Andrea Mauk. “Canción de los seguidores/ Song of the Constant Drum”
Puerto Rican Bomba: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0vzkGKEWX4
I don’t want to dance to Michael Jackson,
to Parliament or Funkadelic,
I want to listen to my soul’s song when
the drum beckons me to the floor.
Bom-bom-bom-bom-bom-bomba,
it beckons me to the floor,
el buleador
beckons me to the floor.
Angel Ruby Vasquez. “Corre, corre!
1980´s Inwood, NY”
First time I got away from the B-Boys
On my way to school in this new hood
avoiding these dudes seems to be the everyday mood.
The noise makes the trembling sound of the train passing above us
as it penetrates my bones as loud as in pain as the running train tracks above us
my legs touch others insanely moving in unusual zigzag ways
like a frog trying to get away from everything God knows
bumping kneecaps, rubbing thighs and calves, my skin feels like scabs peeling off
my heart is pounding as fast as the punches kick that land on my skin
creating black and blues the Afro Cuban drum sounds getting out of my soul
full of bricks, sticks, and fists.
Greg Moore. “Invitation” Young Adult novella excerpt
Gretchen cut across the 59th street playground on her way home from the little corner store. Full of chili dogs and a banana split, she’d nap before The Carol Burnett and later, The Dick Van Dyke Show came on. Not that she had to nap …she wasn’t worn out. The fact was, she never got tired, and didn’t sleep much except when she’d been running or playing basketball or skateboarding a lot.
But she’d turned 14 and was worried that her skinny body might not develop. No big sister to help her; she was an only child, and her mom passed just after her childbirth. Her dad cared for her fiercely, but he seemed angry all the time at everyone around but her.
Besides, what advice could a guy offer, Gretchen thought? Her wisdom told her “I better stop sweatin’ so much so I can blossom and get married and have kids. I don’t wanna grow up and still be alone.”
She hated being alone. Her father had home-schooled her since she was four. More than adequate, he was a Professor of Chemistry in his late 30’s. He didn’t work; he’d been “asked to resign” from LAUSD after losing district favor for performing unauthorized experiments at a campus lab.
Claudia Duran. “Traje de Charro”
Tony’s buttons gleamed golden from the embraces
of the winter moon through the bedroom window
I couldn’t resist envying his distinguished silhouette
long, black, blending
into the dark December night.
Growing up in Zacatecas I shared a room con mi hermano
until last year when at 13 I became “una mujercita”,
so now Tony sleeps on the couch while I sleep in la recámara
but at least our shared closet remains the same.
Jacqlyn Cope. “Hey, Pachuca.” A novella excerpt.
The Day Before Junior Year. August 20th 1942- 12:00pm
My block is half a mile from Montebello High School, exactly, and I notice how lonely the campus looks from the outside as I pass by. The school has been out and no students have come to visit its halls since the spring semester. The weeping willow tree droops in the heat looking as if it is crying for water. Summer is here in Los Angeles and the asphalt seems to smoke and spew a tar smell into the air, but I don’t mind it. Summer is the chance for new beginnings and I plan to make this year the year everyone knows my name. This year, as I walk through the halls of Montebello High, I will be La Reina. At least, this is what I hope will happen. I feel that I can change from being the flower on the wall as Ruby, my best friend, always tells me that I am. I just like to observe others before I speak to them is all. My Ama always tells me that it’s best for others not to notice me anyway.
“You keep your head down don’t get in trouble, so you can come back home and help the family,” I can picture her saying and wagging her finger at me.
Liana Perry. “La Sirena”
Woosh- Ahhhh- Flick Flick Flick
Woosh- Ahhh- Flick Flick Flick
Woosh- Ahhhh-Flick Flick Flick
La Sirena tiene escamas de joyas.
La Sirena tiene la inteligencia de madre naturaleza
La Sirena tiene la fuerza de cien hombres.
The Mermaid can breathe under and above water.
The Mermaid can swim for days and never rest.
The Mermaid leaps high into the sky, into the stars
and back into the calm dark blue waters.
lalcsmsmu 
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