Pepito Has a Doll /
Pepito Tiene una Muneca tells the story of a young boy and his doll Lola. This new children’s book covers Pepito navigating his life among people that sometimes don’t understand his love for a doll.
Openly gay author Jesus Canchola Sanchez has written since the early age of seven for his Chicago elementary school newspaper, but this is first children’s book.
Bittersweet Waters had him traveling to screenings around the world.
He talked about his projects over coffee recently in Chicago.
JCS: (Jesus Canchola Sanchez) I did. I was born and raised here on the North Side of Chicago. My family is Mexican, so I went to Mexico quite a bit over the years, which is why the book is bilingual. I grew up speaking both languages at home. I thought it was important to represent that in this children’s story because there are so many families that are multilingual.
Every year, there are more and more books for queer readers of all ages. This is especially true when it comes to young readers. The Y/A (young adult) genre, geared toward readers beginning at age 12, continues to boom with numerous titles published yearly.
Younger readers, and their parents, also have an array of books from which to choose, including
Pepito Has A Doll/Pepito Tiene Una Muñeca by Jesús Canchola Sánchez, with illustrations by Armando Minjárez Monárrez. In English and Spanish, Sánchez tells the tale of the titular Pepito, and how his doll Lola, his best friend and protector Miguel and his loving and wise grandmother help him navigate the occasionally rough waters of childhood.