This April, celebrate National Poetry Month by introducing a child to the many forms of poetry, convincing reluctant teen readers to try a poem each day or by starting a stimulating discussion among friends through poetry that blends the aesthetic and the political. Poetry is for everyone! For Children: Agua, Agüita / Water, Little Water by Jorge Argueta, illustrated by Felipe Ugalde Alcántara From its birth deep in Mother Earth, Little Water climbs to the surface, passing through roots and rocks, light and darkness. Finally, the tiny bead of water makes it to the top and rests, “a sigh of morning dew,” hanging on “the tips of leaves / on spider webs / or on the petals / of flowers.” The droplet becomes a river, a lake, an ocean, ultimately climbing to the sky and turning into a cloud. Then, “drop by drop / I return singing / to our Mother Earth. …

HOUSTON, TX February, 2018—Jorge Argueta’s new trilingual picture book, Agua, Agüita / Water, Little Water, is the winner of the inaugural Campoy-Ada Award in Children’s Poetry given by the Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española. The Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española seeks to encourage the study and proper usage of Spanish in the United States. It created the Campoy-Ada award to honor renowned authors F. Isabel Campoy and Alma Flor Ada for their contributions to the strengthening of the Spanish language and the dissemination of Latino culture in the United States. The award recognizes works that stand out for originality, literary and artistic execution and excellent use of the language. The awards ceremony will be held during the National Latino Children’s Literature conference at The University of Texas-San Antonio Downtown (501 W César E Chávez Blvd, San Antonio, TX 78207) on Saturday, February 24, 2018. With stunningly beautiful illustrations by …

Arte Público Press Author José B. González featured on Houston Public Media Houston Public Media radio host Eric Ladau interviewed Chacón 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: JOSÉ B. GONZÁLEZ was born in San Salvador, El Salvador, and immigrated to New London, Connecticut, at the age of eight. He is the author of the poetry collection, Toys Made of Rock (2015), based on his journey from a non-English speaker to a professor of English. He is the coeditor (with John S. Christie) of Latino Boom: An Anthology of US Latino Literature (2006). A nationally known speaker, González has presented at various colleges all over the world and at institutions including the National Smithsonian Museum of African Art …

HOUSTON, TX March 2018—Diana J. Noble’s historical debut novel for young adults, Evangelina Takes Flight, is the recipient of several awards: the 2018 Tejas Foco YA Fiction Award given by the National Association for Chicana/o Studies, the 2017 June Franklin Naylor Award for the Best Book for Children on Texas History from the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, and it was a runner-up for the Texas Institute of Letters’ 2018 H-E-B Award for Best Young Adult Book. The Tejas Foco Fiction Awards recognize outstanding works of fiction or young adult fiction that best represent a significant topic related to Mexican-American experience in Texas. The National Association for Chicana/o Studies (NACCS) is the academic organization that serves academic programs, departments and research centers that focus on issues pertaining to Mexican Americans, Chicana/os, and Latina/os. The June Franklin Naylor Award for the Best Book for Children on Texas History is given …

The Center for Mexican American Studies Is Now Accepting Applications for a Dissertation Fellowship in US Latino Literature Funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, 2018-2019 CALL FOR APPLICATIONS The Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Houston is now accepting applications for the IUPLR/Mellon Fellowship Program (academic year 2018-19) funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The program supports doctoral students in the humanities who are writing dissertations in Latina/o studies. The fellowship at the University of Houston specifically supports doctoral students writing their dissertation on a theme related to US Latino Humanities. The fellowship facilitates completion of the dissertation and provides professional development, writing support, and mentoring from Latina/o faculty members. The fellowship includes a $25,000 stipend, participation in an intensive summer institute in Chicago, and professionalization and writing workshops and programs. For more information about the program, please see the program website: https://iuplr.uic.edu/iuplr/mellon-fellows-program Eligibility Applicants are required …

Agua, Agüita / Water, Little Water “Alcántara’s vibrant stylized illustrations are especially effective in portraying the myriad forms, colors, and textures that water can take on-drops glistening on leaves; a blue-and-white river rolling forth from a mountain; and a purple, orange, and red ocean at sunset. A lyrical journey through the water cycle, sure to inspire the imaginations of young readers and listeners.” –School Library Journal, starred review Evangelina Takes Flight “Written in Evangelina’s conscientious voice and containing parallels to some of today’s current events, this hopeful, yet sometimes heartbreaking, novel is a fast and important read.” –Booklist “Noble’s poetic yet accessible prose allows the reader to slip into Evangelina’s world and understand that problems can be overcome with perseverance and bravery.” -Latinxs in Kid Lit Dennis Chávez: The First Hispanic US Senator / El primer senador hispano de los Estados Unidos “This biography will be particularly welcome in these challenging times. The …

Arte Público Press Author Daniel Chacón featured on Houston Public Media Houston Public Media radio host Eric Ladau interviewed Chacón 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: DANIEL CHACÓN is the author of two collections of short fiction, Hotel Juárez: Stories, Rooms and Loops (2013), and Chicano Chicanery (2000). His collection, Hotel Juárez, won the 2014 PEN Oakland-Josephine Miles Award for Excellence in Literature and the 2014 Tejas Foco Fiction Award, and was a finalist for the 2014 Balcones Fiction Prize. The New York Times Book Review praised Chicano Chicanery: “Although a collection of short stories, this book is A Portrait of the Chicano Artist as a Young Man.” A native of California, …

Noble chosen as October 2017’s “Author of the Month” on Houston Public Media Houston Public Media radio host Eric Ladau interviewed Noble for its website’s “Arte Público Press Author of the Month” 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: A native of Laredo, Texas, Diana Noble is a human resources specialist for the Boeing Company in Seattle, Washington, where she lives with the family. Her historical novel for middle-grade readers, Evangelina Takes Flight, is based on the life of her paternal grandmother. About her first book, Evangelina Takes Flight “If they do come here, they’ll show us no mercy,” thirteen-year-old Evangelina overhears her father say as she gathers eggs in the chicken pen. Back at the house, Mamá brushes away her …

Guerra chosen as September 2017’s “Author of the Month” on Houston Public Media Houston Public Media radio host Eric Ladau interviewed Guerra for its website’s “Arte Público Press Author of the Month” 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: JUAN J. GUERRA, a doctor specializing in obstetrics and gynecology, is a graduate of Pomona College and the University of Illinois School of Medicine. He was four years old when his family emigrated from El Salvador to Los Angeles, California. As a young boy, like many immigrant children, Juan had to translate for his grandparents. His experiences with his Abuelita Conchita and the US health care system led to his passion for providing quality health care to culturally and linguistically diverse people; …