"Refreshing use of Latino folk tales and culture gives a new twist to a familiar tale." Continue reading...
è Writer's Post Journal
Fourteen-year-old Lupe Hernandez wishes she was blond, white, and popular. She dismisses the legend her Mexican grandmother tells about a treasured family heirloomèa pair of ruby earringsèas a silly fairytale, despite recurring nightmares of human sacrifice whenever she wears them. But when the earrings thrust her into the parallel world of Ixtumea, she must confront the very thing she shuns the mostèher cultural heritage.
Lupeès journey takes her through a dense Mayan jungle to the damp underground kingdom of Malvado, where a rebel leader plots to keep her from fulfilling her destiny. She is guided by a hot warrior protector named Teancum, who tells her about a prophecy of a long-awaited young prophetessèwhich happens to be Lupe. She trains with the Spider Goddess, who teaches her the sacred knots that bind both worlds together. And she meets her long-lost mother, Conchaèwho is now a dangerous enemy.
Life as Lupe knows it will never be the same!
Kim Baccellia has a degree in Elementary Education, and was a bilingual teacher for South Whittier School District in Los Angeles County for eight years. As an educator, Kim couldn't find many books for Latinos that were upbeat or dealt with their heritage. During her personal quest to find out more about her own Mexican heritage, she began writing The Earrings of Ixtumea . Her purpose was to create a protagonist that teenage Latina girls could relate to while also learning about their own rich cultural heritage. Find out more »
Ms. Baccellia's writing credits include numerous poems in a variety of magazines, ranging from Beginnings magazine and Latino Stuff Review to Coil magazine. Her poem, My Father , appears in the Mind Mutations Anthology published by The Sun Rising Poetry Press. Her essay on the adoption of her son, Our Turn , appeared in both Adoptive Families magazine and the Adoptive Families 2003-2004 Adoption Guide . She is also a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators ( SCBWI).
Ms. Baccellia is currently writing Crossed Out , a young adult paranormal novel. She lives in Southern California with her husband and five-year-old son.
