Joseline

Joseline

Joseline was born and raised in the Bay Area and has always had a love for books. She drinks way too much coffee. She never leaves the house without a book in her bag. And, you can always count on her to have hot sauce. She recently graduated from SFSU with a degree in Latina/o Studies. 

She reads widely from children’s literature to epic fantasies to romance to poetry and everything in between. Some of her favorite authors include Silvia Moreno Garcia, Ocean Vuong, Leigh Bardugo, and Ottessa Moshfegh. When she is not working or has her nose in a book she loves to write, knit/crochet, and watch reruns of Friends. 

“I was looking for a miracle, but I got a story instead, and sometimes those are the same thing.” 
― Maggie Stiefvater, All the Crooked Saints
 

 

Favorite Genres: 
Children's Lit
Fantasy
Graphic Novels
LGBTQ Fiction
Literary Fiction
Poetry
Romance
Short Fiction
Young Adult
Book Recommendations: 
Staff Pick Badge
The Hacienda By Isabel Cañas Cover Image
$27.00
Not available
ISBN: 9780593436691
Published: Berkley - May 3rd, 2022

The best gothic horror debut I've ever read! Set in the aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence, this novel is bone-chilling. A MUST READ! ~Joss


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The Book of Lost Saints: A Cuban American Family Saga of Love, Betrayal, and Revolution By Daniel José Older Cover Image
$18.99
ISBN: 9781250620910
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Feiwel & Friends - February 22nd, 2022

Staff Pick Badge
The President and the Frog: A novel By Carolina De Robertis Cover Image
$16.00
ISBN: 9780593312100
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Vintage - October 18th, 2022

Carolina De Robertis is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. The President and the Frog is a eccentric novel that explores the resilience of humans and the power of revolutions. The former President, also known as the Poorest President in the World, recounts his time in office and flashbacks to his time as a guerilla when he was imprisoned and held in brutal conditions. He remembers his time in solitary confinement and the one creature that visited him and spoke to him: a frog. I LOVED this one! ~Joss


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Yerba Buena: A Novel By Nina LaCour Cover Image
$26.99
ISBN: 9781250810465
Availability: Usually Arrives at Kepler's in 3-14 Days
Published: Flatiron Books - May 31st, 2022

A quietly haunting novel about two women and how their lives intertwined. It's a story about family, love, and the secrets we try to run from.

Nina LaCour's lyrical prose will capture you from the very beginning. She is an auto-buy author for me! ~Joss


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Some Mistakes Were Made By Kristin Dwyer Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9780063088535
Availability: Usually Arrives at Kepler's in 3-14 Days
Published: HarperTeen - May 10th, 2022

A stunningly gut-wrenching debut. A story of first love, complex families, and the choices we make that sometimes take us further from the ones we love. Full of so much heart and vulnerability. SO FREAKING GOOD! ~Joss


Staff Pick Badge
Olga Dies Dreaming: A Novel By Xochitl Gonzalez Cover Image
$27.99
ISBN: 9781250786173
Availability: Usually Arrives at Kepler's in 3-14 Days
Published: Flatiron Books - January 4th, 2022

Staff Pick Badge
The Nature of Witches By Rachel Griffin Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9781728229423
Availability: Usually Arrives at Kepler's in 3-14 Days
Published: Sourcebooks Fire - June 1st, 2021

The Nature of Witches blew me away. I was immersed in the world from the very first page and I did not want to leave. We follow Clara an Everwitch whose magic is tied to all the seasons: Summer, Autumn, Winter, and Spring. The world’s climate begins to falter and become dangerously erratic. Clara is their only hope for survival. But she wants nothing to do with her magic. 

Her magic kills. Her magic destroys. And she is going to put an end to it before anyone else gets hurt. Until Sang, a soft and kind Spring witch comes into her life and shows her that her magic is a gift rather than a curse. Clara is left with the biggest decision of her life. To embrace or to let her magic go?

An absolutely stunning debut with a raw beauty that overwhelmed me in the best possible way. Griffin has a magical way with words. This book is magic. If you love witches, nature, and sweet botanist boys that make your heart melt then this is a book you don’t want to miss.


Staff Pick Badge
Down Comes the Night: A Novel By Allison Saft Cover Image
$18.99
ISBN: 9781250623638
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Wednesday Books - March 2nd, 2021

Down Comes the Night is a haunting debut full of sorrow, loss, and love. Dark and atmospheric, this world demands to be felt in your bones. Every sentence propels you to flip page after page and immerse yourself in the visceral beauty of the world Saft created. This book is a story of healing, letting yourself love, and be loved. You won’t want to put this book down!


Staff Pick Badge
Fable: A Novel (The World of the Narrows #1) By Adrienne Young Cover Image
$18.99
ISBN: 9781250254368
Availability: Usually Arrives at Kepler's in 3-14 Days
Published: Wednesday Books - September 1st, 2020

​A dark, eerie, and gritty world that is wholly immersive and captivating. A cast of characters full of heart, strength, and resilience. Fable's journey in this unforgiving world will leave you breathless and wanting more.


Staff Pick Badge
Cemetery Boys By Aiden Thomas Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9781250250469
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Swoon Reads - September 1st, 2020

Staff Pick Badge
Lobizona: A Novel (Wolves of No World #1) By Romina Garber Cover Image
$11.99
ISBN: 9781250239136
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Wednesday Books - August 17th, 2021

Lobizona is a masterpiece. Weaving Argentinian culture with lush magic, the land of Septimus is full of secrets. Garber writes about the hardships of being "other" in America. Manu is longing for a place to call home yet her mere existence is illegal. A stunning, magical, and powerful story. --Joseline


Staff Pick Badge
Gentefication (Four Way Books Levis Prize in Poetry) By Antonio de Jesús López Cover Image
$16.95
ISBN: 9781945588969
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Four Way Books - September 15th, 2021

Staff Pick Badge
Children of the Land: A Memoir By Marcelo Hernandez Castillo Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9780062825636
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Harper Perennial - September 29th, 2020

Children of the Land opens up with ICE paying a visit to Hernandez's home. They are looking for his father that has already been deported years earlier. This scene encapsulates the immense fear immigrants carry with them everywhere they go. This book talks about the trauma of displacement, the dehumanizing immigration system, and what it truly means to be living the American Dream. --Joseline


Staff Pick Badge
We Are Not from Here By Jenny Torres Sanchez Cover Image
$12.99
ISBN: 9781984812285
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Viking Books for Young Readers - May 18th, 2021

This book absolutely destroyed me. I cried the ENTIRE time. It was beautifully written and such a haunting subject matter. It sheds the light of the current immigration crisis and the mass groups of people making the dangerous journey to America in order to provide a better life for themselves and their family. 

I will be thinking about this book for the rest of my life. May we remember those lost souls searching for a better life. Que Dios los tenga en sus brazos. --Joseline


Staff Pick Badge
Woven in Moonlight By Isabel Ibañez Cover Image
$10.99
ISBN: 9781645672050
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Page Street YA - December 8th, 2020

A rich story inspired by Bolivian culture and its politics. Full of beauty, loss, revolution, and hope. Ibañez writes characters you love with your whole heart. Don't read on an empty stomach or you'll want to eat the words off the page! --Joseline


Staff Pick Badge
Mexican Gothic By Silvia Moreno-Garcia Cover Image
$17.00
ISBN: 9780525620808
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Del Rey - June 15th, 2021

This is the first horror book I've ever read. I get scared easily and boy this was SPOOKY. Totally worth any potential nightmares I will have. 


The imagery, the writing, the characters, the atmosphere was GORGEOUS. This book kept me on the edge of my seat. Guillermo del Toro NEEDS to adapt this into a movie.

Brilliant. Scary. Atmospheric. Love, love, love it! --Joseline


Staff Pick Badge
A Thousand Fires By Shannon Price Cover Image
$9.99
Not available
ISBN: 9781250219428
Published: Tor Teen - October 27th, 2020

Staff Pick Badge
The Storm Crow By Kalyn Josephson Cover Image
$10.99
ISBN: 9781728206974
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Sourcebooks Fire - June 2nd, 2020

Staff Pick Badge
Gods of Jade and Shadow By Silvia Moreno-Garcia Cover Image
$17.00
ISBN: 9780525620778
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Del Rey - February 18th, 2020

Staff Pick Badge
Check, Please! Book 1: # Hockey By Ngozi Ukazu Cover Image
$17.99
ISBN: 9781250177964
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: First Second - September 18th, 2018

Eric Bittle, former figure skater & vlogger  goes to Samwell University on a hockey scholarship even though he’s never played hockey before. What could go wrong?

He navigates his freshman and sophomore year at Samwell by trying not to get checked in the rink, baking a lot of pies, and trying not to get distracted by his very attractive yet moody captain Jack. 

Whether you are a hockey fan or not, you will ABSOLUTELY fall in love with this graphic novel and all of the characters. 


Staff Pick Badge
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter By Erika L. Sánchez Cover Image
$12.99
ISBN: 9781524700515
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Ember - March 5th, 2019

 

Being Mexican-American, this book is very special to me. I finally felt seen and heard through Sanchez’s voice. 

It is a book about finding your identity when you come from two different worlds and you feel like you don’t belong in either.


Staff Pick Badge
The Poet X By Elizabeth Acevedo Cover Image
$15.99
ISBN: 9780062662811
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Quill Tree Books - April 7th, 2020

Staff Pick Badge
The City of Brass: A Novel (The Daevabad Trilogy) By S. A. Chakraborty Cover Image
$19.99
ISBN: 9780062678119
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Harper Voyager - July 3rd, 2018

 

A magical world set in 18th century Cairo full of djinns, princes, and thieves. This is an amazingly crafted world with unforgettable characters. 

I did not want to put this book down and neither will you!


Staff Pick Badge
Citizen Illegal By José Olivarez Cover Image
$16.00
ISBN: 9781608469543
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: Haymarket Books - September 4th, 2018

Staff Pick Badge
The Five Wounds: A Novel By Kirstin Valdez Quade Cover Image
$17.95
ISBN: 9781324020219
Availability: In Stock at Kepler's Now
Published: W. W. Norton & Company - January 25th, 2022

My favorite read of 2021! This is a stunning novel that follows five generations of the Padilla family in the span of a year. Vivid, funny, and tender. ~Joss