Our Friend is Here! An Interview with Circe Moskowitz and Linda Raquel, Contributing Authors of Reclaim the Stars – On the Catharsis of Stories, Writerly Dreams, & Latine Book Recommendations

Our Friend is Here! is a guest feature at The Quiet Pond, where authors, creatives, and fellow readers, are invited to ‘visit’ the Pond! In Our Friend is Here! guest posts, our visitors (as their very own unique character!) have a friendly conversation about anything related to books or being a reader — and become friends with Xiaolong and friends.

Our Friend is Here: Latine Heritage Month Edition is a month-long event at The Quiet Pond between September 15 – October 15, where we invite Latine authors to celebrate being Latine and Latine books! Find the introduction post for Latine Heritage Month here.

It’s no secret that we here at the Pond love cheerleading and supporting diverse debut authors at the very start of their writerly journeys. Reclaim the Stars, edited by Zoraida Córdova, is a Latine SFF YA anthology that has been super hype for me ever since it was announced — a whole new anthology of diverse YA speculative short stories, featuring beloved authors like Anna-Marie McLemore and Nina Moreno! — but the fact that there are two excellent debut authors among its lineup of writers makes this book absolutely unmissable for me. Today, I am overjoyed to be sitting down for a chat with rising stars Circe and Linda about their stories in the anthology, their writing inspiration, and dreams about the future!

Our Friend is Here! An Interview with Crystal Maldonado, Author of Fat Chance, Charlie Vega – On Fat Heroines, Mental Health, and Complex Relationships

Our Friend is Here! is a guest feature at The Quiet Pond, where authors, creatives, and fellow readers, are invited to ‘visit’ the Pond! In Our Friend is Here! guest posts, our visitors (as their very own unique character!) have a friendly conversation about anything related to books or being a reader — and become friends with Xiaolong and friends.

Our Friend is Here: Latine Heritage Month Edition is a month-long event at The Quiet Pond between September 15 – October 15, where we invite Latine authors to celebrate being Latine and Latine books! Find the introduction post for Latine Heritage Month here.

When I saw the cover of Fat Chance, Charlie Vega, I knew I had to pick it up. On it, there is a gorgeous, fat Latine teenage girl in a beautiful lace-adorned green dress, a piece of clothing that becomes pivotal in her journey within the pages. It was one of my favorite books this spring and included relationships I won’t soon forget, from Charlie’s best friendship with Amelia, her budding relationship with Bryan, and her complicated mother-daughter dynamics. I knew immediately that I wanted to have a conversation with Crystal to talk more about all of these dynamics and I am beyond grateful that she has joined us for Latine Heritage Month.

Our Friend is Here! An Interview with Kaela Rivera, Author of Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls – On Mexican Folklore and Exploring Latine Themes of Death, Familia, and Duality

Our Friend is Here! is a guest feature at The Quiet Pond, where authors, creatives, and fellow readers, are invited to ‘visit’ the Pond! In Our Friend is Here! guest posts, our visitors (as their very own unique character!) have a friendly conversation about anything related to books or being a reader — and become friends with Xiaolong and friends.

Our Friend is Here: Latine Heritage Month Edition is a month-long event at The Quiet Pond between September 15 – October 15, where we invite Latine authors to celebrate being Latine and Latine books! Find the introduction post for Latine Heritage Month here.

One of my favourite kinds of middle-grade books are those that take you on an adventure; the kind where, after finishing the book, you felt that you’ve traveled to a place far away and have returned to yourself changed. That’s how I felt after reading Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls by Kaela Rivera, an action-packed and exciting Latine fantasy adventure. Cece Rios takes you on an unforgettable world, a place full of magic, where the desert feels vast, and the criatura are mysterious and powerful.

Book Recommendations – 8 Latine Contemporary and Coming-of-Age Stories

Our Friend is Here! is a guest feature at The Quiet Pond, where authors, creatives, and fellow readers, are invited to ‘visit’ the Pond! In Our Friend is Here! guest posts, our visitors (as their very own unique character!) have a friendly conversation about anything related to books or being a reader — and become friends with Xiaolong and friends.

Our Friend is Here: Latine Heritage Month Edition is a month-long event at The Quiet Pond between September 15 – October 15, where we invite Latine authors to celebrate being Latine and Latine books! Find the introduction post for Latine Heritage Month here.

September flew right by and October is here – which means that we’re also halfway through Latine Heritage Month at the Pond! I hope all of you have been reading the most wonderful Latine books – I’ve read many, some of which will be in today’s book recommendation post!

In the past week, I’ve shared my book reviews of the enchanting The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Cordova and feel-good romance Like a Love Song by Gabriela Martins. We also had the privilege of having Raquel Vasquez Gilliland visit us again this year, and we discussed her splendid book, How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe (one of my favourite books of this year).

Our Friend is Here! An Interview with Raquel Vasquez Gilliland, Author of How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe – On Body Image, Enemies-to-Lovers Romances, and Her Writing Journey So Far

Our Friend is Here! is a guest feature at The Quiet Pond, where authors, creatives, and fellow readers, are invited to ‘visit’ the Pond! In Our Friend is Here! guest posts, our visitors (as their very own unique character!) have a friendly conversation about anything related to books or being a reader — and become friends with Xiaolong and friends.

Our Friend is Here: Latine Heritage Month Edition is a month-long event at The Quiet Pond between September 15 – October 15, where we invite Latine authors to celebrate being Latine and Latine books! Find the introduction post for Latine Heritage Month here.

Earlier this year, I read, what will certainly be, one of my favourite books of 2021. It broke my heart wide open but filled it with light and awe. That book is How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland; a gorgeous contemporary novel with elements of magical realism that also explores family, sex positivity, and self-love. How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe is the kind of book that fills you with so much wonder and magic of the universe, one that I love whole-heartedly. After I finished Moon Fuentez, though, I felt like I had so many questions that I wanted to ask Raquel – and so I’m immeasurably happy that she’s returned to the Pond.