Larissa M. Mercado-López – författare

This book broadens the scope of Latina/o criticism to include both widely-read and understudied nineteenth through twenty-first century fictional works that engage in critical discussions of gender, race, sexuality, and identity. The essays in this collection do not simply seek inclusion for the texts they critically discuss, but suggest that we more thoughtfully consider the utility of mapping, whether we are mapping land, borders, time, migration, or connections and disconnections across time and space. Using new and rigorous methodological approaches to reading Latina/o literature, contributors reveal a varied and textured landscape, challenging us to reconsider the process and influence of literary production across borders.

This book broadens the scope of Latina/o criticism to include both widely-read and understudied nineteenth through twenty-first century fictional works that engage in critical discussions of gender, race, sexuality, and identity. The essays in this collection do not simply seek inclusion for the texts they critically discuss, but suggest that we more thoughtfully consider the utility of mapping, whether we are mapping land, borders, time, migration, or connections and disconnections across time and space. Using new and rigorous methodological approaches to reading Latina/o literature, contributors reveal a varied and textured landscape, challenging us to reconsider the process and influence of literary production across borders.

The banning of Mexican-American Studies and censorship of Chican@-authored books in Arizona were part of a succession of anti-Mexican and anti-Chican@ policies that were enacted across the state and in the education system. The counterstories offered through these classes and literature not only created a sense of cultural inclusion, but ignited a political and activist consciousness among the mostly Chican@ youth, and reinvigorated conversations among educators about the teaching of race, ethnicity, and culture in the classroom, particularly through youth literature. While most work on youth literature has emphasized “multicultural” literature as a means of being inclusive, Voices of Resistance: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Chican@ Children’s Literature recognizes that our present moment--one that is rife with continued anti-Mexican sentiment but that has given rise to our first Chicano National Poet Laureate--demands a more focused study of children’s and young adult literature by and about Chican@s. This collection re-examines how we view multicultural and diversity literature and recognize literature that invites social transformation. Using multi- and interdisciplinary perspectives to critically examine a wide range of Chican@ children’s pictures book and young adult novels, this collection reaffirms Chicano@ children’s literature as a means to achieve equity and social change.

The banning of Mexican-American Studies and censorship of Chican@-authored books in Arizona were part of a succession of anti-Mexican and anti-Chican@ policies that were enacted across the state and in the education system. The counterstories offered through these classes and literature not only created a sense of cultural inclusion, but ignited a political and activist consciousness among the mostly Chican@ youth, and reinvigorated conversations among educators about the teaching of race, ethnicity, and culture in the classroom, particularly through youth literature. While most work on youth literature has emphasized “multicultural” literature as a means of being inclusive, Voices of Resistance: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Chican@ Children’s Literature recognizes that our present moment--one that is rife with continued anti-Mexican sentiment but that has given rise to our first Chicano National Poet Laureate--demands a more focused study of children’s and young adult literature by and about Chican@s. This collection re-examines how we view multicultural and diversity literature and recognize literature that invites social transformation. Using multi- and interdisciplinary perspectives to critically examine a wide range of Chican@ children’s pictures book and young adult novels, this collection reaffirms Chicano@ children’s literature as a means to achieve equity and social change.