Happy Tuesday, mis internet amigxs!

It's the last Latine book release newsletter of Latinx Heritage Month and I want to take a moment to thank you all for being part of the Bien Leidos community. You're an integral part of the work I do and inspire me to keep going on days when I feel disillusioned.

SUPPORT BIEN LEIDOS BEYOND THE 31 DAYS OF LHM

If you want to to support the work I do with Latinx books beyond the 31 days of Latinx Heritage Month, continuing to push more Latinx books into the zeitgeist, TODAY is a great day to sign up at the Libritos or Lectores level of support. News may be a bit slower as I adjust through this new period of my life, but there's going to be some exciting announcements coming soon and you can be the FIRST to know. Libritos and Lectores member levels are FOR THE CHISMOSAS!

We have a number of events coming up for the whole community. I hope you'll consider joining us--

BIEN CREATIVOS: REFLECTION ON LATINX HERITAGE MONTH

With Latinx Heritage Month in the rearview mirror, on Monday, October 19th on Discord, we’ll be gathering at 8:00PM EST on Discord to craft, snack and sip while discussing the highs and lows of Latinx Heritage Month 2026. This is a first-of-its-kind Bien Leidos Discord event. Join us in community and share your experiences, ask questions and get to know your fellow community members on Discord.

AUTHOR CHAT WITH CLEYVIS NATERA

I have confirmed an author chat with our September book club author, Cleyvis Natera!!! We’ll be chatting on Thursday, October 22nd at 8PM EST. I’ll be sending out a Zoom invite and Survey for author questions sometime this week.

OCTOBER BOOK CLUB

I just started reading our October book club selection, You Should Have Been Nicer to My Mom by Vincent Tirado, so this is proof that it’s not too late to begin a book club book and chatting about it on Discord. We’ve recently begun created a spoilery discussion thread for those that finish the book and have some thoughts.

NOVEMBER BOOK CLUB

Thanks to everyone who voted, we’ll be reading Beginning Middle End by Valeria Luiselli in November! The book is now a FINALIST for the National Book Award for Fiction, so it will be even more exciting to read in November in anticipation of the awards ceremony.

DECEMBER BOOK CLUB

In December, we’re testing a new way of reading for book club to help everyone meet their year-end Latine reading goals: I’ll be running a poll soon to select either a genre OR a Bien Leidos Bingo Card space as a reading prompt for the month of December. I was thinking we could do little book reports in January to inspire each other with the books we read. This plan is still in development, so if you have any suggestions, let me know in the comments!

OCTOBER RELEASES--FINALLY!

And FINALLY! Onto October (so far) releases, including last week's releases that I missed. I’m attempting a new format today. You can see all the book covers by scrolling through the books at the bottom of this post or clicking the “shop full bookshelf” link.

OCTOBER 6th RELEASES

The Lost Guardian by Natalia Hernandez (Audiobook)

Bruja's Nest by Brenda LaTorre (Audiobook)

They Called Us Wicked by Gloria Munoz (Audiobook)

There's A Monster In The Lake: The World As a Fantastical Place by Laura Fernandez and translated by Alexic Almeida

How to Look Away: On America Cruelty and the Refusal to Look Away by Daniel Pena (Audiobook)

Twilight In Venezuela: Dispatches from My Once and Future Country by Rafael Osio Cabrices and translated by Jessie Mendez Sayer (Audiobook)

What Feeds Below by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne (Audiobook)  

Hear The Dead by Ann Davila Cardinal (Audiobook)

Strange Lights by Mira Gonzalez (Audiobook)

The Creeps by Tehlor Mejia (Audiobook)

Mother Tongue: Immeresions and Other True Stories by Fabio Morábito and translated by Curtis Bauer

You Still Have Yourself by Fernando Samalot (Audiobook)

Tree Dog by Margarita Engle

The Speculative Detective Agency: Case Files of the Supernatural and Fantastic Edited by Richie Narvaez & Matthew David Goodwin

Nixta Taqueria Presents: From Tacos to Tahdig by Sara Mardanbigi and Edgar Rico with JJ Goode: Recipes and Stories from Mexico, Iran, and the In-Between

ADHD and Women: A Guide to Optimizing Your Hormones and Thriving with ADHD by Dr. Jolene Brighten (Audiobook)

The First Reader: On Writers and Editors by Luiz Schwarcz and Translated by Alison Entrekin

Cuban Soul by Mika Leon: Cuban cookbook featuring over 100 recipes

The Sea Witch Prophecy (Witchlings #5) by Claribel A. Ortega (Audiobook)

OCTOBER 13th

The End Of Us by Sandra Proudman (Audiobook)

Revenge of the Final Girl by Andrea Mosqueda Young Adult Fiction Horror (Audiobook)

Things We Lost In The Fire by Mariana Enriquez and illustrated by Lucas Mine

Essential: Being Latino and Indispensable in America by Enrique Acevedo (Audiobook):

You Are What You See: How My Favorite Shows Became My Worst Influences by Doménica Feraud (Audiobook)

The Havana Syndrome: Secret Weapons, a Government Cover-Up, and the Greatest Spy Mystery of Our Time by Michael Rey & Oriana Zill de Granados

xo,

Carmen

Good morning, mis internet amigxs,

I've gone silent on socials and here on Bindery during Latinx Heritage Month and I feel it's time for an explanation. More than anyone, you all deserve to know what is going on and what to expect moving forward.

Back in the summer, my mother was hospitalized for almost 2 weeks. When she was discharged from the hospital, her daily level of care significantly increased. I have been providing the help she needs 5-7 days per week since she returned home in July. She has also been back to the emergency room 3 times subsequent to her original stay, two of the times in the past month--once before the start of LHM and again last week. Her fall last week was severe and she has been in the hospital for the last 5 days.

Over the past few months, I have been able to manage Bien Leidos and caretaking. However, the hospital stay last week tried my ability to continue to work. I almost didn't make the trip, but last Thursday night, I got my family onboard and felt assured enough to travel. Most importantly, my mom was stable and in good spirits, urging me not to miss my trip.

It have been a mix of emotions this weekend, much of it overwhelmed with guilt for not being there for my mother, but she has remained stable and well throughout my visit.

My work begins today and I will be busy until I depart tomorrow night.

Now where does that leave Bien Leidos?

I, unfortunately, will be unable to post tomorrow's releases or provide Lectores and Libritos members with an early newsletter of all October releases.

I plan to get that updated by the weekend, if all continues to go smoothly with my mother this week when I return.

I apologize for the disruption, but it has been difficult to plan and get ahead especially in the past month. I am hoping to get to my normal weekly schedule here by next week and back on social media possibly a little sooner. I appreciate your patience with me as I walk through one of the most difficult seasons of my life (I can't believe Being Mortal by Atul Gawande ended up being a handbook for this year and I advise anyone who is dealing with elderly family members to puck it up).

I also do have a posting obligation this morning, so any interaction with that sponsored post is greatly appreciated.

I apologize this is so long and for my absence but I hope you can allow me some grace during this moment in my life. I appreciate you being here and for supporting my work. I have so much I want to create and share with you and am looking forward to that opportunity very soon.

All my love,

Carmen

xo