It is a general trade publisher that has received attention for its bilingual children's books and fiction and non-fiction focusing on the Mexico–United States border region.

[2] Cinco Puntos Press authors include Joe Hayes, Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Sergio Troncoso, Tim Tingle, George Ella Lyon, Dagoberto Gilb, David Romo, Lisa Sandlin, Robert Boswell, Gary Cartwright, Xavier Garza, James Carlos Blake, Subcomandante Marcos, Byrd Baylor, J.L.

Bill Ivey, chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts—which had previously awarded $7,500 to Cinco Puntos Press for the publication of the story—pulled the funding on March 9, 1999 after being interviewed by Julia Preston of the Mexico City bureau of The New York Times.

[4] The NEA's move drew national attention to the book and Cinco Puntos when an article about the controversy was published on the front page of the New York Times.

[6] Publisher Bobby Byrd made a personal statement on the press's website, stating: "It was a strange media frenzy, a true boon to Cinco Puntos.