!

Thanks for the tag @jddryder!

Favourite colour: blue, purple, and pink

Last song listened to: My Kink is Karma by Chappell Roan

Currently reading: The Many Daughters of Afong Moy by Jamie Ford which I HIGHLY recommend. And Furia by Yamile Saied Mendez

Currently watching: 9-1-1, waiting for The Bear s2 and Bridgerton part 2. I need a show for the summer hiatus so suggestions please!

Currently craving: Cake that's in my fridge waiting for me

Coffee or Tea: Coffee

tagging: @fallowtail @buckleydiaz @noah-price @ginnxtonic @church-of-lilith @singinprincess @maygrantgf @swearphil @ghostlyheart

[richincolor]

We have three books on our radar this week! Which ones are you interested in?

Forty Words for Love by Aisha Saeed Kokila

In this luminous young adult novel by New York Times bestselling author Aisha Saeed, two teen protagonists grow from friends to something more in the aftermath of a tragedy in their magical town. Moonlight Bay is a magical place—or it was once. After a tragic death mars the town, the pink and lavender waters in the bay turn gray, and the forest that was a refuge for newcomers becomes a scourge to the townspeople. Almost overnight, the entire town seems devoid of life and energy. The tourists have stopped coming. And the people in the town are struggling. This includes the two teens at the heart of our story: Yasmine and Rafay. Yasmine is a child of the town, and her parents are trying and failing to make ends meet. Rafay is an immigrant, a child of Willow Forest. The forest of Moonlight Bay was where people from Rafay’s community relocated when their home was destroyed. Except Moonlight Bay is no longer a welcoming refuge, and tensions between the townspeople and his people are growing. Yasmine and Rafay have been friends since Rafay first arrived, nearly ten years ago. As they've gotten older, their friendship has blossomed. Not that they would ever act on these feelings. The forest elders have long warned that falling in love with "outsiders" will lead to devastating consequences for anyone from Willow Forest. But is this actually true? Can Yasmine and Rafay find a way to be together despite it all? -- Cover image and summary via Goodreads

Writing in Color: The Lessons We've Learned edited by Nafiza Azad and Melody Simpson Margaret K. McElderry Books

So, you’re thinking of writing a book. Or, maybe you’ve written one, and are wondering what to do with it. What does it take to publish a novel, or even a short story? If you’re a writer of color, these questions might multiply; after all, there’s a lot of writing advice out there, and it can be hard to know how much of it really applies to your own experiences. If any of this sounds like you, you’re in the right place: this collection of essays, written exclusively by authors of color, is here to encourage and empower writers of all ages and backgrounds to find their voice as they put pen to page. Perhaps you’re just getting started. Here you’ll find a whole toolkit of advice from bestselling and award-winning authors for focusing on an idea, landing on a point of view, and learning which rules were meant to be broken. Or perhaps you have questions about everything beyond the first draft: what is it really like being a published author? These writers demystify the process, sharing personal stories as they forged their own path to publication, and specifically from their perspectives as author of color. Every writer has a different journey. Maybe yours has already started. Or maybe it begins right here. Contributors include: Julie C. Dao, Chloe Gong, Joan He, Kosoko Jackson, Adiba Jaigirdar, Darcie Little Badger, Yamile Saied Mendez, Axie Oh, Laura Pohl, Cindy Pon, Karuna Riazi, Gail D. Villanueva, Julian Winters, and Kat Zhang. -- Cover image and summary via Goodreads

Actually Super by Adi Alsaid Knopf Books for Young Readers

A globetrotting novel that takes a determined teen from Japan to Australia and to Argentina and Mexico on a quest to prove that humanity is more good than bad from the author of Let’s Get Lost and Before Takeoff. Isabel is having an existential crisis. She’s three years into high school, and everything she’s learned has only shaken her faith in humanity. Late one night, she finds herself drawn to a niche corner of the internet—a forum whose members believe firmly in one that there are indeed people out in the world quietly performing impossible acts of heroism. You might even call them supers . No, not in the comic book sense—these are real people, just like each of us, but who happen to have a power or two. If Isabel can find them, she reasons, she might be able to prove to herself that humanity is more good than bad. So, the day she turns 18, she sets off on a journey that will take her from Japan to Australia, and from Argentina to Mexico, with many stops along the way. She longs to prove one— just one— super exists to restore her hope for the future. Will she find what she’s looking for? And how will she know when—if—she does? -- Cover image and summary via Goodreads

[michellesargentinianlitblog]

Most Important Quote

" Now I have to tell my parent "

-Yamile Saied Mendez, Furia (29)

[read-alert]

September TBR! Full titles under the cut!

Captive Genders: Trans Embodiment and the Prison Industrial Complex ed by Nat Smith and Eric A Stanley

King of the Rising by Kacen Callender

Dawn by Octavia Butler

The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice

Self Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix by AM McLemore

Dreaming of You by Melissa Lozada-Olivia

Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of Pillage of a Continent by Eduardo Galeano

The Immortals by Makenzy Orcel trans by Nathan H Dize

Relit: 16 Latinx Remixes of Classic Stories ed by Sandra Proudman

BDS: Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions: The Global Struggle for Palestinian Rights by Omar Barghouti

The Name-Bearer by Natalia Hernandez

Racism Without Racists: Color-Blind Racism and the Persistence of Racial Inequality in the United States by Eduardo Bonilla-Silva

Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldanado

Hestia Strikes a Match by Christine Grillo

King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender

Speculative Fiction for Dreamers: A Latinx Anthology ed by Sarah Rafael García, Matthew David Goodwin, and Alex Hernandez

Ghost Squad by Claribel A Ortega

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird by Agustina Bacteria trans by Sarah Moses

Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland

You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue trans by Natasha Wimmer

Ander and Santi Were Here by Johnny Garza Villa

Our Shadows Have Claws: 15 Latin American Monster Stories ed by Amparo Ortiz and Yamile Saied Mendez

Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology ed by Shane Hawk and Theodore C Van Alst Jr

The Art of Star Trek by Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens

Teen Titans vol 2: Family Lost by Geoff Johns et al

Batman: Gates of Gotham by Scott Snyder et al

The Old Guard Book Three: Tales Through Time by Greg Rucka et al

[winningthesweepstakes]

Calling the Moon edited by Aida Salazar and Yamile Saied Mendez

Calling the Moon: 16 Period Stories from BIPOC Authors edited by Aida Salazar and Yamile Saied Mendez. Candlewick Press, 2023. 9781536216349 Rating: 1-5 (5 is an excellent or a Starred review) 4.5 Format: Hardcover Genre: Realistic fiction What did you like about the book? Sometimes getting your period is a pleasant surprise. Sometimes it comes as a horrifying shock. Sometimes it even appears…

[biwifeenergia]

Yamile Saied Méndez.

[saraishortcake]

Books I've Read This Year

The Inheritance Games- Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The Hawthorne Legacy- Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Dear Martin- Nic Stone

This is My America- Kim Johnson

Their Eyes Were Watching God- Zora Neale Hurston

Party of Two- Jasmine Guillory

Furia- Yamile Saied Mendez

Blackout- Nic Stone, Nicola Yoon, etc.

[che-michelle]

Twice the Quinceanera Is a Joy!

Book Review Book: Twice The Quinceanera Author: Yamile Saied Mendez Published: July 26th, 2022 Wine Choice:  Elisa Saugivigon Blanc Stand Alone, Series, or Other: Stand Alone Type of book: Novel Genre: Rom-Com; Fiction How long did it take me to read this book:   5 days Overall rating: Wonderful, Citrusy, and Empowering By the time you read this review, it will either be the end of…

[kingsbridgelibraryteens]

Looking for some award-winning YA fiction? Check out our brand-new READ A WINNER display, featuring:

Heaven by Angela Johnson

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Furia by Yamile Saied Mendez

The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

[mermaidsirennikita]

ARC Review: Love of My Lives by Yamile Saied Mendez

2/5. Releases 9/26/2023.

Vibes: vacation romance, magical realism, a very loving portrayal of Puerto Rico, and a chasteness but... not?

In a dream, Madi's abuela predicts that her one true love will be a man with the initials "JR'. Years later, Madi is engaged to a man with those initials, but doesn't feel right. Grabbing a business trip to Puerto Rico as an opportunity to scatter her abuela's ashes, Madi makes an instant connection that feels Fated... except for his initials.

Look, I know this premise is a stretch, but I love magical realism and I like it. Unfortunately, while I think Mendez can write a very good sentence, I did not connect with this book. It didn't really hit me as a romance, and it didn't hit me as an emotional "woman finding herself" book. I feel like a friend of mine would like this book--but I couldn't latch on.

Quick Takes:

--So here's my thing. I think that with the right spin, I could've bought that Madi believed in this prophetic dream well into adulthood--it would've been something I bought. But in a way, I didn't feel like Madi was a messy enough adult for me to buy that she'd put this much stock in the dream. This isn't a mildly important issue, this is her future partner. There are definitely women who would rely on that dream, but I don't know. I felt like Madi's personality just didn't gel with that level of spiritualism.

In the same sense, I can buy instalove, I'm not inherently against it. However, it's a hard sell. I don't feel like enough power was put into the connection between Madi and her love (holding back on who he is because like--spoilers). I just didn't believe this was anything other than good chemistry. Not even "bone me in a parked car half an hour after meeting me" chemistry. Just fine.

--That said, there is a lot of love put into Puerto Rico. You can feel the setting, you can sense the love Madi has for her experiences there (and her abuela). Not to be cliche, but it's arguable that the "love" of the book is Puerto Rico. And that's not a bad thing--but in order for this book to really embrace that, I think the plot would have to be re-tooled a bit.

Also, I have to say that the release date for this book... confuses me? It seems likes such a prime beach read; it's got a total summer vacation sensibility.

--I do think, as I said above, that Mendez has a lovely writing style. It's not flowery, but it's soothing and has a natural appeal. My issues are really with some choices made regarding story and character.

The Sex Stuff:

This book is closed door... but they do have sex. And a vibrator is mentioned, among other things. I was a little weirded out by that choice, to be honest. I get romances that are chaste. But when you make it clear that two people have sex and just don't show it... I don't understand. Not every sex scene needs to be super long (though I.... usually prefer those that are) but this felt like a bit of a bait and switch.

This wasn't a fit for me, but I did enjoy the descriptions of Puerto Rico.

Thanks to Kensington and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.