NYPL Best Books of 2025: Ochún y Yo

I'm so excited to share that Ochún y Yo, the Spanish language version of Oshún and Me, has been included in the New York Public Library Best Books of 2025 list!

Ochún y Yo, written by Adiba Nelson, illustrated by me, translated by Issa M. Mas, and published by MacKids, is about a little girl named Yadira who learns about the story of the goddess Oshún from her Mami. While braiding her hair, Mami also shows Yadi how her Afro Latin heritage is lovingly tucked into each braid and shell.

Each year, NYPL librarians and staff read thousands of books, compile a list of the most noteworthy ones for readers, and recommend them as the "Best Books" of the year. This is a century-old tradition. What's especially beautiful about these lists is that not only do they include books for all ages, but they also represent the diversity of NYC's readership.

You can find the entire NYPL Best Books of 2025 list here and the NYPL Spanish language Best Books for Kids list here.

There was a reception today at the NYPL's largest circulating library, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, in Manhattan. Authors, illustrators, and publishers were all cordially invited to celebrate. I wasn't able to make the trip up to NYC this time, but I lived vicariously through Adiba and Issa!

Thank you so much to all of the amazing NYPL librarians and staff that made this happen. It's an absolute honor to be included in such an amazing collection of books. I'm still in awe and I will be for a while.

Ochún y Yo is available wherever books are sold!

Sitting in amazement,
Alleanna