7 Books to Read This Hispanic Heritage Month

by Alex Espinoza

🎧 Audiobook

This novel follows an epic, multigenerational story spanning 1960’s Mexico City to present day Los Angeles, following a family of Mexican wrestlers with many family secrets.

Some of the aspects that I loved the most about this novel were the family legacy, secrets, and in true Hispanic fashion, lots of chisme (family gossip), and forbidden love! Told in multiple perspectives I absolutely loved getting to know all the characters that made up the Vega family and their story across generations.

by Sandra Cisneros

🎧 Audiobook

Hickman Holler Reading Club’s 2026 September Pick! If Tyler Childers’ is reading The House on Mango Street in September, I must give it a reread!

Originally published in 1984, Sandra Cisnero’s The House on Mango Street is a beloved Hispanic/Latine coming of age classic. about a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago. Told through a series of beautifully written vignettes that touch on girlhood, identity, family, community, and discovering who you are. Even if you’ve read it before, rereading it with the Hickman Holler Reading Club is the perfect excuse to return to Mango Street.

by Melissa Mogollon

🎧 Audiobook

“¿Hola? ¿Que paso?” Hey what’s up? One of the most common ways to answer the phone in Spanish, and a phrase you’ll read a lot throughout Oye by Melissa Mogollon.

This book is completely told in a series of one-sided phone calls between Luciana, and her older sister. Luciana is the youngest daughter in her large Colombian-American family, and she suddenly finds herself having to step up and become the voice of reason when a hurricane is headed straight to her abuela and her eccentric grandmother refuses to evacuate.

Luciana’s abuelita reminded me far too much of my own abuela, which made reading this book feel even more familiar and special. I would definitely recommend listening to the audiobook for this one!

by Natalie Guerrero

🎧 Audiobook

For all musical theatre fans, this one is for you! This story follows Xiomara, an Afro-Latina woman living in Washington Heights who dreams of making it big on Broadway. Xiomara lives with her very Catholic Puerto Rican mother, who disapproves of most things Xiomara chooses for herself. After the death of her sister, Xiomara throws herself head first into work juggling her multiple jobs just to make ends meet.

But when a life-changing opportunity comes knocking, Xiomara has to push through her grief in order to pursue her dreams and make them a reality. As a musical theater lover, this book made me way too excited to visit Ellen’s Stardust Diner on my next NYC trip!

by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

🎧 Audiobook

To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, you can truly add any book by Silvia Moreno Garcia to your TBR, but this year I wanted to recommend one of my favorites: Velvet Was The Night!

If you’re a fan of noir, this book is for you. Velvet Was The Night is a super atmospheric novel set in Mexico in the 1970s. This story follows Maite, a hopeless romantic whose next door neighbor, Lenora, goes missing. Maite begins searching for the missing woman and finding herself wrapped up in her neighbor’s life and secrets.

This novel is a historical slow-burn filled with intrigue, mystery, and political tension, all set against the backdrop of 1970s Mexico. If you’re looking for something atmospheric and a little different to read this Hispanic Heritage Month, definitely add this one to your list!

by Jonny Garza Villa

🎧 Audiobook

I still think of Ander and Santi’s love story every now and then. Ander and Santi Were Here is a contemporary YA romance that follows a Mexican-American teen who falls in love with an undocumented Mexican boy.

Non-binary mural artist Ander works at their family’s taqueria, where they meet Santi, the new waiter. As their relationship begins to bloom, ICE agents come for Santi, forcing them to face the reality that the world is trying to keep them apart.

This is a beautiful and very emotional love story that explores the realities of immigration and deportation. As a Puerto Rican and U.S. citizen, I've never had to worry about deportation or navigate these experiences myself, so I always appreciate reading stories like this. They give me the opportunity to learn from other folks in my community whose experiences and stories are very different from my own.

by Xochitl Gonzalez

🎧 Audiobook

Historical fiction, mystery, and art meet in this beautiful novel by Xochitl Gonzalez. Told in a dual timeline, the story follows Raquel, a Hispanic first-generation college student who discovers the work of Anita De Monte, an incredible artist whose art and suspicious death have been forgotten decades later.

Based on the true story of the life, work, and tragic death of Cuban-American artist Ana Mendieta and her relationship with artist Carl Andre, this book brought to light a story that is all too familiar: women, particularly women of color being overshadowed and forgotten while the men around them receive recognition. I loved how Xochitl Gonzalez used fiction to reclaim the story and gave Ana Mendieta the recognition she deserved.