Pura Belpré
Award
2008
Medal Winner for Narrative
The
Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano by Margarita
Engle, illustrated by Sean Qualls
A lyrical biography of a Cuban slave who escaped to become a celebrated
poet.
Born into the household of a wealthy slave owner in Cuba in 1797, Juan Francisco
Manzano spent his early years by the side of a woman who made him call her
Mama, even though he had a mama of his own. Denied an education, young Juan
still showed an exceptional talent for poetry. His verses reflect the beauty of
his world, but they also expose its hideous cruelty. Powerful, haunting poems
and breathtaking illustrations create a portrait of a life in which even the
pain of slavery could not extinguish the capacity for hope.
Medal Winner for Illustration
Los
Gatos Black on Halloween llustrated by YuYu Morales, written by
Marisa Montes J E Holiday MON
Under October’s luna, full and bright, the monsters are throwing a ball in
the Haunted Hall. Las brujas come on their broomsticks. Los muertos rise from
their coffins to join in the fun. Los esqueletos rattle their bones as they
dance through the door. And the scariest creatures of all aren’t even there yet!
This lively bilingual Halloween poem introduces young readers to a spooky array
of Spanish words that will open their ojos to the chilling delights of the
season.
Honor Books for
Narrative
Frida:
Viva La Vida! Long Live Life! by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand J 811 BER
Biographical poems about the life and work of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo.
Los
Gatos Black on Halloween written by Marisa Montes, llustrated
by YuYu Morales, J E Holiday MON
Under October’s luna, full and bright, the monsters are throwing a ball in the
Haunted Hall. Las brujas come on their broomsticks. Los muertos rise from their
coffins to join in the fun. Los esqueletos rattle their bones as they dance
through the door. And the scariest creatures of all aren’t even there yet!
This lively bilingual Halloween poem introduces young readers to a spooky array
of Spanish words that will open their ojos to the chilling delights of the
season.
Martina
the Beautiful Cockroach: A Cuban Folktale by Carmen Agra Deedy;
Illustrator: Michael Austin
J 398.2 DEE
Martina is a young cockroach who doesnt know coffee beans about love and
marriage. Thats where her Cuban family comes in. While some of the Cucarachas
offer her gifts to make her more attractive, only her grandmother gives her
something really useful: some shocking advice.
Honor Books for
Illustration
My
Name is Gabito: The Life of Gabriel Garcia Marquez
llustrated by Raul Colon; written by Monica Brown J E GAR
In the tradition of her previous biographical accounts,My Name is Celia
and My name is Gabriela , Brown dazzles readers in this telling of Gabriel
García Márquez’s magical childhood. Mesmerizing color-pencil, full-page
illustrations wrap around the text to create what seems to be a perfect balance
of art and language. Based on García Márquez’s adult autobiography Living to
Tell the Tale (Knopf), this wonderful, engaging narrative transports readers to
Gabito’s early childhood in northern Colombia. He shares heartwarming times with
his grandpa and learns about the tough life of the fruit pickers he observes in
the nearby banana plantation. The curious, budding storyteller is a dreamer who
cherishes life’s every moment. When he decides to share his enchanted world with
others, he is on his way to becoming one of the most acclaimed Latin American
authors.
My Colors My World by Maya Christina Gonzalez
Trying
to find color and beauty in her childhood world of the California Mojave Desert,
Maya (the author/illustrator as a young girl) uses her artistic propensities to
seek out objects that stand out from their dusty surroundings. The playful
Latina girl, with her cleft chin, beauty mark and wide, brown almond-shaped
eyes, is at the heart of every double-page spread with her companion, her purple
bird. She finds pink in the sunset and in her favorite outfits, the orange
marigolds, the purple irises with their yellow pollen, the green cactus and her
red swing. To round out her palette, she finds her Papi's black hair, the blue
of the night sky and the brown mud that she turns into beautifully decorated
pies. The bilingual text provides a short poetic narrative, and the color words
in Spanish and English are printed in a larger font that matches the color for
each object. The intensely colored paintings, featuring some touches of magical
realism (Maya floats into the sky with a brilliant pink sun and a moon with a
folkloric rabbit in his cheek), don't always lend themselves easily to the
color-concept book format, but this book can jump-start the world of the
imagination.