LibroMobile is a tiny bookstore and community literary space located in the heart of Santa Ana, California. It was initiated in 2016 by Sarah Rafael Garcia, founder of Barrio Writers and author of SanTana’s Fairy Tales and Las Niñas: A Collection of Childhood Memories. LibroMobile started as a literary arts project in collaboration with the non-profits Red Salmon Arts and Community Engagement to integrate literature, visual exhibits, creative workshops, and live readings in Santa Ana.
LibroMobile's mission is to promote literacy and diversity in Santa Ana by offering affordable books written by authors of color and cultivating a community space for the literary arts.We focus on having bilingual and Spanish books available for children, youth, and adults. LibroMobile also carries many fiction and non-fiction books about diverse American cultures and social justice issues.
LibroMobile began as a pop-up bookmobile cart traveling throughout Santa Ana visiting local community cafes, shops, and cultural centers. The unique design of LibroMobile captivated the community. People would stop to interact and contemplate its aesthetic; reminiscent of paleteros, iconic fruit vendor carts typically found in the corners of downtown Santa Ana. Since then, we have transformed from a bookmobile cart to residing on a stairwell on "Calle Cuarto" in Santa Ana to a tiny bookstore.
LibroMobile strives to cultivate knowledge and literary resources to Santa Ana families and support to local artists and authors. We emphasize the concept of reciprocity by giving back to the Latinx community we primarily serve. In order to fulfill our mission of promoting literacy and diversity in Santa Ana, we offer new and used books at affordable prices, we service five free little libraries in the community and offer a book exchange program so everyone can have access to diverse literature.
Campaign
LibroMobile is faced with the challenge of not having enough Spanish books for its bilingual community in Santa Ana. Although we have a handful of Spanish poetry and non-fiction books, that fly off our shelves on a weekly basis. We never have quite enough books to restock our Spanish book collection. More than half of LibroMobile’s books come from donations of gently used and new books. Spanish books are typically more expensive than English books and are the least donated by LibroMobile’s supporters.
On a daily basis LibroMobile receives requests for Spanish books, unfortunately, we cannot meet the demands of our Latinx population. The majority of customers seeking for Spanish books are older folks –abuelitas, abuelitos, children looking for books for their parents, and parents looking for books for their children to retain their Spanish language.
It is nostalgic to think our community wants to read famous Latinx writers all the time, but many ask for contemporary writers. They want to read Steven King and Edgar Allan Poe in their Spanish language as well as Carmen Boullosa and Gabriel García Márquez. Our Spanish speaking customers want to read books in Spanish that everybody is reading and watching at the movies. LibroMobile is seeking support to better serve their community of Spanish speakers and be able to purchase 400 contemporary Spanish books to fully stock their Spanish book section.
Funds go to:
In efforts to support Latinx presses and Spanish language publishers, all funds will go to purchasing Spanish books directly from Spanish language publishers that carry contemporary authors. Our estimated cost is roughly $4,000 for 400 Spanish books. Some books will be purchased from the following database of Latinx book presses (click here for list). Our list will continue to expand as we continue to do more research on Spanish language publishers. Suggestions are welcomed!
The Impact
LibroMobile is the only Latinx owned, bilingual bookstore in Santa Ana, California, a predominantly Mexican-American and immigrant community with 80% identified as Latinx and 72% of Spanish speakers; it is critical that we cultivate a space and provide access to literature that is representative of the language and intersectional identities of our community. It is heartbreaking to see the lack of diversity in the literary world with only 6% of Latinx represented in the overall publishing industry. It is important for children to grow up and see themselves and their culture authentically represented in the stories they read. Bilingual children, children of immigrants and all diverse children deserve spaces where they can dream, grow and learn. Books and literature are transformative and can be the seeds that spark ideas, inspire, and empower us to dream a little bigger. The meaning behind your contribution is greater than the physical Spanish book, it is the support to diverse stories, diverse writers, ideas, and dreams.
Other ways you can help
Even if you are not able to make a monetary donation, you can still help us out!
We do accept gently used books. If you would like to donate a gently used Spanish book you can mail it to:
LibroMobile
℅ Sarah Rafael Garcia
125 N. Broadway, #214
Santa Ana, CA 92701
Or visit LibroMobile at 220 E. 4th Street, Ste. 107, Santa Ana, California 92701
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Mil Gracias! Thank you all for the support!
