Publishers Weekly
01/22/2024
In December of his senior year, Mexican 17-year-old Rafael “Rafie” Álvarez is riding high: he’s a star vocalist in his school’s mariachi band, made out with a fellow mariachi member from a different school, and led North Amistad High School’s Mariachi Alma de la Frontera to their 11th first-place win in the Mariachi Extravaganza de Nacional. Eight months later, however, his family moves to San Antonio. Now attending a different school, Rafie auditions for Selena Quintanilla-Perez Academy’s Mariachi Todos Colores and is shafted into a secondary vocalist position—and the lead vocalist turns out to be transgender afromexicano Rey Chávez, the boy he hooked up with all those months ago. Beneath the fiery passion and desperate ambition of Rafie and Rey’s rivalry, however, Rafie contends with grief over his abuelo’s recent death and must decide if this persistent duel is worth pushing down his emotions and keeping a chance at healing—and romance—away at arm’s length. Positing that love and joy are life’s greatest experiences, Garza Villa (Ander & Santi Were Here) crafts an earnest story that is both a quiet exploration of grief and a fierce rivals-to-lovers romance that centers the intensity and importance of passion. Ages 13–up. Agent: Claire Draper, Bent Agency. (Apr.)
From the Publisher
"A queer love letter to mariachi music and culture." - Kirkus, Starred Review
"In their third teen romance, Garza Villa orchestrates another masterpiece about queer youth redefining traditional customs in Texas." - Booklist, Starred Review
"Positing that love and joy are life’s greatest experiences, Garza Villa (Ander & Santi Were Here) crafts an earnest story that is both a quiet exploration of grief and a fierce rivals-to-lovers romance that centers the intensity and importance of passion." - Publishers Weekly
"Garza Villa offers another heartfelt queer romantic drama here...Rich in cultural detail and linguistic authenticity." - The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"With song and snark, Jonny Garza Villa has captured my heart yet again! Never have I rooted for two rivals more than with Rafie and Rey. This exploration of family, mariachi, and the difference between reputation versus expectation will stay with me for a long time." — Jason June, New York Times bestselling author of Out of the Blue
"Like Rafie and Rey when they first meet, this book swept me away from the very beginning. Jonny Garza Villa vibrantly blends mariachi, magical realism, first love and grief into a story about the ways that taking time to mourn is essential to being true to ourselves in life. Also: someone please make this book into a movie asap because I need to hear these songs performed the way only Rafie and Rey could." — Natalia Sylvester, Pura Belpré and Schneider honor-winning author of Breathe and Count Back from Ten
“Canto Contigo’s explorations of first love, fresh grief, and the pressures behind building legacy sing together in perfect harmony. Another heartfelt, humorous, and healing story from Jonny Garza Villa that is guaranteed to stick in readers’ heads like their new favorite song.” -Racquel Marie, author of Ophelia After All
"Canto Contigo seamlessly blends love and hate, longing and grief, into the perfect anthem of young love that'll leave you begging for an encore. Jonny Garza Villa's done it again (make me cry)!" — Emery Lee, author of Café con Lychee
MAY 2024 - AudioFile
Alejandro Antonio Ruiz embodies all of the roiling emotions in this compelling queer teen love story. Rafie's intensity comes through clearly in Ruiz's passionate narration. Rafie learned his love of mariachi from his abuelo. He's devastated when his abuelo dies yet is determined to bring home another first-place trophy from the Mariachi Extravaganza. When his family moves to San Antonio, he learns his new school already has a lead singer--who happens to be Rey, the cute boy he met last year. Ruiz's masterful narration captures all the anger, tension, and banter as Rafie and Rey learn to perform together and discover they've both held tight to their feelings for each other. Ruiz yells, cries, whispers, laughs, and sings, revealing all the many layers to Rafie and Rey's story. E.E.C. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2024-01-05
A queer mariachi musician learns that his star shines brighter when it’s part of a constellation.
Seventeen-year-old Mexican American Rafael Casimiro Álvarez is destined for mariachi greatness. Not only has he won best vocalist two years in a row, but he’s a third-generation musician. Rafie’s plan for domination hits a snag when the mariachi director at his new performing arts school decides he’s not ready to be lead vocalist. Being relegated to backup singing would be bad enough—the blow is compounded by the fact that Rey Chávez, the Afro-Latino lead vocalist, is the boy he hooked up with at last year’s Mariachi Extravaganza Nacional. When Rey’s voice cracks during a performance (Rey is transitioning), Rafie seizes the spotlight, earning the dubious honor of becoming co–lead vocalist. Weeks of training together thaw the ice between the boys until Rafie opens up about the pain of losing his abuelo and the stress of his family legacy. He lets himself feel the love he’s suppressed for Rey, but just when they become a happy couple (onstage and off), Rafie’s ambition threatens to destroy it all. The novel is driven by multiple, compounding elements—grief, Rafie’s ambition, the suppressed romance, and the pressures of expectations—ensuring that the tension never dissipates, even once Rey and Rafie get together, much to readers’ satisfaction. Racism, homophobia, and transphobia within the mariachi community are realistically portrayed, complicating that space without rejecting its beauty.
A queer love letter to mariachi music and culture. (author’s note) (Romance. 13-18)
