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From: Megan Schliesman <schliesman_at_education.wisc.edu>
Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2013 10:58:16 -0600
Jason Low wrote:
"I completely agree with what Lulu Delacre's comments about the shifting tide of public opinion and politics. Decision makers and editors read the papers and the volatility around Latino civil rights in our country is unsettled and does not bode well for acquisitions. "
and I have to say, "Really?"
I'm not challenging you personally, Jason! Just flummoxed by this reality you describe. I'm not being naive and I do understand how books about activism or immigration are seen as "political." They ARE political, and I always appreciate publishers who forge ahead with such titles fully aware of this. One of the things I love about Ann Jaramillo's "La Linea" is that it's obviously about a topic--illegal immigration--that is very political, but it moves readers' thinking beyond the politics by humanizing the story fully, so that it turns out it's NOT about politics but about people first and foremost. (Something readers who have lived that experience fully understand, but may be a revelation to others.)
But as I stated before, what is political about a picture book story grounded in authentic cultural expression and experience that reflects other aspects of childhood experience--books that are great and engaging stories? Gwendolyn Zepeda's "Growing Up with Tamales" or Ina Cumpiano's "Quinito's Neighborhood" and "Quinito Day and Night" or Carmen Tafolla's "What Can You Do with a Paleta?" What is political about "Under the Mesquite" by Guadalupe Garcia McCall--a story about grief and family and duty and dreams and finding one's way in the midst of all that?
I do understand that in the bigger picture any multicultural literature is political--it is a political act to say "We are going to make sure children and teens have books that reflect their families and their lives" and to follow through on that by creating and publishing a wide range of books. And where would we be without small presses that have led the way? But I also hope that within the context of that kind of political act, publishers can also depoliticize their thinking, especially when it comes to books that simply and wonderfully reveal the many dimensions of Latino (or African American, or American Indian or Asian Pacific) experience.
Megan
-- Megan Schliesman, Librarian Cooperative Children's Book Center School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison 600 N. Park Street, Room 4290 Madison, WI 53706
608/262-9503 schliesman_at_education.wisc.edu
www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/
Received on Thu 07 Feb 2013 10:58:16 AM CST
Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2013 10:58:16 -0600
Jason Low wrote:
"I completely agree with what Lulu Delacre's comments about the shifting tide of public opinion and politics. Decision makers and editors read the papers and the volatility around Latino civil rights in our country is unsettled and does not bode well for acquisitions. "
and I have to say, "Really?"
I'm not challenging you personally, Jason! Just flummoxed by this reality you describe. I'm not being naive and I do understand how books about activism or immigration are seen as "political." They ARE political, and I always appreciate publishers who forge ahead with such titles fully aware of this. One of the things I love about Ann Jaramillo's "La Linea" is that it's obviously about a topic--illegal immigration--that is very political, but it moves readers' thinking beyond the politics by humanizing the story fully, so that it turns out it's NOT about politics but about people first and foremost. (Something readers who have lived that experience fully understand, but may be a revelation to others.)
But as I stated before, what is political about a picture book story grounded in authentic cultural expression and experience that reflects other aspects of childhood experience--books that are great and engaging stories? Gwendolyn Zepeda's "Growing Up with Tamales" or Ina Cumpiano's "Quinito's Neighborhood" and "Quinito Day and Night" or Carmen Tafolla's "What Can You Do with a Paleta?" What is political about "Under the Mesquite" by Guadalupe Garcia McCall--a story about grief and family and duty and dreams and finding one's way in the midst of all that?
I do understand that in the bigger picture any multicultural literature is political--it is a political act to say "We are going to make sure children and teens have books that reflect their families and their lives" and to follow through on that by creating and publishing a wide range of books. And where would we be without small presses that have led the way? But I also hope that within the context of that kind of political act, publishers can also depoliticize their thinking, especially when it comes to books that simply and wonderfully reveal the many dimensions of Latino (or African American, or American Indian or Asian Pacific) experience.
Megan
-- Megan Schliesman, Librarian Cooperative Children's Book Center School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison 600 N. Park Street, Room 4290 Madison, WI 53706
608/262-9503 schliesman_at_education.wisc.edu
www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/
Received on Thu 07 Feb 2013 10:58:16 AM CST
