2009: Bridging Cultures~Crossing Borders
The 17th Annual Conference on Literature and Literacy for Children
and Adolescents
featuring Pam Muñoz Ryan and Rafael Lopez
March 7, 2009
The University of Arizona
College of Education
Tucson, Arizona
Sponsored by
The Department of Language, Reading, and Culture
The Department of Teaching and Teacher Education
Worlds of Words
in cooperation with
Center for Latin American StudiesSchool of Information Resources and Library Sciences
Tucson Area Reading Council
Center for Educational Resources in Culture, Language and Literacy
Featuring
Pam Muñoz Ryan grew up in the San Joaquin Valley, surrounded by aunts, uncles and cousins, with her Mexican grandmother around the corner and her Oklahoman grandmother in a nearby town. She spent hours at the small branch library, escaping into worlds unknown and filling her imagination with possibilities. She was a bilingual teacher before becoming a writer of more than 30 books including picture books for the very young, such as Mice and Beans and Mud is Cake, picture books for older readers, such as When Marian Sang and Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride, and middle grade novels, such as Esperanza Rising and Becoming Naomi León. She will talk about the many ways in which her life has involved crossing cultures and borders through her diverse childhood, her unlikely obsession with books, and her evolution as a writer.
and
Rafael Lopez grew up in Mexico City, immersed in the rich cultural heritage and native color of street life, influenced by Mexican surrealism, dichos and myths. His style as an artist and illustrator has roots in these traditions, fusing together a strong graphic style with magical symbolism. His paintings and murals have received international recognition as has his recent venture into illustrating picture books, which have received 2 Americás Awards and a Pura Belpre Award. His picture books include My Name in Celia/Me llamo Celia, Yum, Mmmm, Que Rico! America’s Sproutings, Book Fiesta, and Our California (written by Pam Muñoz Ryan). Rafael will talk about how his cultural background and travels define and shape his visual style and about getting inspiration from everyday objects, sounds and colors.
Also Featuring
Laura Jacobsen, an illustrator, will talk about moving from sketches to finished art and the research involved in illustrating picture books on Muslim holidays, including The Best Eid Ever and A Party at Ramadan. Navajo educator, writer, and poet, will share
the process of writing her new book, The Stonecutter and the Navajo
Maiden.
and
Robert Mesta coordinates a binational bird conservation program between the U.S. and Mexico. His picture book, Condors: Spirit of the Grand Canyon, is written from his perspective as an ornithologist and Native American.
and
David Edwards is addicted to living history museums and this interest led him to write The Pen that Pa Built, a rhyming picture book celebrating American family life and work in the 1830s.