Gary Soto's Books

Small Faces

By: Gary Soto

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Small Faces

By: Gary Soto

A collection of the author's reminiscences in prose.

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Page Count

150

Publisher

Laurel Leaf

Published Date

ISBN 10

0440215536

ISBN 13

9780440215530

A Summer Life

By: Gary Soto

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Gary Soto writes that when he was five "what I knew best was at ground level." In this lively collection of short essays, Soto takes his reader to a ground-level perspective, resreating in vivid detail the sights, sounds, smells, and textures he knew growing up in his Fresno, California, neighborhood. The "things" of his boyhood tie it all together: his Buddha "splotched with gold," the taps of his shoes and the "engines of sparks that lived beneath my soles," his worn tennies smelling of "summer grass, asphalt, the moist sock breathing the defeat of basesall." The child's world is made up of small things--small, very important things.

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Page Count

162

Publisher

Laurel Leaf

Published Date

ISBN 10

0440210240

ISBN 13

9780440210245

Living Up The Street

By: Gary Soto

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Living Up The Street

By: Gary Soto

In a prose that is so beautiful it is poetry, we see the world of growing up and going somewhere through the dust and heat of Fresno's industrial side and beyond: It is a boy's coming of age in the barrio, parochial school, attending church, public summer school, and trying to fall out of love so he can join in a Little League baseball team. His is a clarity that rings constantly through the warmth and wry reality of these sometimes humorous, sometimes tragic, always human remembrances.

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Page Count

178

Publisher

Laurel Leaf

Published Date

ISBN 10

0307817431

ISBN 13

9780307817433

Neighborhood Odes

By: Gary Soto

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Neighborhood Odes

By: Gary Soto

An exuberant celebration of everyday life from an award-winning team.

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Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Published Date

ISBN 10

0152568794

ISBN 13

9780152568795

Local News

Stories

By: Gary Soto

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Local News

Stories

By: Gary Soto

In thirteen stories full of wit and energy, Gary Soto illuminates the ordinary lives of young people. Meet Angel, who would rather fork over twenty bucks than have photos of his naked body plastered all over school; Philip, who discovers he has a "mechanical mind," whatever that means; Estela, known as Stinger, who rules Jos 's heart and the racquetball court; and many other kids, all of them with problems as big as only a preteen can make them. Funny, touching, and wholly original, Local News is Gary Soto in top form.

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Page Count

166

Publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Published Date

ISBN 10

015204695X

ISBN 13

9780152046958

You Kiss by th' Book

New Poems from Shakespeare's Line

By: Gary Soto

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You Kiss by th' Book

New Poems from Shakespeare's Line

By: Gary Soto

In his engaging new collection, National Book Award finalist Gary Soto creates poems that each begin with a line from Shakespeare and then continue in Soto's fresh and accessible verse. Drawing on moments from the sonnets, Hamlet, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Romeo and Juliet, and others, Soto illuminates aspects of the source material while taking his poems in directions of their own, strategically employing the color of "thee" and "thine," kings, thieves, and lovers. The results are inspired, by turns meditative, playful, and moving, and consistently fascinating for the conversation they create between the Bard's time and language and our own here and now.

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Page Count

112

Publisher

Chronicle Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

1452151067

ISBN 13

9781452151069

What Poets Are Like

Up and Down with the Writing Life

By: Gary Soto

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What Poets Are Like

Up and Down with the Writing Life

By: Gary Soto

Gary Soto is a widely published author of children's and young adult fiction, and he is an acclaimed poet--often referred to as one of the nation's first Chicano poets. With a sharp sense of storytelling and a sly wit, What Poets Are Like is a memoir of the writing life that shares the keen observation, sense of self and humor of such writers as Sherman Alexie and Nora Ephron. In some 60 short episodes, this book captures moments of a writer's inner and public life, close moments with friends and strangers, occasional reminders of a poet's generally low place in the cultural hierarchy; time spent with cats; the curious work of writing. He tells the stories of his time spent in bookstores and recounts the glorious, then tragic, arc of Cody's Bookstore in Berkeley, ending with the author whose scheduled event fell on the day after the business shut down, but who stood outside the locked door and read aloud just the same. As all writers do, Soto suffers the slings and arrows of rejection, often from unnamed Midwest poetry journals, and seeks the solace of a friendly dog at such moments. Soto jabs at the crumbs of reward available to writers--a prize nomination here, a magazine interview there--and notes the toll they take on a frail ego. The pleasure Soto takes in the written word, a dose of comic relief plus his appreciation of the decisive moment in life make this an engaging and readable writer's confession.

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Page Count

172

Publisher

Sasquatch Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

1570618755

ISBN 13

9781570618758

A Fire in My Hands

By: Gary Soto

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A Fire in My Hands

By: Gary Soto

An expanded version of "A Fire in My Hands," Gary's Soto's acclaimed collection of poems about growing up Latino, now in paperback.

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ISBN 10

1484413423

ISBN 13

9781484413425

Help Wanted

Stories

By: Gary Soto

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Help Wanted

Stories

By: Gary Soto

Ten stories portray some of the struggles and hopes of young Mexican Americans.

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Page Count

232

Publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Published Date

ISBN 10

0152056637

ISBN 13

9780152056636

Jesse

By: Gary Soto

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Jesse

By: Gary Soto

Two Mexican American brothers hope that junior college will help them escape their heritage of tedious physical labor.

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Page Count

186

Publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Published Date

ISBN 10

0152054251

ISBN 13

9780152054250

Chato y Su Cena

By: Gary Soto

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Chato y Su Cena

By: Gary Soto

Ganador del premio de ilustración Pura Belpré 1996 The Spanish edition of a modern classic. Chato can't believe his luck. Not only is he the coolest low-riding cat in East L.A., but his brand-new neighbors are the plumpest, juciest, tastiest-looking family of mice to move into the barrio in a long time. So Chato and his best friend, Novio Boy, get out the pots and pans, the tortillas and the beans--everything you'd need for a welcoming feast, except for the main dish, and the guests of honor. Of course, in Chato's mind they are one and the same thing. But the mice are bringing a surprise guest of their own, who may be more than a cool cat can swallow.

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Publisher

Penguin

Published Date

ISBN 10

0698116011

ISBN 13

9780698116016

Taking Sides

And Related Readings

By: Gary Soto

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Taking Sides

And Related Readings

By: Gary Soto

Fourteen-year-old Lincoln Mendoza, an aspiring basketball player, must come to terms with his divided loyalties when he moves from the Hispanic inner city to a white suburban neighborhood.

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Page Count

168

Publisher

McDougal Littel

Published Date

ISBN 10

0395881404

ISBN 13

9780395881408

Petty Crimes

By: Gary Soto

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Petty Crimes

By: Gary Soto

A hard-hitting short story collection takes a hard look at teens and preteens on the edge.

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Page Count

180

Publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Published Date

ISBN 10

0152016589

ISBN 13

9780152016586

Sudden Loss of Dignity

By: Gary Soto

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Sudden Loss of Dignity

By: Gary Soto

Sudden Loss of Dignity represents where Gary Soto is in his life. He finds himself positioned in life as the older gent, or old guy. His poetry mirrors his personality, snarky and full of mockery. Soto writes about mainly aging and the loss of one's dignity as the years pass. It's very funny, poignant, sad, and especially true.

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Stephen F Austin University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1622880056

ISBN 13

9781622880058

Accidental Love

By: Gary Soto

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Accidental Love

By: Gary Soto

The award-winning author of "Baseball in April and Other Stories" deftly captures all the angst, expectation, and humor that comes with first love in this swift, lighthearted romance.

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Page Count

152

Publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Published Date

ISBN 10

0152061134

ISBN 13

9780152061135

The Skirt

By: Gary Soto

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The Skirt

By: Gary Soto

When Miata Ramirez leaves on the school bus the skirt that she is to wear in a dance performance, she needs all her wits to get it back without her parents' finding out that she has lost something yet again. Simultaneous.

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Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Published Date

ISBN 10

0385306652

ISBN 13

9780385306652

The Old Man and His Door

By: Gary Soto

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The Old Man and His Door

By: Gary Soto

Who would bring the door, la puerta, to a picnic instead of the pig, el puerco? An old man who's great at gardening but lousy at listening to his wife! "In the universal tradition of the wise-fool story, this gentle disaster tale is funny and affectionate....The combination is great for reading aloud." -- Booklist"Cepeda makes brilliant use of color, form, and perspective to add humor to the work. It's a story children will want to retell themselves." -- Kirkus Reviews

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Penguin

Published Date

ISBN 10

0698116542

ISBN 13

9780698116542

A Fire in My Hands

A Book of Poems

By: Gary Soto

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A Fire in My Hands

A Book of Poems

By: Gary Soto

The author's twenty-one poems are about the themes of life and each is preceded by a personal anecdote.

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Scholastic Paperbacks

Published Date

ISBN 10

0590445790

ISBN 13

9780590445795

Buried Onions

By: Gary Soto

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Buried Onions

By: Gary Soto

When nineteen-year-old Eddie drops out of college, he struggles to find a place for himself as a Mexican American living in a violence-infested neighborhood of Fresno, California.

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Page Count

172

Publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Published Date

ISBN 10

0152062653

ISBN 13

9780152062651

Gabe

By: Gary Soto

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Gabe

By: Gary Soto

Thirteen-year-old Gabe Mendoza is headed to the public library when he hears a voice call, "Son." Gabe sizes up an approaching vagrant. "It's me, your dad."Dad? Couldn't be. This man looks homeless--is homeless. He's hauling a suitcase with everything he possesses--nothing. To Gabe, the figure doesn't look right. He's wearing a sweatshirt on a hot summer afternoon. His neck is filthy, his teeth rotten in an unsmiling mouth. Gabe's father had abandoned him and his mother five years earlier. As the story unfolds, Gabe wrestles with confusion. Should he give his father a second chance--the father who is now destitute, possibly ill, pathetic, and an alcoholic? Life has never been easy for Gabe on the streets of Fresno. He's always escaping trouble, especially from Frankie Torres, who practices his gangbanging tactics on Gabe. The novella is quick as anger, but Gabe isn't angry. There's tenderness in his troubled heart. It is meant to be read more than once--each reading will reveal more about his mother, playground life, forgiveness, and the healing nature of dog that comes into his life. . . . The afternoon was hot, maddening hot. He stopped under a tree and spied the temperature on the corner bank building: 104. Through the wavering heat, he eyed a figure in a 49ers sweatshirt. Dang, Gabe thought. What's wrong with this guy? A sweatshirt in this heat? "Son," the figure beckoned to him. Son? Gabe wondered. Was this homeless man looking for a handout? "It's me, your dad." The figure in dirty clothes was pulling a large suitcase on wheels. The man did his best to hoist a smile. The vagrant did resemble his dad, whom Gabe hadn't seen in four years. His dad had driven away in the family's best car, with his clothes and the household computer in the backseat. He had also loaded the car with cases of soda and bottledwater, as if he were thirsty for a life other than the one he had with them. . . " He's homeless," Gabe whispered to himself. Everything he owned was stuffed in that suitcase on wheels, which he hauled like a donkey pulling a cart.

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Page Count

114

Publisher

Stephen F. Austin University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1622885414

ISBN 13

9781622885411

Puppy Love

By: Gary Soto

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Puppy Love

By: Gary Soto

A sweetly humorous middle grade novel packed with action, basketball, and a dash of magical realism about friendship and family, first crushes, and belonging, from acclaimed author Gary Soto. Thirteen-year-old Jordan Mendoza has a huge crush on his classmate, Sierra, but he’s never going to win her affections if he stays a C student and keeps embarrassing himself on the basketball court. And it doesn’t help that his best friend, Antonio, likes to tease him about it all a little too much. But when Jordan dives into the waters of a dangerous irrigation canal to save a drowning puppy, he’s suddenly got even more on his mind than kissing Sierra and making the starting team. Can he nurse the abandoned puppy back to health (and will his parents let him keep her)? Who threw her into the canal—and is it possible that there are more puppies needing rescue? And why are the cops suddenly at Jordan’s door, looking for him? There’s something for every reader in this story’s mix of humor, sports, themes of thrilling independence, subtle strands of magical realism, and timely social commentary, all held together by a sweet and satisfying emotional core.

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Page Count

202

Publisher

HarperCollins

Published Date

ISBN 10

0063267802

ISBN 13

9780063267800

The Elements of San Joaquin

poems

By: Gary Soto

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The Elements of San Joaquin

poems

By: Gary Soto

A timely new edition of a pioneering work in Latino literature, National Book Award nominee Gary Soto's first collection (originally published in 1977) draws on California's fertile San Joaquin Valley, the people, the place, and the hard agricultural work done there by immigrants. In these poems, joy and anger, violence and hope are placed in both the metaphorical and very real circumstances of the Valley. Rooted in personal experiences—of the poet as a young man, his friends, family, and neighbors—the poems are spare but expansive, with Soto's voice as important as ever. This welcome new edition has been expanded with a crucial selection of complementary poems (some previously unpublished) and a new introduction by the author.

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Chronicle Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

1452171955

ISBN 13

9781452171951

Gary Soto

New and Selected Poems

By: Gary Soto

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Gary Soto

New and Selected Poems

By: Gary Soto

Soto writes with a pure sweetness free of sentimentality that is almost extraordinary in modern American poetry. -- Andrew Hudgins. Soto insists on the possibility of a redemptive power, and he celebrates the heroic, quixotic capacity for survival in human beings and the natural world. -- Publishers Weekly. Soto has it all -- the learned craft, the intrinsic abilities with language, a fascinating autobiography, and the storyteller's ability to manipulate memories into folklore. -- Library Journal.

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