La Comunidad Reads with Lupita Aquino

On Saturday, August 5th, La Comunidad Reads kicked off its programming with the “Rivermouth: A Chronicle of Language, Faith, and Migration” author Alejandra Oliva and Lupita Aquino (aka Lupita Reads) at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, D.C.

Lupita Aquino partnered with the D.C. Public Library to inspire and motivate the Latine community to amplify their reading. Lupita is a fierce advocate of Latine (and BIPOC) writers and literature and has been doing this for several years through her platform. She also has written for several magazines, and her book recommendations are always spot on. You can follow her on Instagram, Twitter, or TikTok.

“Growing up,” Lupita says on the La Comunidad Reads page, “I didn’t have exposure or access to Latine-authored books. It wasn’t until I turned 17 that someone came into my life and introduced me to my very first book by a Latina. My whole world opened up.” Her book club series aims to challenge the statistics that often report that Hispanic adults are mainly likely to have not read a book in the past 12 months.

La Comunidad Reads brings four different Latine literary events from August to October 2023. During the first one on August 5th, Alejandra Oliva shared her experiences writing “Rivermouth,” which focuses on translation, storytelling, and borders. A Roxane Gay’s book club selection, “Rivermouth,” blends Alejandra’s experiences as a translator and interpreter with the U.S. immigration system. If you missed the programming, you can catch up here.

During the first event, the D.C. Public Library Foundation sponsored free books for the book club goers, and I’ll give away two copies on my Instagram and TikTok, so make sure you follow me too.

The next event will showcase author John Manuel Arias. He’ll be in conversation with Lupita about his debut novel, “Where There Was Fire,” on Saturday, September 9th, at 3 pm. In his book, with magical realism elements, a Costa Rican family wrestles with a deadly secret, including a lethal fire involving a banana plantation. You can sign up here.

The third event will bring National Book Award Finalist Alejandro Varela on Tuesday, September 19th, at 6:30 pm. Lupita and Alejandro will discuss the short story collection “The People Who Report More Stress.” The book tells different stories using humor and addresses the impact of social stress factors on people of color. You can sign up here.

La Comunidad Reads is a series you don’t want to miss! The book club will discuss an array of topics such as immigration, queerness, and mental health, among others — conversations our community aches to have. Latine literary spaces like this one are rare (even if they shouldn’t be), so make sure we support them! You can join online even if you are not physically in Washington, D.C. There is a fourth event in October that has not yet been revealed and aims to be fantastic, so stay tuned!

See you in the library!
Ofe