LIBRO GALARDONADO CON EL PURA BELPRÉ HONOR • Incluido entre la Mejor Ficción para Adultos Jóvenes de acuerdo a YALSA 2026
★ "Una excelente adición a las colecciones en español para lectores de secundaria y preparatoria."–Selenia Paz, School Library Journal
Esta poderosa historia en verso gira en torno a una adolescente texana que lucha contra el racismo en su clase de teatro y contra los intentos de censura literaria por parte de la junta escolar. Se trata del debut en la literatura juvenil de Jasminne Mendez, galardonada con el Premio de Honor Pura Belpré por su novela Aniana del Mar se avienta.
Yulieta López está furiosa. Furiosa con su profesora de teatro que se niega a elegir estudiantes negros para los papeles protagónicos. Furiosa con la junta escolar, que amenaza a su profesor favorito por enseñar obras literarias que consideran "controvertidas". Furiosa porque debe guardar silencio hasta irse a la universidad y dejar Texas para siempre.
Yuli está acostumbrada a interpretar varios papeles: la chica estudiosa, la hija honorable, la niña buena que sirve a todos los demás antes que a sí misma. Pero conforme el fuego de su indignación se propaga y la ilumina, Yuli no puede callar. Decidida a encontrar una forma de resistir, ella y sus amistades más cercanas fundan un club de teatro guerrillero que agita las aguas de la escuela y hace que se empiece a hablar de los temas realmente importantes. Yuli asume, por fin, el papel que siempre estuvo destinada a interpretar.
ENGLISH DESCRIPTION
PURA BELPRÉ HONOR BOOK
An excellent addition to Spanish-language collections for middle school and high school readers.–Selenia Paz, School Library Journal
Jasminne Mendez makes her YA debut with a powerful novel-in-verse about a Texas teen who is battling racism in her theatre program and book banning efforts by her town’s school board.
An International Literacy Association Notable Book for a Global Society • Selected for ALA’s Rise: A Feminist Book Project List • Selected for YALSA 2026 Best Fiction for Young Adults List
Yulieta Lopez is angry. Angry at her racist drama teacher who refuses to cast Black students in lead roles. Angry at the school board threatening her favorite teacher for teaching works of literature that they deem “controversial.” Angry that she has to keep quiet until she can head to college and leave Texas forever.
Yuli is accustomed to playing various roles: the diligent daughter, the honorable hija, the good girl who serves everyone else before serving herself. But as the fire of Yuli's rage spreads and lights her up, she can no longer be silent. Determined to find a way to fight back, Yuli and her friends start a guerilla theatre club which stirs things up and gets people talking, and finally, Yuli steps into the role she was always meant to play.
★Gr 6 Up–In this novel in verse (a translation of The Story of My Anger), Yulieta Lopez, a Dominican American high schooler in Texas, has once again been passed over for the lead role in the school theater club’s play. Yulieta knows why: the drama teacher thinks her dark skin just isn’t “right” for the part. Yulieta finds a safe place to share her disappointment in the classroom of another teacher, Mr. González, where shelves of books line the walls and students can see themselves reflected in his estudios étnicos curriculum. When Yulieta and her friends discover that the school board is forcing Mr. G to remove certain books from his classroom and syllabus, they try to find a way to stop it. Encouraged by her loving activist family, Yulieta and her friends found a new guerilla theater club called A.C.T., through which they aim to stir up conversation about the school board’s censorship. In addition to offering a window into the current climate of book bans in Texas and other states, Mendez’s novel also shares a view of the racism that affects the everyday lives of many young people. The characters are fully developed, with backstories and struggles that will resonate with teens. This novel in verse also features poems and is scattered with excerpts from the script for the school play. Like the books in Mr. G’s classroom, this novel will allow readers to see themselves and affirms that their stories are important. VERDICT An excellent addition to Spanish-language collections for middle school and high school readers.–Selenia Paz, School Library Journal
Jasminne Mendez is a Dominican-American poet, playwright, translator, and award-winning author of several books for children and adults. She is the author of two hybrid memoirs, Island of Dreams (Floricanto Press) and Night-Blooming Jasmin(n)e: Personal Essays and Poetry (Arte Público Press). Her second YA memoir is Islands Apart: Becoming Dominican American (Arte Público Press); and her debut poetry collection, City Without Altar, was a finalist for the Noemi Press Book Award for Poetry.
LIBRO GALARDONADO CON EL PURA BELPRÉ HONOR • Incluido entre la Mejor Ficción para Adultos Jóvenes de acuerdo a YALSA 2026
★ "Una excelente adición a las colecciones en español para lectores de secundaria y preparatoria."–Selenia Paz, School Library Journal
Esta poderosa historia en verso gira en torno a una adolescente texana que lucha contra el racismo en su clase de teatro y contra los intentos de censura literaria por parte de la junta escolar. Se trata del debut en la literatura juvenil de Jasminne Mendez, galardonada con el Premio de Honor Pura Belpré por su novela Aniana del Mar se avienta.
Yulieta López está furiosa. Furiosa con su profesora de teatro que se niega a elegir estudiantes negros para los papeles protagónicos. Furiosa con la junta escolar, que amenaza a su profesor favorito por enseñar obras literarias que consideran "controvertidas". Furiosa porque debe guardar silencio hasta irse a la universidad y dejar Texas para siempre.
Yuli está acostumbrada a interpretar varios papeles: la chica estudiosa, la hija honorable, la niña buena que sirve a todos los demás antes que a sí misma. Pero conforme el fuego de su indignación se propaga y la ilumina, Yuli no puede callar. Decidida a encontrar una forma de resistir, ella y sus amistades más cercanas fundan un club de teatro guerrillero que agita las aguas de la escuela y hace que se empiece a hablar de los temas realmente importantes. Yuli asume, por fin, el papel que siempre estuvo destinada a interpretar.
ENGLISH DESCRIPTION
PURA BELPRÉ HONOR BOOK
An excellent addition to Spanish-language collections for middle school and high school readers.–Selenia Paz, School Library Journal
Jasminne Mendez makes her YA debut with a powerful novel-in-verse about a Texas teen who is battling racism in her theatre program and book banning efforts by her town’s school board.
An International Literacy Association Notable Book for a Global Society • Selected for ALA’s Rise: A Feminist Book Project List • Selected for YALSA 2026 Best Fiction for Young Adults List
Yulieta Lopez is angry. Angry at her racist drama teacher who refuses to cast Black students in lead roles. Angry at the school board threatening her favorite teacher for teaching works of literature that they deem “controversial.” Angry that she has to keep quiet until she can head to college and leave Texas forever.
Yuli is accustomed to playing various roles: the diligent daughter, the honorable hija, the good girl who serves everyone else before serving herself. But as the fire of Yuli's rage spreads and lights her up, she can no longer be silent. Determined to find a way to fight back, Yuli and her friends start a guerilla theatre club which stirs things up and gets people talking, and finally, Yuli steps into the role she was always meant to play.
Reviews
★Gr 6 Up–In this novel in verse (a translation of The Story of My Anger), Yulieta Lopez, a Dominican American high schooler in Texas, has once again been passed over for the lead role in the school theater club’s play. Yulieta knows why: the drama teacher thinks her dark skin just isn’t “right” for the part. Yulieta finds a safe place to share her disappointment in the classroom of another teacher, Mr. González, where shelves of books line the walls and students can see themselves reflected in his estudios étnicos curriculum. When Yulieta and her friends discover that the school board is forcing Mr. G to remove certain books from his classroom and syllabus, they try to find a way to stop it. Encouraged by her loving activist family, Yulieta and her friends found a new guerilla theater club called A.C.T., through which they aim to stir up conversation about the school board’s censorship. In addition to offering a window into the current climate of book bans in Texas and other states, Mendez’s novel also shares a view of the racism that affects the everyday lives of many young people. The characters are fully developed, with backstories and struggles that will resonate with teens. This novel in verse also features poems and is scattered with excerpts from the script for the school play. Like the books in Mr. G’s classroom, this novel will allow readers to see themselves and affirms that their stories are important. VERDICT An excellent addition to Spanish-language collections for middle school and high school readers.–Selenia Paz, School Library Journal
Author
Jasminne Mendez is a Dominican-American poet, playwright, translator, and award-winning author of several books for children and adults. She is the author of two hybrid memoirs, Island of Dreams (Floricanto Press) and Night-Blooming Jasmin(n)e: Personal Essays and Poetry (Arte Público Press). Her second YA memoir is Islands Apart: Becoming Dominican American (Arte Público Press); and her debut poetry collection, City Without Altar, was a finalist for the Noemi Press Book Award for Poetry.
