HOUSTON, TX—Adriana Camacho-Church’s bilingual picture book, Grandma’s Hair Is Ankle Length / El cabello de Abuela le llega hasta los tobillos (Pinata Books, 2024), is the winner of the Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy’s 2025 Spanish Bell Award in the “Hablar / Talk” category. The awards are an annual recognition of high-quality Spanish picture books that provide excellent support for early literacy skills for young children. A winner is chosen in each of five categories: READ, WRITE, TALK, SING, and PLAY. Winners were selected from a 25-title shortlist—five books per category—chosen by the awards committee. In Camacho-Church’s poetic ode to grandmothers, a young girl likens her abuela’s long hair to strength, security and understanding. The black strands speak of “finding courage in the unknown,” while the white ones represent wisdom and hope. With stunningly beautiful illustrations by Carmen Lop that depict a loving intergenerational relationship playing out against the backdrop of …
UH and Its Publishing House Honored in Mexico
HOUSTON, TX—Arte Público Press and the University of Houston played a pivotal role in the 2025 UANLeer Feria Universitaria del Libro that took place at the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (UANL) in Monterrey, Mexico, March 12-16, 2025. Arte Público, the largest and most prestigious publisher of US Latino literature, was the “editorial invitada,” or honored publisher. Its founder and director, Dr. Nicolás Kanellos, the Brown Foundation Professor of Hispanic Studies, was awarded the “Mérito Editorial,” or Publisher Award.“Our work, creating and making accessible Latino literature and cultural history, is so important to communities in the United States, and it’s gratifying to know that it is valued in Mexico as well,” Dr. Kanellos said. The University of Houston was the “invitado de honor,” or the honored organization. President Renu Khator spoke at the opening ceremony and was on hand to accept the award conferred by the UANL president, Dr. Santos …
Imaginative First Children’s Book Wins Award
A Poem Can Do Anything Imaginative First Children’s Book Wins AwardHOUSTON, TX—A bilingual picture book that explores the joy of writing poetry, ¿Qué es un poema? / What Is a Poem? by Jovi de la Jara (ISBN 979-8-89375-016-4, hardcover, $18.95), is the winner of the 2025 Reyes-Olivas Award for Best First Book of Latino Children’s and Young Adult Literature.In this playful story forthcoming May 31, 2025, Jovi de la Jara describes all the things a poem can do, like: “Puppies can be / planets / and flowers / can be kittens” and “the moon can be / square / and rain can be / laughter.” Simple text describes the endless possibilities available in writing poetry; words can rhyme, run off the page or even be invented! Poems can be very long or super short. The author’s fun black-and-white illustrations cleverly depict the humorous ideas: a dog’s face looks like a planet …
Chicano Author’s First Picture Book Honored
A Lizard’s Tale Chicano Author’s First Picture Book Honored HOUSTON, TX—Chicano author Daniel Chacón’s first book for children, Gecko Girl / Lagartijita (ISBN 979-8-89375-014-0, hardcover, $18.95), is the winner of the 2025 Salinas de Alba Award for Latino Children’s Literature. Forthcoming May 31, 2025, this whimsical bilingual picture book for ages 4-8 contains Steven James Petruccio’s beautiful illustrations of the gecko girl and the creatures she meets on her journey of discovery.According to the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, just 379 of the 3,203 children’s books it received that were published in the United States in 2023 were written by Latinos; only 291 were about Latinos. Diversity statistics for 2024 are not yet available. The Salinas de Alba Award seeks to stimulate the work begun by Arte Público Press and its imprint, Piñata Books, which is dedicated to the publication of children’s and young adult literature that authentically and realistically portrays themes, …
Four Piñata Books Recognized with the Campoy-Ada Award
HOUSTON, TX— The Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española (ANLE) and the University of Texas, San Antonio (UTSA) recognized four bilingual children’s picture books with honorable mentions in various categories for the 2024 Campoy-Ada Award. Established in 2017, the prize celebrates books in Spanish for children and young adults published in the US and Puerto Rico; there are 12 categories with Latino-centered and universal themes that promote multicultural understanding. Grandma’s Hair Is Ankle Length / El cabello de Abuela le llega hasta los tobillos, written by Adriana Camacho-Church and illustrated by Carmen Lop, and Tierra, Tierrita / Earth, Little Earth by Jorge Argueta with illustrations by Felipe Ugalde Alcántara, were recognized for universal themes in the children’s narrative and children’s poetry categories, respectively. Xequina María Berbér’s Pedro and the Monster Eaters / Pedro y los devoradores de monstruos, illustrated by C. Rod. Unalt, and Mariano’s First Glove / El …
