Tomas Rivera 2008

Texas knows how to put together a book award celebration. Hurray for San Marcos and Austin!



We also heard that Juan Felipe Herrera was there last year to receive the award, and he kept people in stitches. How do you do it, Juan Felipe? I am sure one has to be born with that magic inside.

More ALA Views: Pura Belpre Award Ceremony

First a definition/description:
"The Pura Belpré Award, established in 1996, is presented to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth." --from ALA website

And now my report.

At my signings, during the days before the award ceremony last week, I handed out a lot these printed invitations:

Then on Sunday afternoon I combed my hair (which I rarely do otherwise), "ironed my best tie, and pumped the tires of my bike," and the celebration began!

Here is…

...what I saw at the Pura Belpre:
-The California Pavilion in all colors with mexican sarapes adorning the tables and balloons crowning the stage.

-Gorgeous Irania all the way from North Carolina libraries, the Fresno gang, the San Francisco public library—present, Jackie Woodson and her baby, the Harcourt family, my agent Ms. Sheedy, Maria van Lieshout and Jim Averbeck representing my writer’s group, Lisa Brown, the South Carolina gang, my father and mother in law, my editor Reka Simonsen and the Holt group, Suzy from Nevada, Rene Colato and his stories, Visalia—present, the Pura Belpre committee, Fuse#8, my husband, my son and his guitar…I don’t have enough air to name everybody who was in the audience and all of those who helped put this fiesta together.

Here some images from timomeara@gmail.com

…what I heard at the Pura Belpre:
-Suni Paz opening the celebration with her guitar, and her songs old and sweet like the ones my mother always sings.

-My son’s guitar, strumming solemnly the love-declaration song to a ghost, la Llorona.

-A lullaby.

…what was said at the Pura Belpre:

-“When I started submitting my story (Los Gatos Black on Halloween) to publishers, editors would ask me, ‘but what does Spanish have to do with Halloween?’” –Marisa Montes, Pura Belpre text honor speech.

-“I would ask my mother, “mom, would you rather be right or be happy?”, and she would answer, “honey, it makes me very HAPPY to be RIGHT!”
“Una cucaracha!”—Carmen Agra Deedy, text honor speech.

-“If only there were words I didn’t have to say, Like Juan Francisco Manzano, and Cuba, I could do my speech with out crying.”—Margarita Engle, the night before her Pura Belpre speech.

-“De colores, de colores se visten los campos de la primavera…” Audience singing accompanied by the music of the children mariachi band.

...what I brought to give away:
-I had a chance to share my Gatos Black in Halloween bookmarks I designed. They looked like this on each side:

..what I learned at the Pura Belpre:
-Margarita Engle has heard la Llorona cry. After my speech and my mention of the ancient Mexican ghost of the weeping woman, she told me how in the mountains she had heard a female mountain lion's cry, warning against anybody coming closer to her babies, “And you don’t know,” Margarita said, “whether it is a mother lion or la Llorona—the cry so much like a woman weeping.”

-Hope, Esperanza, is a beautiful name for beautiful women. Gracias, Hope for taking care of me that day.

Tomas Rivera Award for Los Gatos Black on Halloween

We are going to San Marcos to receive the Tomas Rivera Book Award!

Not only is San Marcos warm and beautiful, but they make the best of celebrations.

I was there first in 2004 to receive the award for Just a Minute. The next year my husband Tim and I were brought again for the 10th anniversary celebration. All the authors and illustrators winners of the first ten years were there too. We all took turns being interviewed for a film about the award, we rode together in a big van like if we were a rock band, and we talked, had meals together, attended events galore, and were bonded for ever and until the end of the world. Here are a couple of pictures of most of us.

Alright, San Marcos, here come Marisa, Los Gatos Black and I!

Sleepless Monday

This is how my sleeplessness happened: Gene Hatfield from the American Library Association called Sunday evening, but I was still riding the train back home from my friend’s baby shower. Son took the message. When Son takes a message you can expect him to forget it.
Ok, Son remembered when he saw me mopping the floor at 9:30 pm. Of course my ears perked. I am learning now not to ignore ALA telephone calls. Perhaps if I had realized it was already past midnight at the number I was calling back, I might have not returned the call until next day, for which I would have then missed the announcement that Los Gatos Black in Halloween had won the Pura Belpre Medal for illustration and a Pura Belpre honor for the writing!

Gene explained that usually I would have gotten the call on Monday morning, and the whole committee would be cheering in the intercom. But by the time I had returned the call the committee had already gone to bed. Gene also explained that they had decided to spare me a Monday pre-dawn telephone call by calling me on Sunday instead, since they were working on Philadelphia time and I am in California.

So, did the Pura Belpre committee yield me my sleep?
Of course not! I was bouncy and excited the rest of the evening and until late—I even ate a few chocolates and had a sip of wine with Husband and Son. And when I finally went to bed, I rolled on it endlessly savoring the news.

Monday 3:45 am, awake again to check on sleeping Son, to make sure the dogs are not stealing his blanket, to use the bathroom now that I am half awake, and then, of course to remember what a lovely day it is when the Pura Belpre committee takes your sleep by championing your work. Besides, I am awake just on time to watch the live webscast of the ALA Awards! Hold fast!