Showing results by narrator "Christian Barillas" in All Categories

“This debut has it all: music, books, aliens, adventure, resistance, queerness, and a bold heroine tying it all together. ”—Ms. Magazine Can a girl who risks her life for books and an Ilori who loves pop music work together to save humanity? When a rebel librarian meets an Ilori...

In these tense, macabre stories, bodies fall from the sky, perfect nails conceal grisly secrets and violence pulses behind gleaming façades. From hellish visions to obsessive relationships, acclaimed author Agustina Bazterrica takes us to the dark heart of human desires and fears. Shocking, brutal, yet glinting with sharp humour, "Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird" is a breathtaking dive into human monstrousness from a master of contemporary horror.

The definitive account of the most dangerous street gang in America - the MS-13 - as seen through the lives of one family caught in its malicious web. The MS-13 was born from war. In the 1980s, El Salvador was enmeshed in a bloody fight for control of the government. To escape the guerrilla assaults and death squads, many fled to the US and settled in Los Angeles. Among them were Alejandro and his six siblings. As a survival instinct, they formed a group called the Mara Salvatrucha Stoners, a relatively harmless social network bound by rock and roll.

Nerdy and shy, scholarship student Daniel de La Luna arrives at college nervous to meet his golden-haired, athletic roommate, whose Facebook photos depict a boy just like those who made Daniel's school years hell. Sam Morris is not what he had imagined, though. As the two settle into college life they drink tequila under the stars, go on long runs through snow-covered hills, explore freshman nightlife, and inch closer until they find themselves in love.

When a guy named Martin Nathaniel Munroe II texts you, it should be obvious who you're talking to. Except there's two of them (it's a long story), and Haley thinks she's talking to the one she doesn't hate. A question about a class project rapidly evolves into an all-consuming conversation. Haley finds that Martin is actually willing to listen to her weird facts and unusual obsessions, and Martin feels like Haley is the first person to really see who he is. Haley and Martin might be too awkward to hang out in real life, but over text, they're becoming addicted to each other.

Palmer Sinclair has never needed anyone’s help. A successful loan officer, she’s all work and no play. But when splitting headaches and blurred vision begin to affect her job, she begrudgingly sees a doctor and receives a diagnosis that leaves her shaken to her core and with little time left. Facing an uncertain future, Palmer makes a bucket list, determined to do the things she’d only dreamed of before she goes.

When the Smithsonian’s Hall of Physical Anthropology opened in 1965 it featured 160 Andean skulls affixed to a wall to visualize how the world’s human population had exploded since the birth of Christ. Through a history of Inca mummies, a preHispanic surgery called trepanation, and Andean crania like these, Empires of the Dead explains how “ancient Peruvians” became the single largest population in the Smithsonian and many other museums in Peru, the Americas, and beyond.

"[These contributions] touch on so many different facets of the immigrant experience that readers will find much to ponder... [and] experience how creative writing enriches our understanding of each other and our lives." –Booklist Introduction by Pulitzer Prize–winning author Viet Thanh...

More than a hundred years into the future, as the US approaches its 400th anniversary, Tomas, a young graduate student, searches for the real identity of one of the cyborgs that maintained American homes. He has been haunted for years by an audio clip of a cyborg named Felipe and is intent on writing Felipe’s biography. In the clip, Felipe can only recite that he was made in America, but Tomas must find out: Where was the Self-made Man really from?

Barton Suggs may be the class brain at school, but thanks to bullies Travis and Kenny, he’s known as “Sluggs.” And no one but Lizzie Hellman wants to be friends with him. After Barton’s dad brings him Slappy in order to help him become less shy, he brings it to school for a presentation. Chaos erupts as Slappy comes to life and wreaks havoc on Barton’s classmates. But Barton isn’t terrified. He’s thrilled! And Slappy soon becomes his new best friend. But when Slappy gets jealous of Lizzie, his evil plans go too far.

What has two eyes, a mouth, and wrinkly green skin? Mark's shrunken head! It's a present from his Aunt Benna. A gift from the jungle island of Baladora. And Mark can't wait to show the kids at school! But late one night the head starts to glow. Because it's actually no ordinary head. It gives Mark a strange power. A magical power. A dangerous power...

She was always ours. Ours to protect. Ours to love. Yet, we were forced to watch as she stepped into another's arms, completely out of reach. We didn't have any regrets in choosing to revive our father's deadly legacy… we knew what threat faced this family and how much danger Presley was in. Regardless of what our family thinks, it was worth it. She was worth it. We'd still burn down the entire world if it meant Presley was finally free of her burden. We'd made amends by allowing her to remain free of us in the process.

Offers a convergence of three characters and three fates: Ian McGann, whose life depends on Death's answers to his questions; Arlen Ford, who flees Hollywood into the arms of a war correspondent; and Wyatt Leonard, terminally ill in Vienna but able to raise the dead.

Seventeen young adult authors across the queer spectrum have come together to create a collection of beautifully written diverse historical fiction for teens. From a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood set in war-torn 1870s Mexico featuring a transgender soldier, to two girls falling in love while mourning the death of Kurt Cobain, forbidden love in a 16th-century Spanish convent, or an asexual girl discovering her identity amid the 1970s roller-disco scene, All Out tells a diverse range of stories across cultures, time periods and identities, shedding light on an area of history often ignored or forgotten.

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ONE of the TOP 10 BOOKS OF THE YEAR by THE NEW YORK TIMES * ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY * SLATE* THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER * Also named one of the BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by Vanity Fair, Time, NPR, The Guardian, Oprah Daily, Self, Vogue, The New Yorker, BBC, Vulture, and many...

Be afraid, be very afraid of Terrifying Tales, the sixth volume in the Guys Read Library of Great Reading. Eleven masters of suspense—Kelly Barnhill, Michael Buckley, Adam Gidwitz, Adele Griffin and Lisa Brown, Claire Legrand, Nikki Loftin, Daniel José Older, Dav Pilkey, R.L. Stine, and Rita...

When Victor finds himself getting tested for HIV for the first time, he can’t help but question his entire relationship with Henrique, the guy he has - had - been dating. See, Henrique didn’t disclose his positive HIV status to Victor until after they had sex, and Victor is livid. That’s when Victor meets Ian, a guy who’s also getting tested for HIV. But Ian’s test comes back positive. Though Victor is loath to think about Henrique, he offers to put the two of them in touch, hoping that perhaps Henrique can help Ian navigate his new life.

A charismatic doctor claimed to have rediscovered the ancestral roots of “toad medicine,” becoming the face of a global psychedelic movement. But in his wake, he left a trail of destruction that embodies the maladies of our spiritually desolate age. In 2012, a Mexican doctor announced that...

Grayson Caballero sees the glass half-empty. Born with a life-threatening heart defect, he’s been living on borrowed time. The uncertainty of tomorrow makes him push people away, helping Grayson to avoid any real commitment. Then he meets Reid Sullivan and falls madly in love. The two work together at the Wold Collective, Grayson as a project manager and Reid in HR. They even live in the same apartment complex. But Grayson continues to keep his distance, despite their obvious attraction. And Reid’s not interested in waiting around.

I was always told people grew roots where they were planted. But mine developed between the hearts of two brothers. For as long as I could remember, they were my protectors, living on the opposite end of the manor. It was when I turned eight that I realized the truth. The twins were never supposed to protect me. It was the other way around, and I would grow up to be the one who kept our family safe. As time went on, they were forced to watch while I was broken and reshaped into the weapon needed to break us free from the cage our family had been forced into.