Named by Newsweek as “One of the Top Young Women to Watch for in the New Century,” Michele Serros is the author of Chicana Falsa and other stories of Death, Identity and Oxnard, How to be a Chicana Role Model, Honey Blonde Chica, and her newest young adult novel, ¡Scandalosa!

A former staff writer for The George Lopez Show, Serros has written for the Los Angeles Times, Ms. Magazine, CosmoGirl, and The Washington Post and contributes satirical commentaries regularly for National Public Radio (Latino USA, Morning Edition, Weekend All Things Considered, Anthem, Along for the Ride, and The California Report) An award-winning spoken word artist, she has read her poems to stadium crowds for Lollapalooza, recorded Selected Stories from Chicana Falsa for Mercury Records, and was selected by the Poetry Society of America to have her poetry placed on MTA buses throughout Los Angeles County.  



While still a student at Santa Monica City College, Michele’s first book of poetry and short stories, Chicana Falsa and other stories of Death, Identity and Oxnard, was published. After LaloPress, the original publisher, ceased business, Michele continued to sell copies from her garage  while maintaining a devoted following of fans as well as a place in academia where Chicana Falsa became required reading in many U.S. high schools and universities. In 1998, Riverhead Books (Penguin/Putnam) reissued Chicana Falsa in addition to publishing Serros’ Los Angeles Times Best Seller, How to be a Chicana Role Model.



Serros' work garners a diverse fan base ranging from Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers (“Michele is the great Californian writer who makes me proud of my state. When I read her books I cry and laugh and cry.”) toauthor Sandra Cisneros (“ Serros is a young, sassy writer whose brilliant weapon is her humor.”) Originally from Oxnard, CA, Michele is currently working on a new novel, A (sorta) Unmarried Mexican.



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Chicana Falsa and other stories of death, identity and Oxnard

From the white boy who transforms himself into a full-fledged Chicano, to the self-assured woman who effortlessly terrorizes her Anglo boss, to the junior-high friend who berated her "sloppy Spanish" and accused her of being a "Chicana Falsa," the people and places that Michele Serros brings to vivid life in this collection of poems and stories introduce a unique new viewpoint to the American literary landscape. Witty, tender, irreverent, and emotionally honest, her words speak to the painful and hilarious identity crises particular to the coming of age of an adolescent caught between two cultures.



How to be a Chicana Role Model

Asked to participate at a Chicana writers' conference, Serros arrives to discover that she's been hired solely to serve food, not read her poetry. But she doesn't let the hairnet that she's ordered to wear stop her from pursuing her dream of becoming a writer. After sharing the only three poems she's ever written at the conference's open mike, a small-press publisher offers his card, prints her book, then leaves her with boxes of copies to hawk on her own. As a newly published author Serros discovers that no matter what she does she is alternately confused and amused by the contradictions of the so-called Latina/o community around her. The best rule, however, comes from Serros's own Aunt Tura: If you want a real story, you need to look in your own backyard.



Honey Blonde Chica

Evie Gomez is one chill chica. She and her best friend, Raquel, hang with the Flojos, a kick-back crew named for their designer flip-flops. And their habit of doing absolutely nothing. But the return of long-lost amiga mejor Dee Dee wrecks Evie and Raquel's Flojo flow. A few years in Mexico City have transformed their shy, skinny, brunette Dee Dee into a Sangro nightmare. Dee Dee has reinvented herself as "Dela," complete with tight designer threads, freaky blue contacts, and that signature blond hair. When Raquel wants precisely nada to do with the new Dela, Evie finds herself caught between two very different friends. At heart, is Evie a Cali-casual Flojo chick, or a sexy Sangro diva? How's a chica to choose?






¡Scandalosa! A Honey Blonde Chica Novel

Evie Gomez finally has it all: a sweet boyfriend, two mejor amigas, and an upcoming sixteeñera that's the talk of the school. Qué cool, no?

Too bad reality has a way of ruining things. When her grades start to slip, Evie's parents threaten to cancel her party. The good news? All she has to do is volunteer in the community to raise her grades. The bad news? Since it's the middle of the semester, the best remaining option is working at the Southern California Horse Reserve. Then again...ranchero life? Charros? Maybe things will work out after all...