Daniel Gutierrez offers the steps to success in Stepping into Greatness: Success Is Up to You! (Penmarin, Oct. 2004). By sharing his own failures and how he has overcome them, entrepreneur and motivational speaker Gutierrez underlines the ability in all of us to achieve our goals. Full of personal anecdotes, sage advice, and leadership exercises, Stepping Into Greatness is a guidebook for overcoming obstacles and realizing your full potential.

Migene González Wippler’s newest Spanish-language work, Luna, Luna: magia, poder y seducción (Llewellyn Español, Nov. 2004), explores the moon’s influence on our lives through its phases and eclipses, and the twelve Zodiac signs. González Wippler, a cultural anthropologist and the author of over 20 books, offers information on and suggestions for meditation, acupuncture, and aromatherapy, instructing readers about various lunar rituals.

Mary Castillo’s Hot Tamara (Avon Trade Paperbacks, Feb. 2005) examines the infiltration of Latina culture into so much of American life. Tamara Contreras is 26 and not ready to follow her mother’s plans for her — plans that involve marriage and children instead of Tamara’s new job in a trendy art gallery in Los Angeles. Struggling to reconcile her Mexican heritage with her desire for independence and adventure, Tamara represents the American melting-pot phenomenon and the important role that Hispanic culture plays in our world today.

Former New York City federal prosecutor Michele Martinez makes her authorial debut with Most Wanted (William Morrow, Feb. 2005). The novel tells the story of tough and sexy Melanie Vargas as she tries to make a name for herself in the New York law world. When she comes across the scene of a brutal crime during an evening stroll with her young daughter, Melanie knows it’s just the sort of high-profile case she needs to boost her career — but she’s not prepared to be the potential victim of a crime herself.

Latin rock is exploding across the country and the world, but it never forgets its rich history of world-class musicians like Carlos Santana, Jerry Garcia and Richie Valens. To celebrate these music icons, Jim McCarthy, with Ron Sansoe, presents Voices of Latin Rock: The People and Events That Created This Sound (Hal Leonard, Dec. 2004). The book tracks the genesis and evolution of a unique and important sound, fleshed out with interviews and over 800 photographs and album cover images.
 

Ten years ago, editor Lori Marie Carlson compiled a collection of Latino poetry for young readers in Cool Salsa; now she returns with the follow-up Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States (Holt, April 2005). In addition to poems from young new poets, the collection includes the work of Martín Espada and Gary Soto, and an introduction by Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Oscar Hijuelos. The poems address themes common to young U.S. Latinos, such as the merging of different cultures and languages, and are published in both Spanish and English versions.