Author on the Airwaves: Gwendolyn Zepeda

Arte Público Press Author Gwendolyn Zepeda featured on Houston Public Media

Houston Public Media radio host Eric Ladau interviewed Zepeda for its website’s “Arte Público Press Authors” feature, and along with the transcript, their conversation is available to listeners on the station’s interactive site through on-demand audio streaming here.

Click here to see all Arte Público authors featured on Houston Public Media.

About the Author:

GWENDOLYN ZEPEDA is the author of five bilingual picture books for children: Maya and Annie on Saturdays and Sundays / Los sábados y domingos de Maya y Annie (Piñata Books, 2018); Level Up / Paso de nivel (Piñata Books, 2012); I Kick the Ball / Pateo el balón (Piñata Books, 2011); Growing Up with Tamales / Los tamales de Ana (Piñata Books, 2008), a 2009 Charlotte Zolotow Award Highly Commended Title; and Sunflowers / Girasoles (Piñata Books, 2009), winner of the Texas Institute of Letters’ Austin Public Library Friends Foundation Award for Best Children’s Book. She lives and works in Houston, Texas.

About her new book, Maya and Annie on Saturdays and Sundays / Los sábados y domingos de Maya y Annie

Maya and Annie are friends who play together on Saturdays and Sundays. They make lemonade with lemons from the big tree in Annie’s yard and play with Maya’s two little dogs. Maya likes the different food Annie’s dad cooks: noodles, rice, fish and dumplings. And Annie likes eating dinners Maya’s mom makes: tacos, chicken, tamales, rice and beans.

Weekends are special because the girls don’t see each other on school days. Annie’s dad takes them to the beach and they swim, make sandcastles and catch crabs with nets. At the carnival with Maya’s mom, they go on scary rides, eat cotton candy, play games and win prizes. They don’t want the weekend to end!

One special night, Annie’s dad and Maya’s mom invite their grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins to a big dinner and make a special announcement: they’re getting married! The girls will become sisters, and they’ll spend every day of the week together.

From posadas to Lunar New Year, each girl recounts her perspective of their friendship on alternating pages that are paired with lively illustrations by Thelma Muraida. Based on Gwendolyn Zepeda’s own experiences with her family, this engaging bilingual picture book for ages 4-8 explores blended families from a multicultural perspective, combining Asian and Latino cultural traditions.