Chulito’s
been best friends with Carlos since they were 5, but Carlos goes away
to college, while Chulito runs for the local Hunts Point dealer,
Kamikaze, and has dropped out of school. When Chulito and Carlos
reconnect, Chulito realizes that his feelings for his friend may be
deeper than he's ready to admit. This book is full of sex, drugs and
real life on the streets of the Bronx, but it’s also a story about
betrayal, loyalty, choosing love and not losing everything. Only
collections that include other adult urban fiction books will find this
book appropriate, but it’s high-quality writing, and shows men being
tough and truly loving at the same time. Librarians andteachers
looking for a more school-appropriate book should get Street Dreams, by
Tama Wise. Set in urban New Zealand, it has some unfamiliar local
vocabulary, but is for every fan of hip-hop, graffiti, and breakdancing.
Tyson, the main character, falls in with a local crew of rappers and graffiti artists and falls for their promoter, Marc. Will he be able to
connect with him without alienating the leader of the crew, Seige, and
his best friend? One or both of these books should be included in any
high school library collection--GLBTQ students need to see themselves in
urban lit. -- Andrea Swenson
Rice-Gonzalez, Charles. Chulito: a Novel. New York: Magnus Books, 2011. Print.
Wise, Tama. Street Dreams. Valley Falls: Bold Strokes Books, 2012. Print.
Andrea
Swenson is the school media specialist at East Side Community, a 6-12th
grade public school in New York City. She loves to talk about books (no
surprise!). Andrea was recently recognized for her work with the chemistry
teacher at East Side by the American Chemical Society Committee on
Environmental Improvement for incorporation of sustainability into
chemistry education.
Andrea is curating a list of books with LGBTQ characters, themes and issues that are recommended for middle and high schools in New York City. You can find her lists and links here.
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