MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Hey, Leila, I know you know it's Hispanic Heritage Month.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Oh, my gosh, yes. And, of course, I've been marking it with incredible food. That's how I celebrate most things, Michel.
MARTIN: As well you should.
FADEL: (Laughter).
MARTIN: The food, yes. But I know you know this too. There is much more than incredible meals.
FADEL: Yeah.
MARTIN: This is a time to celebrate the contributions of Latinos to science, public service, art, music.
FADEL: Another way to mark the month is reading a great book written by a Latino author.
LUPITA AQUINO: It's a very magical experience to be able to, like, see yourself in the pages of a book.
MARTIN: That's Lupita Aquino. She is a book enthusiast who recommends titles to people on TikTok and Instagram. Her account is Lupita Reads, and she says sometimes it can be hard to know where to start.
AQUINO: I actually didn't read my first book by a Latino Hispanic author until I was around 17, 18.
MARTIN: So Aquino has a few ideas for books to read during Hispanic Heritage Month and beyond. First...
AQUINO: It is personally one of my favorite memoirs that I've read all year, if not, like, ever. It's called "Magical/Realism: Essays On Music, Memory, Fantasy, And Borders" by Vanessa Angelica Villarreal.
MARTIN: A book recently considered for the National Book Awards for nonfiction.
AQUINO: She's navigating - reconnecting to her roots as a Mexican American. There's just so much in this memoir that I think would appeal to so many people.
FADEL: Second - "How Not To Drown In A Glass Of Water" by Angie Cruz, a novel with what Aquino calls an unforgettable protagonist.
AQUINO: She's a woman in her 50s looking for a job after being laid off. And she has come from the D.R., and so there's just this tenderness to her trying to find a job in a world where she speaks English and Spanish and just navigating a new world for her, a new culture for her.
MARTIN: And third - "Say Hello To My Little Friend" by Jennine Capo Crucet.
AQUINO: It's pitched as "Scarface" meets "Moby-Dick," and it is absolutely that without the boring parts of "Moby-Dick."
FADEL: The boring parts. I've got my list, and I'm ready to multitask, read and eat.
MARTIN: Invite me over.
FADEL: Yes.
MARTIN: Invite me over.
FADEL: Let's do it.
MARTIN: OK.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.