Rachel Reads & Reviews

Nuestra América: 30 Inspiring Latinas/Latinos Who Have Shaped the United States by Sabrina Vourvoulias

Like any nonfiction books on the subject of role models and inspiring people, this book provides mini biographies on some famous and some lesser known figures that shaped or changed history through their accomplishments. The standard latinos are present such as Lin Manuel Miranda and Sandra Cisneroes, Cesar Chavez and Dolares Huerta etc. I want to present some new ones I’ve learned from this book.

-Luis Walter Alveraz who had twenty two patents from optical devices to a golf training machine for President Eisnhower, was also part of the Manhatten Project to develope the atomic bomb and then awarded the 1968 Novel Prize for Physics in discovering several subatomic particles in liqued hydrogen. He was also the mastermind of other experiments like using cosmic rays to find Egyptian chambers under the pyramids and correctly theorizing that meteors killed dinosaurs years before it was confirmed.

Jaime Escalante-The inspiration for the hit film Stand and Deliver, Escalante was a passionate teacher with unique techniques promoting hands-on lerning with music, remote controlled toys and intense weekend drilling. But with his dedication he got his class of minority and disadvantaged kids to ace the SATs (to the point the College Board thought they were cheating) and encouraged them to dream big despite the obstacles and prejudices of others.

Macario García-A Staff Sergeant in WWII, he performed many courageous deeds for his country (with several prominant medals like the Purple Heart, and a Medal of Honor) but was denied service at a resturaunt because he was Latino. He continued to fight for his rights and rights of other Latinos and became a counselor in the Department of Veteran Affairs.

Sylvia Mendez-The Civil Rights activist who people should know was part Thurgood Marshall’s inspiration for Brown vs Board of Education. In 1943, Latinos were segregated from the better funded and better staffed white schools in California. The Mendez family was not going to accept this substandard quality of education and fought in court (Mendez v. Westminster), leading to Sylvia being one of the first children to integrate the schools. She continued to fight discrimination in her adulthood, speaking to universities and legislators about the history of her court case and was even awarded the Presidential Medel of Freedom by Obama.

Pura Belpré-The first Latina librarian on the mainland, Belpre not only encouraged a love of reading in millions of kids with her storytimes and puppet shows but also brought Puerto Rican folklore to literature when she noticed the lack of Spanish books on shelves. She wrote her own retellings of traditional Puerto Rican folktales, arranged Diego Rivera to lecture, celebrated Latino feast days and overall, added to the world of literature and libraries. Now there’s the Pura Belpre Award marking the books of honored Latino works.

What sets this book apart from other nonfiction is that this was done in collaboration with the Molina Gallery and the Smithsonian Latino Center. The book offers thoughtful questions for critical discussion and thinking regarding themes of the book and patterns throughout history. It also has a QR code that leads to the virtual Smithsonian Latino Learning Lab and look more into the history.

Really this book is necessary not just for Hispanic Heritage Month but just to learn. As the intro says, “History is largely made by people and it is through their life stories that we will be able to paint a more accurate portrait of our country’s past, present and future.”

(more…)