Cool Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Growing Up Hispanic in the United States

War Stories

Skin

Extraordinary

A Cool Moonlight

Black Boy, Black Boy

War Games

Unbelievably Boring Bart


He didn't say good-bye. He didn't leave a phone number. And he didn't plan on coming back - ever.

In Wisconsin, Rico could blend in. His light hair and lighter skin wouldn't make him the "dark dude" or the punching bag for the whole neighborhood. The Midwest is the land of milk and honey, but for Rico Fuentes, it's really a last resort. Trading Harlem for Wisconsin, though, means giving up on a big part of his identity. And when Rico no longer has to prove that he's Latino, he almost stops being one. Except he can never have an ordinary white kid's life, because there are some things that can't be left behind, that can't be cut loose or forgotten. These are the things that will be with you forever.... These are the things that will follow you a thousand miles away.

For anyone who loved The Outsiders -- and for anyone who's ever felt like one -- Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Oscar Hijuelos brings to life a haunting choice and an unforgettable journey about identity, misidentity, and all that we take with us when we run away.

Discover Your Child's Next Read

Cool Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Growing Up Hispanic in the United States

Oscar Hijuelos, Lori Marie Carlson, 1994

War Stories

Gordon Korman, 2020

Skin

Christine Webster, 2005

Extraordinary

Miriam Spitzer Franklin, 2015

A Cool Moonlight

Angela Johnson, 2003

Black Boy, Black Boy

Jorge Redmond, Ken Daley, Ali Kamanda, 2022

War Games

Audrey Couloumbis, Akila Couloumbis, 2009

Unbelievably Boring Bart

James Patterson, Duane Swierczynski, 2018