Join us for our Authors & Writers Out Loud Series! Celebrate Halloween and Spooky Season with us as October 28th will be devoted entirely to young people. Join us for our 3rd annual Trick or Treat Give Me Something Good to Read giveaway where kids 0-18 can score FREE books (while supplies last), storytime events, and a panel discussion featuring contributors to Wild Tongues Can't Be Tamed: 15 Voices from the Latinx Diaspora. The Bronx Poet Laureate Kay Bell will open up the show with a featured performance. RSVP to reserve your spot at this exclusive event. Learn more about our spotlit authors:
Kay Bell – Bronx Poet Laureate 2023-25 (Opening Author)
Kay Bell is an Educator, Storyteller and music enthusiast. Her poetry aims to weave the language of activism with the voice of the marginalized to confront and interrogate literary spaces of oppression. For her, writing works as a birthing floor for healing, invention, and reimagination— where the poetic voice is responsible for both blessing and bruising the inquiring reader. Through writings such as “Work Sonnet,” & “Watching You Sleep” Kay continues to give rise to poetics that challenge societal norms, promote empathy, and inspires change. Currently, she works as an Academic Advisor and Adjunct Professor at the City College of New York and can be found nurturing her plants and her two sons, in the heart of the South Bronx. IG: @poetesskay. Facebook: I Am Kay Bell. Website: iamkaybell.com
Zakiya N. Jamal was born in Queens, raised in Long Island, and currently resides in Brooklyn. In other words, she’s a New Yorker through and through. She holds a BA in English from Georgetown University and a MFA in Creative Writing with a concentration in Writing for Children and Young Adults from The New School. Her debut novel IF WE WERE A MOVIE will be published in 2025 by HarperTeen.
Cristina Arreola has written about books for Bustle, Elle, Latina Magazine, and more. She now works in publishing. Originally from El Paso, Texas, she lives on the Upper West Side with her partner, two cats, and piles and piles of books.
Janel Martinez is a writer and the founder of award-winning blog, Ain't I Latina?, an online destination celebrating Afro-Latinx womanhood. The Bronx, NY native is a frequent public speaker discussing media, culture and identity at conferences and events for Bloomberg, NBCU, New York University, SXSW, Harvard University and more. She’s appeared as a featured guest on national shows and outlets, such as MSNBC's The Culture Is: Latina, BuzzFeed, ESSENCE, NPR and Sirius XM, and her work has appeared in Adweek, Univision Communications, Oprah Daily, Refinery29, Remezcla and The New York Times, among others. The Honduran-American has been nominated for the 20th Annual Rosoff Award in the 20-Something Category and won the Afro-Latino Festival of New York's Digital Empowerment Award and, in 2018, was recognized at City Hall by the New York City Council, the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus and the Bronx Delegation to the NYC Council for her contributions as a woman of Garifuna descent. She penned "Abuela's Greatest Gift" in the YA anthology, Wild Tongues Can't Be Tamed, published by Flatiron Books.
Kahlil Haywood is writer and editor from Brooklyn, NY whose family hails from Panama on both sides. Much of his work centers around the Black experience as it pertains to culture and entertainment. He has previously worked with publications such as Madame Noire, The Daily Mail, and EBONY. He currently functions as a Sports and Culture Columnist at Blavity.
Alyssa Reynoso-Morris is a queer Afro-Latine/x Dominican and Puerto Rican storyteller. Her ability to weave compelling stories has opened many doors for her as an author, speaker, and resume writer. She is also a mother and community organizer. During the day she works with community members, non-profit organizations, and government officials to make the world a better place. Then she puts her writer’s hat on to craft heartfelt stories about home, family, food, and the fun places she has been. Alyssa was born and raised in The Bronx, New York, and currently lives in Philadelphia, PA with her partner and daughter. She is the author of Plátanos Are Love, The Bronx Is My Home, and Gloriana Presente: A First Day of School Book. She hopes you enjoy her stories.