The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Caribbean & Latin American

Vida by Duncan Tonatiuh

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Vida by Duncan Tonatiuh
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Vida is a joyful celebration of art bringing a community together. Tonatiuh’s vibrant illustrations capture the colors and whimsy of fantastical alebrije sculptures, an art form made famous in Mexico. As the title suggests, this picture book captures the life of a community through its art, language, and traditions. A joyful treasure of a book. Alegre!

Vida by Duncan Tonatiuh, (List Price: $18.99, Abrams Books for Young Readers, 9781419764592, November 2025)

Reviewed by Laura Hoefener, Bookmiser in Marietta, Georgia

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The Brush by Hernández-Pachón, Eliana

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The Brush by Eliana Hernández-Pachón
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Powerful and devastating. The language is so concise and brilliantly moving. Every word makes a massive impact in this slim, arresting poem.

The BrushThe Brush by Eliana Hernández-Pachón, (List Price: $17, Archipelago, 9781953861863, March 2024)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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School of Instructions by Ishion Hutchinson

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School of Instructions by Ishion Hutchinson
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Totally unlike any poetry collection I’ve ever read before. The harsh descriptions of World War I, in lyric conversation with the innocence and virtue of a schoolboy, make this collection so sublime and reverential.

School of Instructions by Ishion Hutchinson, (List Price: $26, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 9780374610265, November 2023)

Reviewed by Emily Tarr, Thank You Books in Birmingham, Alabama

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Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls by Kaela Rivera

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Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls
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CECE RIOS is a beautiful story about finding your inner strength and standing up for what you believe in. Cece witnesses the kidnapping of her older sister, Juana, and vows to rescue her from the realm where dark criaturas live. But it’s discouraging when her entire village thinks she’s cursed with a spirit like Water, in a place where Fire is preferred. Rivera’s world-building is marvelous and her writing hits straight to your heart. As someone who was told “You’re too sensitive,” growing up, this story is so important. Cece loves and feels deeply, she cries when she’s upset, and she is strong because of all of these things. Being fearful doesn’t make you weak, nor does being angry make you strong.

Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls by Kaela Rivera (List Price: $16.99, HarperCollins, 9780062947550, 4/13/2021)

Reviewed by Miriam Meeks, Lemuria Books in Jackson, Mississippi

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