Boston Globe: A Book about Race and Place
March 2021
Boston Globe features White Space: Essays on Culture, Race, & Writing in their New England Literary News. Globe Correspondent Nina MacLaughlin writes, “With nuance and heart, De Leon writes of what can’t be spoken, what goes unspoken, and what lives so vitally, pulsing away, between the lines.”
Latino Stories: 2020 Top 10 “New” Latino Latinx Authors You, Your Family, and Teachers Need to Read
October 2020
Latino Stories features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From on their 2020 Top 10 List. The staff of Latino Stories writes: “In Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From, Jennifer De Leon delivers a tightly-woven tale about the challenges Liliana Cruz faces when she’s accepted into a high school integration program aiming to reduce racial isolation. Can Liliana truly and fully be? She can, but not without growing pains: like helping out her younger brother while Mom works or worrying about her recently-deported father.”
The Mujerista: 10 Best Young Adult Books by Latinx Authors to Read Now
October 2020
The Mujerista features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of 10 best YA books by Latinx authors to read in 2020. Writes Virginia Isaad: “There are heavy topics handled adeptly by De Leon, including racism, immigration politics, and code-switching that make it a timely read for teens.”
Cosmopolitan: The 20 Best Young Adult Books You’ll Read All Year
October 2020
Cosmopolitan features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of 20 best YA books of 2020. Writes Kelly Allen and Elizabeth Ann Entenmen, “In this gripping novel, Liliana Cruz is a first-gen American LatinX who attends a mostly white school, where racial tensions are high. While trying to survive in that environment, she learns a family secret that puts her in a position where she needs to take a stand and speak her truth.”
We Need Diverse Books: How to Become a Writer (of Color)
August 2020
We Need Diverse Books features Jennifer De Leon’s personal essay about writing her own version of Lorrie Moore’s “How to Become a Writer” and being awarded We Need Diverse Books’s Walter Dean Myers grant. Jennifer De Leon writes, “There is a tremendous sense of power in reclaiming a story that doesn’t include you. It took me years and years—and many, many more drafts—to begin to understand that what I originally saw as weaknesses in my writing life and material were actually strengths.”
Shondaland: Jennifer De Leon’s ‘Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From’ Looks at Latinidad Through the Eyes of Today’s Youth
August 2020
Shondaland features an interview with Virgina Isaad asking Jennifer De Leon about her YA novel Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From.
Shelf Awareness: Attainment: New Titles Out Next Week
August 2020
Shelf Awareness features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the selected new titles out on Tuesday, August 18, 2020.
Goodreads: Jennifer De Leon Celebrates Trailblazing YA Literature
August 2020
Goodreads features Jennifer De Leon’s personal essay reflecting on YA literature from her perspective as an educator, writer, and reader. Jennifer De Leon writes, “YA books are ones that continue to explore issues of relevance to the real lives of teen readers, ones that expand what a story is allowed to tell as well as who gets to tell it. We still have a long way to go, but along the way, there is much to celebrate.”
Goodreads: 48 Highly Anticipated YA Novels for the Rest of 2020
August 2020
Goodreads features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the 48 highly anticipated YA novels for the rest of 2020.
MetroWest Daily News: A Tale of Two Worlds
August 2020
MetroWest Daily News features an interview with author Jennifer De Leon before the release of her book Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From. Writes Zane Razzaq, “De Leon said she hopes the book can be both a mirror and a window for readers. She wrote it specifically for readers like her younger self: ‘young Latinx teens, girls in particular.'”
Remezcla: Here’s What We’re Reading & Listening to This Month
August 2020
Remezcla feaures Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the books and podcasts they are glued to right now. Writes Virginia Isaad, “It’s a powerful coming of age story that authentically reflects life today for teens of color including the effects of cyberbullying and the importance of community. It also shines a light on the heartbreaking effects of immigration policies and what it means to be both Latina and U.S. American. De Leon is a Boston-native born to parents from Guatemala whose powerful storytelling makes this one of the best books I’ve read this year.”
Ms. Magazine: August 2020 Reads for the Rest of Us
August 2020
Ms. Magazine features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From on a list of new books being published by writers from historically underrepresented groups. Writes gender & women’s studies librarian Karla Strand, “Tackling themes of immigration, race and identity, this is a coming of age story for our time.”
Goodreads: Augusts’s Most Anticipated YA Books
August 2020
Goodreads features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From in a round up of soon-to-be favorite YA novels.
Society19: 10 New Books You Should Read on Diversity
August 2020
Society19 features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as “a fantastic resource on diversity that is worth your time.” Writes Julia Bergquist, “This is a brand new book that creatively tells a story that explores themes of race, prejudice, and immigration & immigration in the American LatinX community.”
POPSUGAR: The Top 10 YA Books Coming Out in August 2020
July 2020
POPSUGAR features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the top 10 YA books coming out in August 2020. Writes Sabienna Bowman, “Balancing humor and honest conversations about race with ease, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer De Leon is one of the year’s best YA books so far.”
Colorlines: #ColorlinesReads: 33 Books for Summer 2020
July 2020
Colorlines features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of 33 books for summer 2020. Writes Catherine Lizette Gonzalez of #ColorlinesReads: “In Jennifer de Leon’s Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From, a Central American teenager deals with the stresses of life at home with her immigrant family and the predominantly white school she attends through a desegregation program.”
Get Literary: 7 Upcoming Debut Novels We Can’t Stop Talking About
July 2020
Get Literary features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the 7 upcoming debut novels they’re most excited about this year.
POPSUGAR: 15 YA Novels Coming Out in Summer 2020 That Need to Be on Your Reading List
July 2020
Popsugar features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of 15 YA must-read novels in summer 2020, recommended by Corinne Sullivan, Popsugar contributor.
Bookstacked: Smile for the Cover: A Look at People of Color on YA Book Cover Art
July 2020
Bookstacked features the cover of Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the new releases of 2020 with visual racial representation in YA novels. Writes Spencer Miller of Bookstacked, “To help celebrate the work of publishers, book designers and illustrators who are working to make a difference, here are some 2020 releases with bold and beautiful covers to be excited about!”
Boston Globe: Local Young Adult Authors Tell You What to Read This Summer
June 2020
Boston Globe highlights Jennifer De Leon’s debut novel, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From, and includes author Jennifer De Leon’s summer read pick, Jenny Torres Sanchez’s We Are Not From Here.
The Toy Insider: Resources to Help Your Kids Take a Stand Against Racism
June 2020
The Toy Insider features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as a resource that families can use to support conversations around race and take a stand against racism, recommended by Jackie Cucco, senior editor at Adventure Publishing Group.
The Uncorked Librarian: 14 Books Set in Massachusetts to Read Before You Go
May 2020
The Uncorked Librarian features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the new 2020 books set in Massachusetts.
Working Mother Magazine: 12 Books to Help Your Kids Explore the World From Home
April 2020
Working Mother Magazine features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the best 12 new reads to help kids learn about different people and places, recommended by contributor Quinn Fish.
Book Riot: The Ultimate Guide to Spring 2020 YA Books For Your TBR
April 2020
Book Riot features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of the great new spring 2020 YA books to add to your list, recommended by contributor Kelly Jensen.
BuzzFeed: 30 YA Books by Latinx Authors We Can’t Wait to Read in 2020
March 2020
BuzzFeed features Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From as one of 30 YA books by Latinx authors to look out for and read in 2020, recommended by BuzzFeed contributor Zoraida Córdova.
Teen Vogue: Teen Vogue Cover Reveal and Excerpt
November 2019
Teen Vogue announced the cover reveal for Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer De Leon. Writes P. Claire Dodson, “Jennifer De Leon’s YA debut tackles racism, code-switching, and more. The novel follows 15-year-old Liliana Cruz as she transfers to a majority white high school.”
