Welcome back to Musings of an Arthritic Artist! Today is my book tour stop for Cruzita and the Mariacheros by Ashley Granillo.
This is NOT a review for this book. My review for this book is located on my Goodreads, and the review will be linked in this post.
This post is merely focused on the creative content I was tasked with doing when I was approved for this tour. And that creative content is a playlist!
Let's get into the post!
Title: Cruzita and the Mariacheros
Author: Ashley Granillo
Pub. Date: April 2, 2024
Publisher: Carolrhoda Books
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
Pages: 248
Find it: Goodreads
A family recipe for a bittersweet summer. Flavored with music and sprinkled with new experiences.
Cruzita is going to be a pop star. All she has to do is win a singing contest at her favorite theme park and get famous. But she can't go to the theme park this summer. Instead, she has to help out at her family's bakery, which has been struggling ever since Tío Chuy died. Cruzita's great-uncle poured his heart into the bakery--the family legacy--and now that he's gone, nothing is the same.
When Cruzita's not rolling uneven tortillas or trying to salvage rock-hard conchas, she has to take mariachi lessons, even though she doesn't know how to play her great-grandpa's violin and she's not fluent in Spanish. At first, she's convinced her whole summer will be a disaster. But as she discovers the heart and soul of mariachi music, she realizes that there's more than one way to be a star--and more than one way to carry on a legacy.
Son De La Negra - Mariachi Vargas De Tecalitán
No Me Queda Más - Selena
Como La Flor - Selena
Tearin' up My Heart (Radio Edit) - *NSYNC
We Belong Together - Ritchie Valens
Yo...El Aventurero - Pedro Fernández
En Tu Pelo - Javier Solís
Por Mujeres Como Tú - Pepe Aguilar
Cuándo sale la luna - Pedro Infante
Esclavo y Amo - Javier Solís
Nube Viajera - Alejandro Fernandez
Coplas do dos tipos de cuidado - Jorge Negrete
Media Vuelta - Javier Solís
El Rey - José Alfredo Jiménez
La Venia Bendita - Marco Antonio Solís
Hermoso Cariño - Vicente Fernández
Dime Cómo Quieres - Christian Nodal, Ángela Aguilar
Qué Mal Te Ves Sin Mí - Espinoza Paz
La Gran Señora - Jenni Rivera
Me Gustas Mucho - Rocío Dúrcal
La Media Vuelta - Luis Miguel
Tu Retirada - Cristian Castro
Un Puño De Tierra - Antonio Aguilar
Me Sacaron Del Tenampa - Cornelio Reyna
Como Tú Decides - Joan Sebastian
Sin Fortuna - Gerardo Reyes
De Los Besos Que Te Di - Christian Nodal
Esta Noche Voy a Verla - Juan Gabriel
About the Author:
Ashley Granillo is a Mexican American author. She has many degrees, including a BA and MA in Creative Writing with a concentration in Fiction and an MFA in Fiction and a minor in Screenwriting from UCR Palm Desert's Low Residency program. Ashley got her start as a writer from the young age of 5. She was a member of Telfair Elementary's Student Author Project. This project paired kindergartners with fifth grade students, where they mentored, wrote, illustrated, and promoted their book collaboration.
Many of the themes Ashley writes about are inspired about her home, family, her love for animals, and music. Cruzita and the Mariacheros (Lerner 2024), is a testament to home, family, and music, as well as her Mexican American heritage. In her short story, "Besitos," which appears in the Latine/x Anthology, Where Monsters Lurk & Magic Hides, she explores the various ways in which young adults experience love.
While she grew up in a predominantly Latinx and Hispanic community, Ashley was one of the few kids in her neighborhood who only spoke one language. She was never taught about her family's heritage or traditions--aside from making delicious tortillas. She came to discover one tradition, Dia de los Muertos, after reading Ray Bradbury's The Halloween Tree in fourth grade.
The power of books, how they exchanged cultural knowledge and emotion, made Ashley realize how important her stories would become one day. As she continues to grow, so does the topics she writes about.
