The Mayela Rodriguez Latinx Library Cartonera Collection consists of over 70 cartonera-style readers spanning 3 linear feet. The collection was created as part of a project led by Mayela Rodriguez to address the lack of a distinct Latinx collection within the University of Michigan Library system. Referred to as "The Latinx Library," the cartoneras were created by participants in a series of workshops in 2019 using crowdsourced materials featuring fiction, poetry, articles, recipes, artwork, and more predominantly from Latin American and Latinx authors and scholars in English and Spanish. There are additional cartoneras within the collection created by students from Latin American and Caribbean Studies who have included original works. In addition, Mayela Rodriguez created several cartoneras within the collection. Major themes of the cartoneras include culture and indigeneity, Latinidad and feminism, Latin American/Latinx history and politics, and Latinx identity.
Designed to address the lack of Latinx Studies collection with the University of Michigan libraries, the Mayela Rodriguez Latinx Library Cartonera Collection consists of over 70 cartoneras created from Mayela Rodriguez and other participants in a series of workshops in 2019 for "The Latinx Library." Originating in Argentina with roots in Venezuela, but have since spread throughout Latin America and beyond, cartoneras are aimed at spreading literacy and a wide range of literature to braoder audiences through small cardboard-bounded compiliations created by individuals or cooperative publishing businesses. They are a form of art and literature with shorter lifespans due to the use of reclaimed materials in their construction including recycled cardboard, paint, and other crafting materials.
The cartoneras within the Mayela Rodriguez Latinx Library Cartonera Collection have themes meant to address the complexity of "Latinx," where titles are cataloged between the Latin American and Iberian Studies Collection and the Multicultural Studies Collection. Mayela Rodriguez and other participants contributing to the Latinx Library Cartonera Collection created cartonera-style readers featuring published works from Latin American/Latinx authors along with original works in fiction, poetry, essays, and other forms of art and literature and designed the covers to reflect the contents within. The collection is in English and Spanish and features themes such as culture and indigeneity, Latinidad and feminism, Latin American/Latinx history and politics, and Latinx identity.
