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Re: ccbc-net digest: February 05, 2013
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From: lulu delacre <luludela_at_verizon.net>
Date: Wed, 06 Feb 2013 10:30:18 -0500
Megan Schilesman says, “So back to the question: Where are the books? Not the books that are
already published--there are terrific offerings--but the books to-be.
Is there intent to meet this growing demand in a meaningful way? (By that I mean seeking out works that speak to diverse experiences and perspectives within the Latino community, that offer up human experience
and history and humor and everything else we would expect to find in literature in general.)”
I have been writing and illustrating children’s Latino literature since the 1980s and from my perspective interest from publishers in this literature ebbs and flows in no small part due to the politics of the time. Ask yourselves, why are we even having this discussion? Isn’t it in part because of the many times Latinos have been in the news? Whereas articles talk about Sotomayor’s memoir, or the weight of the Latino vote in the elections, or the future of the Dream Act, or even the latest Puerto Rican exodus to Florida, news tend to have an effect in what interests us.
A recent interview for the Ohio State University magazine їQuй Pasa? made me think about what has influenced the growth of Latino literature in the last three decades. In my view, as I told the interviewer, funds and long awaited recognition increased the interest in this literature prompting larger houses to join the efforts of smaller and dedicated multicultural publishers. The 1988 amendment to the Bilingual Education Act increased funds for programs back then and it was swiftly followed by the establishment of the Amйricas and Pura Belprй Awards. But since then, we’ve seen some events that may have influenced the eagerness of a publisher to acquire a Latino themed book. Do you remember California’s proposition 187? Or Arizona’s immigration crackdown? To this political climate you add the changing nature of publishing in
the twenty-first century and it is understandable, to a point, the reluctance of trade publishers to seek in earnest Latino titles.
So where do all this leaves the creators of these books? We certainly need to be persistent and truly believe in a project, to go out on a limb and spend years crafting it with little or no guarantee that such book will be acquired. It is, to an extent, much easier to write for the mainstream market.
“And will we buy them?” Megan later says. This question is key. For if librarians and schools do not buy these titles in large quantities, publishers will not go after such titles. After all, book publishing is a business.
So it is in all of us to do our part if we want more offerings that talk about the Latino experience. Let’s talk up the books that are there, let’s buy them in quantity, let’s highlight the current Latino authors and illustrators in the classroom. By doing that, we increase the likelihood that publishing houses are open to acquire more books that talk about the Latino experience from known and unknown writers.
Lulu Delacre Bilingual author and illustrator of children’s books (now working on a middle-grade collection of stories about young Latinos in America) www.luludelacre.com
On Feb 6, 2013, at 1:22 AM, "CCBC-Net digest" wrote:
CCBC-NET Digest for Tuesday, February 05, 2013.
1. Latino Picture Books 2. Re: Latino Picture Books 3. Re: Latino Picture Books 4. Latino Picture Books 5. RE: Latino Picture Books 6. RE: Latino Picture Books 7. Latino Picture Books 8. Fire! iFuego! Brave bomberos
Received on Wed 06 Feb 2013 10:30:18 AM CST
Date: Wed, 06 Feb 2013 10:30:18 -0500
Megan Schilesman says, “So back to the question: Where are the books? Not the books that are
already published--there are terrific offerings--but the books to-be.
Is there intent to meet this growing demand in a meaningful way? (By that I mean seeking out works that speak to diverse experiences and perspectives within the Latino community, that offer up human experience
and history and humor and everything else we would expect to find in literature in general.)”
I have been writing and illustrating children’s Latino literature since the 1980s and from my perspective interest from publishers in this literature ebbs and flows in no small part due to the politics of the time. Ask yourselves, why are we even having this discussion? Isn’t it in part because of the many times Latinos have been in the news? Whereas articles talk about Sotomayor’s memoir, or the weight of the Latino vote in the elections, or the future of the Dream Act, or even the latest Puerto Rican exodus to Florida, news tend to have an effect in what interests us.
A recent interview for the Ohio State University magazine їQuй Pasa? made me think about what has influenced the growth of Latino literature in the last three decades. In my view, as I told the interviewer, funds and long awaited recognition increased the interest in this literature prompting larger houses to join the efforts of smaller and dedicated multicultural publishers. The 1988 amendment to the Bilingual Education Act increased funds for programs back then and it was swiftly followed by the establishment of the Amйricas and Pura Belprй Awards. But since then, we’ve seen some events that may have influenced the eagerness of a publisher to acquire a Latino themed book. Do you remember California’s proposition 187? Or Arizona’s immigration crackdown? To this political climate you add the changing nature of publishing in
the twenty-first century and it is understandable, to a point, the reluctance of trade publishers to seek in earnest Latino titles.
So where do all this leaves the creators of these books? We certainly need to be persistent and truly believe in a project, to go out on a limb and spend years crafting it with little or no guarantee that such book will be acquired. It is, to an extent, much easier to write for the mainstream market.
“And will we buy them?” Megan later says. This question is key. For if librarians and schools do not buy these titles in large quantities, publishers will not go after such titles. After all, book publishing is a business.
So it is in all of us to do our part if we want more offerings that talk about the Latino experience. Let’s talk up the books that are there, let’s buy them in quantity, let’s highlight the current Latino authors and illustrators in the classroom. By doing that, we increase the likelihood that publishing houses are open to acquire more books that talk about the Latino experience from known and unknown writers.
Lulu Delacre Bilingual author and illustrator of children’s books (now working on a middle-grade collection of stories about young Latinos in America) www.luludelacre.com
On Feb 6, 2013, at 1:22 AM, "CCBC-Net digest" wrote:
CCBC-NET Digest for Tuesday, February 05, 2013.
1. Latino Picture Books 2. Re: Latino Picture Books 3. Re: Latino Picture Books 4. Latino Picture Books 5. RE: Latino Picture Books 6. RE: Latino Picture Books 7. Latino Picture Books 8. Fire! iFuego! Brave bomberos
Received on Wed 06 Feb 2013 10:30:18 AM CST
