Bien Leidos | Middle Spoon: A Novel
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Middle Spoon: A Novel
Alejandro Varela
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“Middle Spoon subverts the ordinary novel with intelligence and vulnerability. . . . Varela has made a sly, analytical opera of the heart.” —Andrew Sean Greer, author of Less and Less Is Lost
“A rollicking delight! . . . Varela asks provocative questions about the shape of family and the nature of love.” —Ada Calhoun, New York Times bestselling author of Crush
One of TODAY’s 50 Books We Can’t Wait to Read in 2025
A whipsmart, blazingly funny novel about heartbreak, unconventional love, and the way society could be, from National Book Award finalist Alejandro Varela.
The narrator of Middle Spoon appears to be living the dream: He has a doting husband, two precocious children, all the comforts of a quiet bourgeois life—and a sexy younger boyfriend to accompany him to farmers markets and cocktail parties.
But when his boyfriend abruptly dumps him, he spirals into heartbreak for the first time and must confront a world still struggling to understand polyamorous relationships.
Faced with the judgment of friends and the sting of rejection, he’s left to wonder if sharing a life with both his family and his lover could ever truly be possible.
With a big heart and just the right dose of the anxieties that define the modern era, Middle Spoon skewers the unspoken rules we still live by—from taboos around intimacy to the shortcomings of Oscar season, pop culture, and gluten-free food—offering a surprising perspective on love, loss, and reinvention.
Equal parts heart-wrenching and uproariously funny, Middle Spoon is for anyone who has longed, nursed a broken heart, or grappled with love at its messiest.
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Posts about this title from Bien Leidos
Bien Leidos\
\
tomesandtextiles\
\
• Jan 4
DAY 3 POSTING CHALLENGE: 2026 Latine Book Bingo Book Recommendations Part 1
25 Latine book recommendations to help you fill Bien Leidos Book Club bingo card! I take you through the first half of the bingo card with my recs for each.
WHERE ELSE TO FIND ME
Join Bien Leidos Book Club by joining my Bindery: https://bien-leidos.binderybooks.com/
Find me everywhere else: https://linktr.ee/tomesandtextiles
BOOKS MENTIONED IN THIS VIDEO:
Orange Wine (Ebook is currently $3.99): https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9781964721354
Our Share of Night: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780451495150
My Train Leaves at Three: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593977330
This Is The Only Kingdom: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9781616209148
Gods of Jade and Shadow: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780525620778
The Sun And The Void: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780316336543
The Ex-Perimento: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593955246
The Unworthy: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/978166805188
La Lucha: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9781917260169
Middle spoon: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593835173
When the Tides Held the Moon: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9781645661535
Haunting in Hialeah Gardens: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593472132
Now I Surrender: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593084076
Estella, Undrowning: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780063429956
We Are Green and Trembling: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780811238618
Posession of Alba Diaz: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593641071
Thirst: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593472088
Poppy State: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9781643265148
The Man Who Could Move Clouds: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593311165
Salvacion: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9781250895080
Death Takes Me: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593737002
These Vengeful Gods: https://bookshop.org/a/1421/9780593898123
22 books
6
Bien Leidos\
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tomesandtextiles\
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• Sep 9 2025
Happy Tuesday, mis internet amigxs!\
\
I'm beginning this post with an apology! I had a number of my September 2nd Latine releases marked as 2026 releases on my spreadsheet, so at the bottom of this post, you'll find 7 releases from last week!\
\
I'm getting ready to start significant fall travel. Tonight, I leave for New York City for 4 days, back for a couple of weeks, headed out of town for my birthday and then home for a couple of weeks before heading to Dallas for the Hay Festival. It's going to be a busy fall intermingled with Latinx Heritage Month and I'm honestly so excited.\
\
I'll be announcing The Posession of Alba Diaz by Isabel Canas as our October Book Club pick later this week on socials, but THIS post is YOUR chance, as Bindery subscribers, to have a chance at TWO copies of the book.\
\
My last few introductions have been very long, but, this week, it's short and sweet to so we can get to all the amazing Latine releases this week, beginning with THE BOOK OF THE WEEK--\
\
\
\
Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela (Audiobook) National Book Award finalist is back with a literary fiction novel about heartbreak, unconventional love, and the way a society could be.\
\
MIDDLE GRADE HISTORICAL FICTION \
\
The Center of the Earth by Darlene Campos: Darelene is the co-founder of LatinxPitch and this story centers around Dahlia, a young Ecuadorian girl whose father is an ambassador bringing Werner from Germany at the time of Hitler's rise to become part of her family in Ecuador. A lesson in growing pains and found family.\
\
YOUNG ADULT FANTASY \
\
\
\
An Embroidery of Souls by Ruby Martinez (Audiobook) Jade can manipulate souls with the tug of a thread—it’s up to her, and a boy with a soul as bright as the universe to stop a creature on the loose before it claims its next victim in this lush, Mexican & German inspired romantasy.\
\
PICTURE BOOK \
\
Just Shine! by Sonia Sotomayor and illustrated by Jacqueline Alcantara: "How to be a better you" and also available in Spanish today\
\
\
\
When We Find Her by M. Garcia Pena and illustrated by Andre Ceolin\
\
\
\
Rafi and Rossi Menu! by and illustrated by Lulu Delacre: Releasing in both English and Spanish today!\
\
MIDDLE GRADE FICTION \
\
\
\
In The Company of Wolves by Antonio Farias: Historical fiction novel about Jamie, who goes to live with his paternal grandmother on the family ranch in New Mexico after his father is killed in Vietnam.\
\
POETRY \
\
Cipota by Chelsea Guevara: Salvadoran poet, Chelsea Guevara, covers rage, reclamation, and homecoming in this collection\
\
LITERARY FICTION \
\
All That Dies In April by Mariana Travacio: Taking place high above the Argentinian pampas, this story follows a small family on a solitary journey through the treacherous mountains in search of a better life.\
\
KID'S NONFICITON \
\
\
\
Origin: An Illuminating Look at Indigenous Peoples by Nat Cardozo and translated by Maria Jose Ferrada and Layla Benitez-James: 22 portraits of Inidgenous children and their communities from around the globe that discuss their connection to the land and environment.\
\
SEPTEMBER 2nd LATINX RELEASES \
\
\
\
Flight Plan M. Soledad Caballero: Poetry\
\
\
\
Little Rebels by Yuyi Morales: Picture Book\
\
\
\
Mexico's Day of the Dead by Luisa Navarro and photography by Christine Chitnis: nonfiction\
\
\
\
The Shadow of the Mammoth Fabio Morabato and translated by Curtis Bauer: Translated fiction\
\
\
\
Waiting for Godinez by Daniel A. Olivas: Literary fiction that is inspired by Samuel Becket's Godot play and our country's shitting imigration policies\
\
\
\
A Chronology of Blood by Teo Shannon: Poetry\
\
\
\
The Giving Flower: The Story of the Ponsettia Alda P. Dobbs and illustrated by Emily Mendoza: Picture Book\
\
xoxo, Carmen
September 9th Latine Book Releases
19 books
5
1
Bien Leidos\
\
tomesandtextiles\
\
• Sep 6 2025
Happy Saturday, mis internet amigxs!\
\
I'm beginning this post with an apology! I had a number of my September 2nd Latine releases marked as 2026 releases on my spreadsheet, so at the bottom of this post, you'll find 7 releases from last week!\
\
I'm getting ready to start fall travel. This week, I'll be in New York City for 4 days, back for a couple of weeks, headed out of town for my birthday and then home for 2 weeks before heading to Dallas for the Hay Festival. It's going to be a busy fall intermingled with Latinx Heritage Month and I'm honestly so excited.\
\
My last few introductions have been very long, but, this week, it's short and sweet to so we can get to all the amazing Latine releases this week, beginning with THE BOOK OF THE WEEK--\
\
\
\
Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela (Audiobook) National Book Award finalist is back with a literary fiction novel about heartbreak, unconventional love, and the way a society could be.\
\
MIDDLE GRADE HISTORICAL FICTION \
\
The Center of the Earth by Darlene Campos: Darelene is the co-founder of LatinxPitch and this story centers around Dahlia, a young Ecuadorian girl whose father is an ambassador bringing Werner from Germany at the time of Hitler's rise to become part of her family in Ecuador. A lesson in growing pains and found family.\
\
YOUNG ADULT FANTASY \
\
\
\
An Embroidery of Souls by Ruby Martinez (Audiobook) Jade can manipulate souls with the tug of a thread—it’s up to her, and a boy with a soul as bright as the universe to stop a creature on the loose before it claims its next victim in this lush, Mexican & German inspired romantasy.\
\
PICTURE BOOK \
\
Just Shine! by Sonia Sotomayor and illustrated by Jacqueline Alcantara: "How to be a better you" and also available in Spanish today\
\
\
\
When We Find Her by M. Garcia Pena and illustrated by Andre Ceolin\
\
\
\
Rafi and Rossi Menu! by and illustrated by Lulu Delacre: Releasing in both English and Spanish today!\
\
MIDDLE GRADE FICTION \
\
\
\
In The Company of Wolves by Antonio Farias: Historical fiction novel about Jamie, who goes to live with his paternal grandmother on the family ranch in New Mexico after his father is killed in Vietnam.\
\
POETRY \
\
Cipota by Chelsea Guevara: Salvadoran poet, Chelsea Guevara, covers rage, reclamation, and homecoming in this collection\
\
LITERARY FICTION \
\
All That Dies In April by Mariana Travacio: Taking place high above the Argentinian pampas, this story follows a small family on a solitary journey through the treacherous mountains in search of a better life.\
\
KID'S NONFICITON \
\
\
\
Origin: An Illuminating Look at Indigenous Peoples by Nat Cardozo and translated by Maria Jose Ferrada and Layla Benitez-James: 22 portraits of Inidgenous children and their communities from around the globe that discuss their connection to the land and environment.\
\
SEPTEMBER 2nd LATINX RELEASES \
\
\
\
Flight Plan M. Soledad Caballero: Poetry\
\
\
\
Little Rebels by Yuyi Morales: Picture Book\
\
\
\
Mexico's Day of the Dead by Luisa Navarro and photography by Christine Chitnis: nonfiction\
\
\
\
The Shadow of the Mammoth Fabio Morabato and translated by Curtis Bauer: Translated fiction\
\
\
\
Waiting for Godinez by Daniel A. Olivas: Literary fiction that is inspired by Samuel Becket's Godot play and our country's shitting imigration policies\
\
\
\
A Chronology of Blood by Teo Shannon: Poetry\
\
\
\
The Giving Flower: The Story of the Ponsettia Alda P. Dobbs and illustrated by Emily Mendoza: Picture Book\
\
xoxo, Carmen
EXCLUSIVE: September 9th Latinx Book Releases
19 books
Posts about this book from across Bindery
Bien Leidos\
\
tomesandtextiles\
\
• Jan 4
DAY 3 POSTING CHALLENGE: 2026 Latine Book Bingo Book Recommendations Part 1
25 Latine book recommendations to help you fill Bien Leidos Book Club bingo card! I take you through the first half of the bingo card with my recs for each.
22 books
6
Bien Leidos\
\
tomesandtextiles\
\
• Sep 9 2025
September 9th Latine Book Releases
19 books
5
1
Bien Leidos\
\
tomesandtextiles\
\
• Sep 6 2025
EXCLUSIVE: September 9th Latinx Book Releases
19 books