Book Review: Hungry Woman in Paris

Hungry Woman in Paris by Josefina Lopez

A journalist and activist, Canela believes passion is essential to life; but lately passion seems to be in short supply. It has disappeared from her relationship with her fiancé, who is more interested in controlling her than encouraging her. It's absent from her work, where censorship and politics keep important stories from being published. And while her family is full of outspoken individuals, the only one Canela can truly call passionate is her cousin and best friend Luna, who just took her own life.

Canela can't recover from Luna's death. She is haunted by her ghost and feels acute pain for the dreams that went unrealized. Canela breaks off her engagement and uses her now un-necessary honeymoon ticket, to escape to Paris. Impulsively, she sublets a small apartment and enrolls at Le Coq Rouge, Paris's most prestigious culinary institute.

Cooking school is a sensual and spiritual reawakening that brings back Canela's hunger for life. With a series of new friends and lovers, she learns to once again savor the world around her. Finally able to cope with Luna's death, Canela returns home to her family, and to the kind of life she thought she had lost forever.



Reviewed by: Bela M.

Rating:

Review:
Let me start off by stating what little I liked about this book. First of all, the main character's name was Canela. What a fun name! Canela, which means "cinnamon" (Brown and sweet). The story started out with Canela at her favorite cousin's funeral. I liked how the whole family function turned into an all-out brawl right in the middle of it. Lopez brought out an authentic Mexican flavor to her charcters in this scene. It was funny and witty.

The story started taking a slow turn when Canela decides to go to Paris because she called off her engagement. At first, her reason for leaving was to use the tickets she bought for her honeymoon; but, then, her decision to stay was a little anti-American with the following quote: "I hate my life. I hate the war. I hate what is happening to the U.S., and I just can't go back." (pg. 25) Okay, take a chill pill, girl! Sometimes this story got way too political for my taste.

And sometimes Canela was just a coward to me. I mean, fleeing the country because you don't want to face your mother with the truth? C'mon! Although we all can understand the desire to run away from work, family, life--the world! But, sooner or later, you're going to have to come back and face what you ran away from.

The imagery of Paris was described beautifully and eloquently. However, this still did not compensate for the writer being too graphic with the sex scenes. I was so grossed out by most of them. I can't even tell you a little bit about it. Yuck! Also, she outlined the cooking so much that I often skipped these parts. I also thought that there were too many characters that you don't really care about. In all honesty, I didn't really care about Canela either.

All in all, this book was all about food and sex--no story whatsoever. It was a grave dissapointment. Lopez should really stick to screenplays.

Book Review: Graffiti Girl

Graffiti Girl by Kelly Parra


Raised by her single mom (who's always dating the wrong kind of man) in a struggling California neighborhood, Angel Rodriguez is a headstrong, independent young woman who channels her hopes and dreams for the future into her painting. But when her entry for a community mural doesn't rate, she's heartbroken. Even with winning artist Nathan Ramos — a senior track star and Angel's secret crush — taking a sudden interest in Angel and her art, she's angry and hurt. She's determined to find her own place in the art world, her own way.

That's when Miguel Badalin — from the notorious graffiti crew Reyes Del Norte — opens her eyes to an underground world of graf tags and turf wars. She's blown away by this bad boy's fantastic work and finds herself drawn to his dangerous charm. Soon she's running with Miguel's crew, pushing her skills to the limit and beginning to emerge as the artist she always dreamed she could be. But Nathan and Miguel are bitter enemies with a shared past, and choosing between them and their wildly different approaches to life and art means that Angel must decide what matters most before the artist inside of her can truly break free.



Reviewed by: Sandra Lopez, author of Esperanza and Beyond the Gardens

Rating:

Review: What can I say? I loved Angel! She absolutely rocked with her non-glamour, doesn't-give-a-crap attitude. But, like any other teen, she's shy and insecure, especially about her skills as an artist. She never liked to show off her work because she felt it would never compare to the other students, who were far more talented than she could ever come close to. I'm an artist myself, so I know how that feels.

Angel is a character that many Latino youths can relate to. The other characters in this story are so genuine agaisnt the back drop of a barrio neighborhood. I was intrigued by the concept of "graffiti" art as far as the application, the process, and how expressive it can be.

And, like taffy, you will be pulled in opposite directions as Nathan and Miguel battle over Angel's affections. The question was: who was right for her?

Towards the end, Angel must learn there are sacrifices in achieving your dreams and the choices she makes could impact her life forever. A fun YA read full of surprises.

A "Caliente" Valentine

It is the first day of February, and, in 13 more days, it will be....you guessed it, Valentine's Day

In honor of this upcoming celebration of love, we have posted the following cover.




A hot Latin lover sounds mucho caliente to us.

We hope every girl out there enjoys it.

Book Review: Motorcycle Ride on the Sea of Tranquility

Motorcycle Ride on the Sea of Tranquility by Patricia Santana


It's April 1969, and fourteen-year-old Yolanda Sahagún can hardly wait to see her favorite brother, Chuy, newly returned from Vietnam. But when he arrives at the Welcome Home party the family has prepared in his honor it's clear that the war has changed him. The transformation of Chuy is only one of the challenges that Yolanda and the rest of her family face. This powerful coming-of-age novel, winner of the 1999 Chicano/Latino Literary Contest, is a touching and funny account of a summer that is still remembered as a crossroads in American life. Yolanda and her brothers and sisters learn how to be men and women and how to be Americans as well as Mexican Americans.



Reviewed by: Sandra Lopez, author of Esperanza and Beyond the Gardens
Rating:

Review: Chuy is back from war, but he is different; and the whole family is wondering why, especially his "favorite" sister, Yolanda. So, right away, we are presented with a mystery. Who is this guy and what happened to him? Then Chuy runs off on his Harley and disappears. It is at this time that Yolanda and the family reminisce about Chuy and how it used to be with their family. And while Chuy is "missing," Yolanda continues to grow into her teen years, oblivious to her own femininity and the male psyche. It's like "The (Latina) Wonder Years," a story of a youth coming of age as world history--war, TV, music, the 60's--happens all around her.

At times, the story went off track when the main character started telling the history of their roots and the "American" dream--all boring, really. And although this book was very well-written for the most part, you did run into some sentences that were quite ambiguous. Don't be fooled by the cover, which looks like something that was crudely spliced together in Photoshop; this book is actually pretty good. The author writes with such poignant sensitivity and beauty. Full of mystery and intriguing wonder.

Latina Book List #1

For those of you who are starting the new year with a reading challenge, please consider adding Latina books to your list.

Below are just a few of our recommendations:

1. Becoming Latina in 10 Easy Steps by Lara Rios
2. In Between Men by Mary Castillo
3. More than this by Margo Candela
4. Houston, we have a problema by Gwendolyn Zepeda
5. Graffiti Girl by Kelly Parra
6. Lucky Chica by Berta Platas
7. Operation Famila by Donna Del Oro
8. Adios to my old life by Caridad Ferrer
9. Beyond the Gardens by Sandra Lopez
10. The Tequila Worm by Viola Canales

Of course, there are loads more! (We plan on featuring more book reviews here as the year progresses.)

But this is just to kick things off in the challenge.

Q&A with Misa Ramirez

Today, we are featuring Misa Ramirez, author of the Lola Cruz mysteries.


Please describe the Latina heroine(s) in your book.

Dolores 'Lola' Cruz is a 29 year old newly licensed Private Investigator in Sacramento, CA. She works for Manny Camacho's PI firm, much to her family's dismay. They would have liked to see her as a teacher, or better yet, married with children. But Lola is a black belt in kung fu, independent, driven, and isn't about to let cultural or familial expectations stop her from living the life she's dreamed about.


Who is your intended audience, if any?

Women of all ages, people who love mysteries, Stephanie Plum readers.



How do you feel your books influence Latinas?

One thing my Latina editor told me was that I'd created a character and series that steered clear of stereotypes. I want Lola to be relatable to women of all cultures, and for people who are not familiar with the Mexican culture to respond to and see themselves in Lola Cruz Mysteries. I want Latinas to see themselves in Lola, and to love her, her choices, her family, and her life.



What does being Latina mean to you?

Well, I am actually not Latina! I like to say I'm 'Latina by marriage' and that Lola is my alter ego, if I were a smart, sexy, Latina PI! My husband is Mexican. We have 5 children. I've been part of his family for so long and I love the culture that when it came to writing a book, I immediately wanted to write someone my children could relate to, someone who balanced their two cultures, and someone fun, smart, sexy, and sassy!



What do you think the future holds for today’s Latina?

Endless possibilities!



What are some of your favorite Latina authors and why?

I enjoy reading Isabel Allende and Julia Alvarez. I also like Caridad Pineiro .



Do you have a website or a blog?

I have several!

http://misaramirez.com/
http://thenakedhero.com/

and http://booksonthehouse.com%20and/and http://booksonthehouse.com/kids

These are sites where books are given away every single week!!


I also have a brand new Lola Christmas story available on Amazon and Smashwords! It's called The Lola Cruz Christmas Story. Hope you will check it out!


http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/31517
http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Story-Prequel-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B004E9U72E

Book Review: Good-bye to All That

Good-bye to All That by Margo Candela


Raquel Azorian has worked her way from temp to executive assistant and is this close to a promotion to junior marketing exec at Belmore Corporation, the media behemoth she’s devoted herself to. She’s learned to play the Hollywood game—navigate office politics, schmooze the right people, avoid the wrong ones, and maintain a sense of decorum even in the craziest of times. All she needs is for her boss to sign her promotion memo. Instead of putting pen to paper, he suffers a very public meltdown that puts not only his professional future but also Raquel’s on the line.

Getting to the next rung on the Belmore ladder will require every ounce of focus, but that’s not going to be easy. Raquel’s mom has decided to leave her husband and move into Raquel’s apartment, and her older brother seems to be sinking deeper and deeper into depression. Raquel has to keep her job, stop her parents from divorcing, and save her brother. In the chaos of juggling so much, she finally reaches a breaking point: there’s just not enough time for everything or for everyone. She’s going to have to choose—success at work or happiness at home. But then a chance encounter at a bookstore café leads Raquel to start planning her own Hollywood ending . . . on her own terms.


Reviewed by: Bela M.

Rating:




Review:
Raquel is your hard-working girl climbing her way up the corporate ladder (or trying to, anyway). It's Girl vs. The Hollywood Machine.

This book embodies the classic style of Margo Candela, author of More than this. It has comical sass mixed in with profound philosophy on modern life. Even though this book started off a little slow for me, the story does not disappoint as you press on. The book picks up towards the middle when Raquel's mother suddenly moves in with her after a fight with her dad. Oy, living with your mother again. And, on top of that, her brother's marriage may be in trouble and suddenly she must fix it. Then things at work start heating up for Raquel when she begins a secret affair with a sexy co-worker.

Filled with witty comments and humorous dialogue. A nice, quick read that you can't wait to get through.