¿Quién fue Selena?

Who Was . . . ? Series

by Max Bisantz, Kate Bisantz, Who H.Q.

Descubra por qué Selena, la reina de la música tejana, ¡se convirtió en una de las artistas méxico-americanas más célebres del siglo XX!

Discover why Selena, the Queen of Tejano music, became one of the most celebrated Mexican-American entertainers of the twentieth century in this Spanish edition of the WHO HQ series!

De joven, Selena Quintanilla cantaba en un grupo llamado Selena y Los Dinos con su hermano y su hermana. La familia actuaba en ferias, bodas, fiestas de quince años y en las esquinas de su Texas natal. Selena aprendió a cantar en español y pronto se hizo muy popular entre la comunidad latina, hasta el punto de convertirse en la artista latina más vendida de la década de 1990. Selena estaba lista para llegar a la cumbre del éxito, pero su vida se vio truncada tras ser herida de muerte por la presidenta de su club de fans. Las contribuciones de Selena a la música y a la moda durante su vida la convirtieron en una de las principales estrellas latinas de la década de 1990, y los lectores querrán saber más sobre la mujer que introdujo en el mundo la música tejana.

As a young girl, Selena Quintanilla sang in a band called Selena y Los Dinos with her brother and sister. The family performed at fairs, weddings, quinceañeras, and on street corners in their native Texas. Selena learned how to sing in Spanish and soon became hugely popular within the Latino community--so much so that she became the best-selling Latin artist of the 1990s. Selena was poised to be a great success, but her life was cut short after being fatally wounded by the president of her fan club. Selena's contributions to music and fashion during her life made her one of the top Latin musicians in the 1990s, and readers will want to know more about the woman who introduced the world to Tejano music.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Childrens, History, Middle Grade, Juvenile, Music

112 pages, Paperback

First published August 7, 2018

Reviews

[Priscilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

An accurate and well-balanced biography about Selena, her life and legacy, and her impact on the music world. The illustrations look to be taken from a combination of scenes from the 1997 movie and from pictures of the real Quintanilla family. I appreciated that this book was respectful in its retelling of Selena’s life, of the Mexican-American culture, and of Tejano music. This is a great resource for young readers and Selena fans of all ages to learn more about our beloved singer. I’ve read every book I’ve been able to find about Selena, and I’m impressed and pleased with this biography - the book world needed a strong chapter book bio about Selena. Highly recommend.

[Chuzzy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bleh!

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was introduced to Selena after she had died, a movie came about her life. It was a good story and I enjoyed her music when I heard it. She was a very talented young lady who died way to soon.
I enjoyed reading this book about her life.

[T'Shura Sinclair · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book

[Dusty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read; helpful as I prepared to teach about Tejano music in my Mexican American humanities course.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Selena was an absolute icon. The Latin pop music of the 90s has her to thank for its success, and it’s a true tragedy that her life was stolen when she’d barely had a chance to live it.

[Mary Horton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who was Selena is a book based off of Selena Quintanilla’s life and her impact on the world. In this book it talks about Selena’s life before fame, during her fame, and her sad unexpected death. Selena and her family were very close to each other and this is how she got started with her talents, her family started a band with Selena, her brother, and sister. This was just the start for Selena as she became very famous in the Latino community with her spanish singing. Selena was very popular around the world for her talents and entertainment and people adored her. She soon died at a young age when the president of her fan club shot and killed her. This was a tragic end to Selena Quintanilla’s life, everyone was very shocked and devastated. Selena greatly impacted the music industry and her legacy still lives on today. This book discusses all the facts you need to know about Selena Quintanilla, who she was, and why her legacy still lives on today.

I believe that this book would be most beneficial for the students if it was read aloud to the students due to the higher reading level and how it is a more complex text. I think this book could be read throughout the morning meetings and could be started on a Monday and finished by that Friday. Due to the reading level of this book and the vocabulary that is embedded I believe that students will be able to best understand it through the teacher reading it aloud. The genre of this book is biography because it is about the life of Selena Quintanilla. The grade level that this book is most appropriate for is 6th grade but its interest level is for 4th through 8th. One way you can use this book in the classroom is during a morning meeting. This can be done as a read aloud each morning for a week long time span. After the teacher is finished reading each morning the students can do a different activity each day. Whether this activity deals with character maps, flow charts, graphic organizers, etc. this would be a great way for students to be able to reflect on what they just listened to and a great way for teachers to assess students' understanding and comprehension. Another way that this book can be brought into the classroom is during Hispanic Heritage Month. Each week you can introduce a new book to the class and read it during the morning meeting. This would be a great time to introduce who Selena Quinanilla was and her impact that she left on the world. This would allow students to learn more about a hispanic woman that was able to accomplish so much in her short lifetime while inspiring others to do so as well. I think this book is a good book for this genre to be introduced because it is a biography about someone’s life that is written in a way that elementary students can understand it and be interested in the text. I remember struggling to read biographies in elementary school because they were so complex and I couldn’t understand them, but this series allows for students to be able to read and comprehend the text so that students can stay engaged. Something that resonated with me about this text is overall how talented Selena was during her life and how hard she worked to get to where she was as a famous singer and entertainer. I think the students will also agree with this and they will really enjoy reading this book and learning more about who Selena was.

[Catherine Dean · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Who Was Selena?” by Kate Bisantz and Max Bisantz (2018) is a chapter book and biography about Selena Quintanilla, a famous Mexican-American singer of Tejano (Texan) music. This book tells the story of Selena from when she was a young girl all the way to her early death at age 23. All of Selena’s greatest successes are highlighted in this book as well as some of the biggest challenges she faced. Her story is inspiring to young girls, musicians, and artists in general, and it is relatable as well as encouraging for multicultural people and first/ second/ third generation immigrants.

This book would be great to give to upper-grade elementary school students for independent reading. It has a lexile measurement of 880L, so I would start giving it to students in 3rd grade that are at or above grade level for reading fluency. I would allow students to read this leisurely in my classroom during their free time or offer it as a resource for a project. These projects could be related to history, such as the history of the U.S. or music in the 1980s or even influential people in history. It could also be used for a project to teach students about writing a biography or conducting research. It could serve as a reading option for students interested in chapter books or Selena’s life in general.

This book resonated with me because Selena has been an inspiration in my own life. She is the perfect example of the success that can come when you work hard about the things you are passionate about. Selena’s compassion, selflessness, and general care for others motivates me to try to be the same way. Most of all, Selena is relatable and inspiring for me as well as other Mexican-Americans who have experienced a similar struggle to connect with both parts of our ethnicity just as she did. Selena Quintanilla was a third generation immigrant (like myself) who did not grow up speaking Spanish in the same way her parents had. She learned Spanish as a teenager (also like myself) in order to sing and perform Spanish music. Because of this, everyone worried she wouldn’t be able to fully connect with the Mexican/ Latino community (no other singer had been able to before her), but she was fully loved, accepted, and celebrated by this community. Her producers were also hesitant to let her make music in English, but after her death, her first English album was released and became the most popular one. She proved that as a multicultural person, you can have the “best of both (or all) worlds.” Her story is a message that you don’t have to feel like you don’t completely belong in a particular group because there are benefits in being able to connect with more than one group of people.

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central

Born in 1971 in Texas, Selena Quintillana was raised by parents who thought it better if she didn't speak Spanish to try to avoid racial prejudice. Her father had a band, but couldn't earn enough money to support the family through music alone, so worked other jobs. He did, however, require all three of his children to pursue music. AB wrote songs and played bass, Suzette played drums, and Selena sang. Interestingly enough, since the family was singing Tejano style music, Selena had to learn to sing in Spanish! Soon, Selena's singing gained a lot of attention, and by the time she was in her teens, the group, Selena and Los Dinos, had recording contracts and air play on the radio. As she produced more and more albums, she also focused her energies on fashion design and some cosmetics. While she was very successful, there was a woman who insinuated herself into the family, Yolanda Saldivar, who caused problems and eventually ended up shooting and killing Selena in an argument when the singer was quite young. Thanks to her family and fans, Selena's spirit and music live on.

The Who Was series is one that many young readers like because the books are short, heavily illustrated (although there are no photographs), and give a full picture of the person, even covering problems in the person's life with age appropriate coverage. I was not familiar with Selena's music, but feel like I have a good working understanding of her career after reading this book.

Aspiring singers will find Selena's hard work and progress towards her goal of having a career in music inspiring, and her family's struggles with prejudice in Texas are important to remember. There are good side notes about how the Corpus Christi, Texas telephone directories in the early part of 10th century list families' faces next to their phone numbers!

I'm glad to see that there are more biographies of Latine Americans being published; this series also has a title about singer Celia Cruz. I'm a big fan of collective biographies like Reynoso's Be Bold! Be Brave! 11 Latinas who made U.S. History or Nuestra América: 30 Inspiring Latinas/Latinos Who Have Shaped the United States by Sabrina Vourvoulias, but this deeper exploration of individuals' careers will be great for reading and for research when biography projects are assigned in schools.

[AMAO · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who Was Selena? by Max Bisantz
Published August 7, 2018

<3

Discover why Selena, the Queen of Tejano music, became one of the most celebrated Mexican-American entertainers of the twentieth century!
As a young girl, Selena Quintanilla sang in a band called Selena y Los Dinos with her brother and sister. The family performed at fairs, weddings, quinceañeras, and on street corners in their native home of Texas. Selena learned how to sing in Spanish and soon became hugely popular within the Latino community—so much so that she became the best-selling Latin artist of the 1990s. Selena was poised to be a great success, but her life was cut short after being fatally wounded by the president of her fan club. Selena's contributions to music and fashion during her life made her one of the top Latin musicians in the 1990s, and readers will want to know more about the woman who introduced the world to Tejano music.

[Heather McC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tejanao superstar Selena was a trailblazer in the world of music and fashion. A young woman with big dreams - and a big family to support her - went on to blend Latin and American culture to create a new sound for global audiences. The crossover album (combining English and Spanish songs) was released posthumously after her tragic death at the hands of former fan club owner, Yolanda Saldivar. Though Selena is no longer with us, her legacy lives on through other dreamers just like her who are willing to go the extra mile for their passion.

[Karla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so cute and interesting and informative, but easy to understand! I really liked it. I have a project coming up where I have to do a monologue for Selena's character, and this biography of her life really helped. Selena is one of my favorite Hispanic singers, and I felt like this book did her justice. There was some things that I did not know about Selena that I found in this book, mostly her life before she became a star. It was an extremely quick read and it was not boring, which is hard to do with a nonfiction biography. Overall, I would recommend.

[Latasha (Pages_and_Floss) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this aloud to my kids (6-14 years old) to kick off Hispanic Heritage Month.

The only thing I didn't like and it's my fault for not proof reading before reading it out loud to my kids. How does flipping her skirt over her head an example of her being daring or adventurous. In my opinion that should have been left out. But that's me being a mom and could be easily skipped over, if you read this aloud.

Overall this was a great book to kick off the month. Although this was focused on Selena's life it introduced many other subjects.

[Manda Marigold · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars. I first learned about Selena in Spanish class. My teacher had the class watch the movie as part of the curriculum. After watching the movie I was interested in learning a little more about Selena so I read her husband's memoir titled To Selena, With Love. This quick read details Selena's life and how she became the Queen of Tejano Music. The book also briefly discussed her tragic death. Selena's impact on the world and legacy were discussed as well .Overall, this was an engaging read.

[Eduardo Lemus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very good and one of my favorites. This book is about one of the most adored singers in the history of Latin music. Selena is a young girl from Texas who sang in a family band with her brother and sister. When she was a teenager she learned to speak Spanish so that she could sin Tejano music which is still adored. The book is very descriptive and doesn’t miss one bit of her life. I really enjoyed this book.

[Angie]

this book is about an artist who died at a young age. she was murdered by the person she trusted the most and thought would never betray her. the story is about how she grew up and how she became a famous person it also talks about the obstacles and people she met along the way. I would recommend this book to my sisters who really like her I would also recommend this to someone who would like to learn her history. There is also a movie about it.

[Paula Chacin · Rating 5 out of 5]

He visto miles de documentales y leido miles de articulos sobre Selena, soy su fan desde muy pequeña, pense que sabia todo lo que se podia saber sobre ella pero en este libro sin duda hay informacion que JAMAS habia escuchado antes, me encanta.

[Bethe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part of the "bobblehead" who was series, easy to read, engaging as the subject herself. Wish the illustrations were more professional looking, maybe even some photos. Sidebars were well done, sources and an interesting timeline with pop cultural and historical events included. Curious to see how this circulates with a whole new generation.

[sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

YES. About time Who Was? created a book on Selena.
I still can't believe how useful and marvelous this series is, but I also can't believe how sad Selena's life was. This book fit the perfect amount of information onto 112 pages. Now if you don't mind me, I'll be humming Como La Flor for the remainder of the afternoon. Good day.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was upset that the book didn't give enough credit to her song "I Could Fall in Love With You"; not listed anywhere. Then, I figure it was because it didn't really come out until after she died. It all happened in 1995.

[Kaila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I REALLY appreciate kids books that don't gloss over tragedy. After reading a book about Anne Frank with Hitler being called the "ugly man," it was really great to see an honest and accurate telling of Selena's murder.

[Ally Puri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book about Selena. Her family, career, and legacy. I remember watching the movie for the first time in my 7th grade Spanish class, and we we're all crying by the end. Reading this book, my heart dropped seeing Yolanda's name.
Great for anyone who wants to know more of her career details.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book about the life of a Latin American singer. She helped start the revolution of the Latin America era to the music industry. Unfortunately her life was cut short by a greedy woman who tried to steal money from her.

[Mary Putman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to read this for school for a nonfiction grade, and I do not necessary like reading these kinds of books, but I was able to read it in a matter of an hour and it was one of the more interesting ones.

[David Rough · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good biography for young readers. Her rise to fame and popularity was highlighted in the context of her family and culture. The sad ending of her career and life will make this book a sobering read for some young readers.

[Tyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are a Selena fan this is a must read!! I learned so many new things about her.

[Oks Oriek · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love “Who was / is ?” Series. They are written in such engaging and simple language. And every page or two I feel emotional. I searched something for my children, and found this for myself.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. I have read quite a few of the series.

This girl was gone wayyyy too soon. What a great tribute to her.

[Marguerite Byrd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is really good book! I'm highly recommend thay book for young people that want to know more about the queen of Tejano. Great book!!

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a good book you need to listen to the song called bidi bidi bom bom by Selena quentinnila