A Tribute to Marina Tristán

Thank you Marina Tristán for all your years of dedication to Arte Público Press. Some of Arte Público Press authors want to tell you muchas gracias. We will miss you. Te vamos a extrañar. You will always be our amiga and friend.

In your honor, I wrote this acrostic poem just as René did in I am René, the Boy. 

M es por los maravillosos libros que ayudo en publicar.

A es por los ánimos dado a cada autor.

R es por la riqueza sabiduría dada a cada palabra escrita.

I es de infinita ayuda desde manuscrito a libro

N es de buenas noticias a los autores

A es por el abundante vacío que dejará en Arte Público Press.

René Colato Laínez author of René Has Two Last Names/ René tiene dos apellidos.

*

Marina Tristán, thank you for encouragement, taking me to “the best pho” and being equally kind and fierce. Working with you has been a joy. I’ve enjoyed talking about life just as much as books. Enjoy whatever comes next, perhaps escaping the heat and rescuing even more dogs and cats. Un abrazo fuerte. 

Amy Costales author of Sundays on Fourth Street / Los domingos en la calle Cuatro.

*

Conocí a Marina Tristán en una conferencia de escritores hace unos catorce años. Desde el primer momento en que comenzamos a hablar supe que estaba ante una persona muy respetuosa, educada y con un gran espíritu humano.

Marina, estaba en su puesto de libros representando a la Editorial Arte Público Press-Piñata Books. De una manera muy amable y con un fino conocimiento me habló de la editorial y de los libros que mostraban en la conferencia.

Me di cuenta de su alto conocimiento por la literatura Latino

Americana en Los Estados Unidos y por supuesto por la literatura infantil bilingüe. No dude en contarle que yo era escritor salvadoreño,

Marina no dudo en invitarme a enviarle mis manuscritos.

Las puertas de Arte Público se me abrieron gracias a Marina Tristán quien meses más tarde se convirtió en una de mis editoras. Muchas gracias Marina por creer en mis historias y en mi poesía, ya no serás mi editora, eso es lo de menos, te tengo como amiga para toda la vida....

Jorge Argueta autor de Tierra, Tierrita / Earth, Little Earth.

*

Marina,

Thank you for always making Arte Publico Press feel like home, and making us all feel like family. We can't say thank you enough for all that you have done. 

Xavier Garza author of Vincent Ventura Series

*

Dedicated to Marina Tristan, who’s believed in my stories, songs, poems and, most importantly, in me. 

Inside of Me

Some days 

I have a poem stuck inside of me

wiggling around

trying to get out 

Some days 

I have a poem bubbling inside of me

and purple becomes ‘violet’

happy becomes ‘joyful’

and my tongue whirls around 

A, E, I, O, U

Some days 

I have a poem boogieing around inside of me

as a smile dances across my face

rainbows twirl around my tummy

and all ten fingers and toes 

tap a sweet bomba beat

Some days 

I have a poem twisting and twirling inside of me

filling me up with sunshine and rain

turning memories into music

and making everything 

right.

Raquel M. Ortiz author of When Julia Danced Bomba / Cuando Julia bailaba bomba.

*

Marina, I'm deeply grateful for your kindness, guidance, and care throughout my publishing journey. Arte Publico Press believed in my stories and you made the process possible and joyful. Your dedication to uplifting Latino voices has left a beautiful legacy. Thank you for everything and I wish you joy in this new chapter! 

Erika Said author of El cumpleaños de mi hermana Dulce / My Sister Dulce’s Birthday.

*

If you have worked with Marina and would like to write some words of dedication to her, please send it at renecolatolainez@gmail.com. We can always have a part 2 in tribute of Marina Tristán. 

Workshops at CABE 2017 (California Association For Bilingual Education)

Connecting Communities through Our Languages, Cultures, and Stories

Forty-two Years of Educational Excellence for English Learners & Biliteracy for All

March 29 - April 1, 2017

Anaheim Marriott and Hilton Hotels-
 Anaheim, California

www.cabe2017.org

Many children's book writers will be presenting at CABE.  This is a partial list of author's workshops in English and Español. If you are at CABE, please come and meet them. 

Thursday March 30, 2017 

Writers Workshop in the Common Core Classroom

1:30pm - 2:45pm

Hilton Room: Catalina 4

Students write better when they control their writing. This presentation, focused on upper elementary grades, presents participants with a writing program that balances standards-based instruction with the Writers Workshop model. The five-day plan explains how to arrange time to teach grammar and spelling, district writing assessments, and Writers Workshop sessions. All the components for student writing folders, including domain/genre sheets, writers’ logs to keep track of projects, pre-writing organizers, and more will be shared.

From Idea To Book: Mamá The Alien/ Mamá la extraterrestre

3:15pm - 4:30pm

Hilton Room: Catalina 4

Author René Colato Laínez and illustrator Laura Lacámara, will discuss the process of publication of the bilingual book Mamá The Alien/ Mamá la extrarrestre. René Colato Laínez will share how he got the idea and concept to write the story. Laura Lacámara will describe her illustration process from sketches to final art.

Friday March 30, 2017 

The Stories Behind the Stories- Los cuentos detrás de los cuentos

10:30am - 11:45am

Marriott Room: Orange County 2

The Stories Behind the Stories- Los cuentos detrás de los cuentos Bilingual Children’s authors James Luna and Amy Costales share the stories behind their picture books, stories that come from community and family. Come learn about those stories and how literature helps students write about their own lives.  Conversation in Spanish and English.  

Two Languages on My Tongue: U.S. Spanish in the Classroom

1:30pm - 2:45pm

Marriott Room: Orange County 2

Language is living, evolving and intimately tied to the identities of its speakers. How do our youth feel when they are told their Spanish is bad, incorrect or informal? And how do we, as teachers, avoid turning Spanish class into yet another barrier? In this interactive presentation, Amy Costales, bilingual children's author and Spanish Heritage Language Advisor, will present methodology to meet the needs of heritage speakers of Spanish and address linguistic variation in U.S. Spanish.

Creating Art with Children's Books

3:15pm - 4:30pm

Marriott Room: Orange County 2

Come and celebrate reading in two languages. Three children's authors will present their bilingual books. Then, they will share art activities relating to their books that you can do in the classroom with your students or at home with your children. Participants will receive a packet of the art activities. Ven y diviértete.

Writers Workshop in the Common Core Classroom

3:15pm - 4:30pm

Hilton Room: Catalina 4

Students write better when they control their writing. This presentation, focused on upper elementary grades, presents participants with a writing program that balances standards-based instruction with the Writers Workshop model. The five-day plan explains how to arrange time to teach grammar and spelling, district writing assessments, and Writers Workshop sessions. All the components for student writing folders, including domain/genre sheets, writers’ logs to keep track of projects, pre-writing organizers, and more will be shared.

Authors James Luna, Mara Price and René Colato Laínez at CABE 2014

LibroMobile Presents: A Bilingual Children's Reading Hour!

SÁBADO/SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 (1:30-3:30pm)

CSUF Grand Central Art Center 

125 N Broadway,

Santa Ana, CA 92701

COLOREAR, LECTURA BILINGÜE Y FIRMA DE LIBROS

COLORING, BILINGUAL READING & BOOK SIGNING

con/with René Colato Laínez & Amy Costales

Descripción del Evento/Event Description:

1:30-2:00pm Tiempo para “Colorear con la Comunidad”/

“Coloring with the Community” Time

2:00-3:00pm Lectura en Vivo por los Autores/

Live Reading by Authors

René Colato Laínez & Amy Costales

3:00-3:30pm Firma de Libros y Fotografías/Book Signing & Pictures

This literary event is supported & co-hosted by Grand Central Art Center. “Coloring with the Community” is brought to you by Community Engagement (communityengagement.org) & supported by local artist Dino Perez.

Conoce los Autores/Meet the Authors:

René Colato Laínez

Yo soy René Colato Laínez, el premiado autor salvadoreño de muchos libros bilingües/ multiculturales para niños. Yo obtuve mi maestría en Creación Literaria para Niños y Jóvenes en la Universidad de las Artes de Vermont y soy maestro en la escuela primaria Fernangeles. Mi meta como autor es producir buena literatura multicultural para niños; historias donde niños latinos sean presentados en maneras positivas, donde ellos puedan verse como héroes, y donde ellos puedan soñar y tener esperanza en el futuro. Yo quiero escribir historias autenticas de niños latinoamericanos que viven en los Estados Unidos. http://renecolatolainez.com/

I am René Colato Laínez, the Salvadoran award winning author of many bilingual/ multicultural children's books. I have a master's degree from Vermont College of Fine Arts in Writing for Children & Young Adults. My goal as a writer is to produce good multicultural children's literature; stories where minority children are portrayed in a positive way, where they can see themselves as heroes, and where they can dream and have hopes for the future. I want to write authentic stories of Latin American children living in the United States.

Amy Costales

Escuché mis primeras palabras de español en el regazo de mi abuelo. El hijo de una inmigrante siciliana y un cubano/español que fue exiliado cuando EEUU invadió Cuba en 1898, hablaba inglés, español e italiano. Cuando era adolescente, mi familia se mudó inesperadamente a California, pegado a la frontera con México. Para ese entonces, me identificaba como española. Me casé con un joven inmigrante mexicano, y pronto nació mi hija. A él lo dejé, pero nunca a la comunidad mexicana a la cual me introdujo. Desde entonces, he enseñado tercer grado bilingüe, quinto grado, español, ciencias sociales e inglés como segunda lengua. He enseñado en escuelas internacionales en Tailandia y la India y en escuelas públicas en Oregón y California. Actualmente enseño español y español para hablantes de herencia en la Universidad de Oregón, donde soy también consejera para el Programa de Español para Hablantes de Herencia. El aspecto de mi trabajo que más me fascina es invitarles a los estudiantes a escribir sobre sus historias, sus familias y sus sueños. Siempre me ha encantado escribir. Empecé el intento de publicar libros en vez de escribir nada más para mi hija. Las vidas de todos los niños deben de ser legitimizados, no tan solo a ellos mismos, sino a todos los niños. Por eso no son los niños latinos los que tienen que leer sobre niños latinos, sino que todos los niños deben leer sobre niños latinos. Y los niños latinos tienen que leer sobre todo tipo de niño. Los niños van a comprender mejor la complejidad del país y del mundo si están expuestos a ella. http://www.amycostales.com/

I heard my first words of Spanish on my grandfather's lap. The son of a Sicilian immigrant and a Spanish/Cuban who was exiled when the U.S invaded Cuba in 1898, he spoke Spanish, English and Italian. When I was in my teens, my family unexpectedly move to California along the Mexican border. By then, I indentified as Spanish. I married a young Mexican immigrant, and soon had a daughter. I left him, but never the Mexican community to which he introduced me. Since then, I have taught bilingual third grade, fifth grade, Spanish, Social Studies, and ELD. I have taught in public school in California and Oregon and in international schools in India and Thailand. I currently teach Spanish and Spanish for Heritage Speakers at the University of Oregon where I am also an advisor to the Spanish Heritage Language program. An aspect I particularly love about teaching is inviting my students to write about their stories, their families, and their dreams. I have always loved writing. Raising my daughter, who is now a grown woman, inspired me to write picture books. The lives of all children need to be legitimized, not just to themselves, but to all children. Therefore Latino kids do not need to read books about Latino kids. All kids need to read books about Latino kids. And Latino kids need to read books about all kind of kids. Children will better understand the complexity of the country and the world if they are exposed to it.

Workshops at CABE 2015 (California Association For Bilingual Education)

Many children's book writers will be presenting at CABE.  This is a partial list of author's workshops in English and Español. If you are at CABE, please come and meet them. 

■Two Languages on My Tongue, Twice the Pleasure and Twice the Fun: U.S. Spanish in the Classroom- Thursday, March 5

10:30 AM - 11:45 AM Room: Clarendon

Amy Costales,
 Connecting Authors/University of Oregon

■Setting Up a Writers Workshop in the Common Core Classroom- Thursday, March 5

10:30 AM - 11:45 AM Room: Crescent

James Luna, Riverside USD

■ Cuentos de abuelitas- Thursday, March 5,

10:30 AM - 11:45 AM Room: Royal Palm Salon Five

Mara Price,  San Diego County USD


René Colato Laínez, Los Angeles USD/Author

■ Mis Quince: A celebration of my first book, “My Very Own Room/Mi propio cuartito” and writing strategies for dual language and all classrooms

1:30 PM - 4:30 PM Room: Crescent

Amada Irma Pérez, Writers Groups of Ventura & Beyond

■ Creating Art with Children’s Books- Thursday, March 5,  
1:30 PM - 2:45 PM Room: Tiki Pavillion

René Colato Laínez, Los Angeles USD/Author

Mara Price, San Diego County USD


Amy Costales, Connecting Authors/University of Oregon

James Luna, Riverside USD

■ De niño immigrante a autor publicado: Los sueños se pueden cumplir. –Friday, March 6

1:30 PM - 2:45 PM
 Room: Royal Palm Salon Five

René Colato Laínez, Los Angeles USD/Author

Authors James Luna, Mara Price and René Colato Laínez at CABE 2014

Author Amy Costales talks about her picture book Grandpa Used to Live Alone

I wrote "Abuelo vivía solo~Grandpa Used to Live Alone" for my daughter and for my father, inspired by the lasting love between them. Several years ago my father was being treated for cancer, and he was heart-breakingly weak. One day, when he was still struggling to walk again, I walked by his room and saw my daughter lying in bed next to him, watching him nap. I started to cry, remembering when she was the one struggling to walk, holding his big hand. I remembered when he was the one to lay by her crib, soothing her to sleep while I went to college at night. I had always wanted to write a story about the role my father played in my daughter's life, and after years of playing with different ideas, a story was born. It was a bitter-sweet moment. My latest picture book is about the love between a fatherless young girl and her grandfather. It's  about her slowly growing up as he slowly grows old.

My daughter was my original inspiration to write children's books. When I finally held "Abuelo vivía solo*Grandpa Used to Live Alone" in my hands, I flew back in time to the day that I first started thinking of writing. My daughter, who is now twenty-two, was a toddler in my lap, watching a video she had just received for Christmas. It was her first encounter with T.V. There was a happy father on the screen pulling a toddler in a wagon. I was enjoying the scene, tapping my toe to the accompanying song of “Daddy’s Taking Me to The Zoo Today” with no deep thoughts. My daughter was the one doing the profound thinking. She tapped me on the knee, trying to comfort me, saying, “Don’t worry Mami, I have my Poppop”. I was stunned by all that must have gone through her two-year-old brain. She had looked at the screen, thought about how, unlike that child, she didn't have a father around. She then thought of her grandpa, but also felt a need to console me. Híjole. That was a lot of thinking for one little girl. From that day on I was aware of the way the image of family in the media never reflected mine or my friends’. Where were the young single moms? The dads working two jobs? The children sharing rooms? The families sharing houses? Where were the brown-skinned children? I always had enjoyed playing with words, but suddenly I had something compelling me to write. I write mostly because I feel a constant need to broaden the image of family.

Amy Costales is a passionate advocate of multicultural education and a bilingual children’s author. She currently teaches Spanish and Spanish for Heritage Speakers at the University of Oregon. Amy firmly believes that all children should be able to open books and see the astonishing diversity of the world, as well as a life that looks like their own. Visit Amy Costales at amycostales.com.

Hello Night-Hola noche: International Latino Book Award Winner

René Colato Laínez

Congratulations to Amy Costales, her book HELLO NIGHT-HOLA NOCHE won the International Book Award for Best Bilingual Picture Book of 2008. Here is an interview with "la ganadora".


How did the get the idea for Hello Night- Hola noche?

I took my son for walks, and those walks led me to my third picture book, Hello Night~Hola noche. After dinner Sam was always cranky. I learned to sooth him with a nighttime walk.

Everything about our walks was soothing. The cool night-time air was refreshing, and Sam snuggled in his stroller with his elephant and baby blanket, completely content. I talked to him in a soft voice, reciting nursery rhymes. He particularly liked to hear words that I remembered from my own childhood,

Quiseria ser tan alto
Como la luna, ay, ay
Como la luna

As he grew older our roles changed. Instead of me talking to him, he began to talk to me, pointing out the “luna” and “estrellas” and whatever else caught his eye. He greeted everything he saw in Spanish and English.


Tell us about the submission process for this book.

I was very focused on rhyme at the time. Sam and I were avid readers of Pío Peep. It occurred to me to write a bilingual bedtime rhyme for Sam. I did, but it was only for Sam. I didn’t submit the story because I was hesitant to submit verse.

After Luna Rising accepted my second picture book, I decided, on a whim, to submit Hello Night~Hola noche. Theresa Howell called me the very next day to accept it. No painful waiting! The editing was painless, too. Theresa wisely suggested changing the order of some of the pages, and we were set.

What was the first reaction when you saw the actual book?

"Wow! I love this book! "

The art is magical and whimsical. Mercedes McDonald captured exactly the way I remember feeling walking my young son through the cool, dark night.

Is there another manuscript in the process?

Sam now likes morning walks. He is usually on his scooter, helping me exercise our dog Gracie, while our silly cats stalk us through the hedges. He recently asked me to bring a notebook along on our walk so we could write down the magical things about the morning. We took copious notes. Sam is now planning on helping me write Hello Day~Hola día for his big sister.

visit Amy at www.amycostales.com