High Spirits [Paperback]

Pura Belpr? Honor Book 

BEST OF THE YEAR 
Chicago Review of Books ?Kirkus 

Publishers WeeklyFlying Start 

Meet the Bel?n familya collection of heart-wrenching and unforgettable characters who live here, there, and somewhere with a taste of magic. 

High Spiritsis a symphony of eleven interconnected stories that stretches across generations and bordersthe Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, New Jersey, New York and the fictional town of Hidalpa. From a ten-year-old confronting her first heartbreak to a teenager riding out a lockdown drill in a Paterson high school. 

This is a story collection about the things we inherit: love that's fierce but complicated, silence that speaks louder than words, and the weight of machismo passed down like an heirloom nobody wanted. It's about identity split across two countries, mental health nobody in the family wants to name out loud, and the kind of nostalgia that aches when youre homesick for a place you've never been to before. 

Told in vivid, poetic prose woven through with Dominican Spanish, Camille Gomera-Tavarez has crafted a debut short story collection thatKirkuscalls authentic and immersive andBooklistcalls deeply personal and relatable.  

Perfect for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo, Sandra Cisneros, Angie Cruz, and Yaa Gyasithis is a family saga that will make you laugh, break your heart, and leave you wanting to call your own abuela. 

Ages 12 and up | 224 pages 


P R A I S E 

 Authentic and immersive&A labor of love imbued with dedication to family. 
Kirkus(starred) 

 Deeply personal and relatable. Steeped in nostalgia and harsh but fierce love, this is a memorable family saga in its own right. 
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