>> From the Library of Congress in Washington, DC.
[ Pause ]
>> My name is Georgette Dorn and I'm the chief of the Hispanic Division
of the Library of Congress and I'm very, very pleased to welcome all
of you and especially Julie Kline and congratulate her
on the 10th anniversary, I believe it's the 10th,
of the Americas Award Book Presentation.
The Library of Congress is really the most wonderful place
to have this presentation because we have the largest collection
of Latin American, Spanish, Caribbean, and Latino books
in the whole world, more than 13 million items.
So, all of the books of these wonderful authors are--
are or will be soon in our collection and I want to welcome all
of you once again and introduce you now John Cole who is the Director
of the Center for the Book.   [ Applause ]
[ Pause ]
>> Well, thank you Georgette and I would like to add my welcome.
We've been Hispanic Division and the Center for the Book
which is the reading promotion arm of the Library
of Congress have been cosponsoring this event with the Center
for Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University
of Wisconsin in Milwaukee meaning Julie for more than a decade.
And we're pleased to continue this wonderful tradition.
The Center for the Book was created--
Georgette talked just for a second about some of the resources
of the Library of Congress which are so rich in the Hispanic area.
The Center for the Book was created by Daniel Boorstin the Librarian
of Congress Daniel Boorstin back in 1977
to help stimulate public interest in books and reading using the prestige
and the collections of the Library of Congress.
So, in that sense, we're an outreach part of the library
but we work with the states.
Every state now as you know, I mean, he wouldn't know
but I know very well, has a state Center for the Book
and we also have non-profit promotion partners
that we work with around the country.
But we delight in events such as this one where we're really building
on not only the collections of the Library of Congress
but its other resources and its partnership programs
to celebrate writers and writing.
One of the Center for the Book's responsibility since 2001 has been
for the National Book Festival.
We are the major part of the library--
all parts of the library participate in this but I'm fortunate enough
to be the-- have been the author coordinator of the festival
since it was created in 2001 and I bring this
to your attention because--
we today, are actually honoring Pam Munoz Ryan of course.
She came with the Book Festival in 2003 and Bryan Collier,
the illustrator of Willie Perdomo's book, wonderful book, Clemente.
Bryan came to the festival and I don't want to ask him
which dates he thinks they are but I know what they are Bryan.
I just looked them up.   It's 2002 and 2006.
Actually, yesterday with Pam, I announced that she had come in 2003
and then the two of us had another discussion
if in fact, she'd been here twice.
Now, our guest are latest though is she has not but Willie you also--
but we could talk about that later but, Willie, you are--
we are going to invite you in the future and I hope
to have both Bryan and Pam back as well.
I have brought a couple of other symbolic things regarding the Center
for the Book and the library's interest in reading promotion.
Two of them are posters, one is you came in
and you can see it a little later.
It's a poster called The Book is the Best of Friends
and it's actually based on the photograph that a young reader made
for the Oklahoma Center for the Book and entered
in one of their many contest.
A lot of our state centers have contests for kids in various ways
and it is-- now, the original poster is in the Young Reader's Center
which is located in the Jefferson Building which the Center
for the Book is fortunate enough to administer.
Dr. Billington created this 2 years ago and asked if the Center
for the Book would administer and we're of course pleased to do it.
It's the one reading room and it isn't actually a reading room,
it's a reading center, it's an activity center
where we welcome people, kids under 16 as long
as they are accompanied by an adult.
And for the Library of Congress, this is slightly revolutionary
because for all other reading rooms,
you of course need to be 16 or older.
And anyone can come, they just need a reader's card
but there is an age limitation.
So it's been great fun for us to cook up ways
of convincing not only the public that they're welcome
in this particular part of the library but on occasion
of convincing the Library of Congress' staff as well.
Not that they are against it but we do have space problems here
at the Library of Congress and so, but we have taken our place
and we hope another time, when you come back,
you can visit the Young Reader's Center.
It doesn't happen to be-- it's only open on occasional Saturdays
and this is not one of them.
The second poster which is near the book sale's area was produced
by the Wisconsin's Center for the Book a number of years ago and it is
by [inaudible] who is a Wisconsin illustrator of books
and the subjects or the words are "the flowers of tomorrow are
in the seeds of today" which in a way is, of course, symbol--
symbolic not only of what-- our young reader's activity of
but why we are here today.
Finally, I have left a couple of handouts on that back table.
One is for the Young Reader's Center, it's a beautiful bookmark
which has some of the art work that's in the Young Reader's Center,
our brochures are all gone, last year, we had 30,000 visitors
to the Young Reader's Center, and that counts adult escorts
but nonetheless, it's a big number.   And secondly, there is a program--
this is the bookmark and this is the program
from last year's National Book Festival.
This year starts next Saturday, I can't believe it.
And it runs for 2 days this year for the first time
and we normally have had around 72 authors, illustrators, and poets
and for this 2-year period, we are going to have a 100-- today period.
Seems like 2 years maybe in the planning.
We're going to have a 112 so, we're busy but we're busy
in a wonderful way and very pleased to be able to be part of it
and to connect it with events such as this.
I'm now very pleased to turn this over to Julie Kline
who I think deserves a big round of applause for bringing us together
and being the spirit behind this ceremony for more than a decade.
Let's give her a hand.   [ Applause ]
[ Inaudible Discussions ]
[ Pause ]   >> Hi.
>> Hi.   >> That was Andy.
Good morning.   >> Good morning.
>> I'm so very glad to see you all here.
It's a pleasure to be here on behalf of the Center for Latin American
and Caribbean Studies at UW in Milwaukee.
And the award sponsor, what's called the consortium
of Latin American Studies Programs to recognize the 2011 winners
of the Americas Award for children and young adult literature,
Willie Perdomo and Bryan Collier, for Clemente published by Holt,
and Pam Munoz Ryan and Peter Sis for The Dreamer published by Scholastic.
Just to give you a little background, CLASP is an organization
that supports Latin American Studies in the United States
and also teaching and outreach.
There are several other in the room that spend our days working
with teachers, trying to help internationalize education
and include more about other world regions in teaching in classrooms.
The award is-- there's up to 2 awards given for primary
and secondary reading levels in recognition of US published works
of fiction, poetry, folklore or selected non-fiction
that authentically and engagingly portray Latin America, the Caribbean
or US Latino cultures in the United States.
By linking the Americas, the intent is
to reach beyond geographic borders as well as multi-cultural,
international boundaries focusing instead upon culture heritages
within the hemisphere.
In determining the award, we have a number of criteria
that the committee looks at and that include distinctive literary
quality, cultural contextualization, exceptional integration of text,
illustration and design, and potential for classroom use
and that's the criteria actually
that makes what we do just a little bit different
and dovetails very nicely with other awards like Pura Belpre
from the American Library Association REFORMA
and Tomas Rivera Award for Mexican-American literature.
We have a national review committee.
It includes teachers, librarians, university faculty from languages,
literacy, bilingual education.
We have 3 of our members here but let me tell you too,
we also in addition to those here have Hope Crandall who's a librarian
at Washington Elementary School in Oregon,
and Hollis Rudiger who's a librarian
at Madison West High School in Wisconsin.
But we do have 3 members here including our chair this past year
Elena Serapiglia whose name I finally pronounce right, thank you,
and Denise Woltering Vargas from Tulane University
and also Ruth Quiroa from National-Louis University.
So the committee members know best how this process goes
but I'll give you sort of sort of the gist of it.
We get about 70-80 books submitted a year so they all get to go out
and find boxes of books sitting on their doorstep
at least that's how I picture it and then they read, and read, and read
and meet pretty much only on Skype and conference calls
and do some really wonderful conversations.
I've had the privilege to get to listen in all these times to listen
to the different kinds of perspectives that librarians,
teachers, people in bilingual ed, and languages bring
to the conversation and that mix
of perspectives I really think mix is a word something unique
so what they created at the very end is a commended bibliography
that you'll find on the Americas web site along with recognition
of particular honor books and winners of the award.
And we do the award and we've been doing the award since 1993
and its both again a way to internationalize classroom teaching
and library collections and it's also recognizing the importance
of cultural heritage.
You will find a number of the books official commended list at the back
of the room feel free to browse oh and I forgot to say also at the back
of the room look for the boy in the red shirt who [inaudible] lost.
We have 2 books that scholastic gave us 2 copies of the dreamer
to have a drawing for and so we decided if you would like to--
if you haven't done it already think of a dream and then write your name
on a piece of paper and drop it in the cup.
We'll do a drawing 10 minutes after we finish today so don't disappear
because you may win the dream or dreamer.
Some of you asked if you should put your dream in which you could do
but then we'll be announcing the winner by what your dream is.
The other thing and I'm going to take a moment
because this is my last to be coordinating the award
to reminisce and I get to do that.
That what I always say about this program is it's very--
I always feel like it'a very heartfelt.
I get such pleasure out of being a part of it.
And it's just that very simple thing of putting a really amazing group
of people in a room together in this setting and what resolves.
We had thinking back over the year's poet Juan Felipe Ariera
who always sent me poetry in his e-mail correspondences
and when we were making arrangements he asked for an aisle seat
with cumulus on the left and a double rainbow on the right.
Carmen Lomas Garza who talked about as a chid,
how she ran her own library in the neighborhood that she would lend
out books to neighborhood children.
Julia Alvarez was with us last year who told and you can find it
on the web cast a fascinating narrative
about her experience doing research for her book Return to Sender
and dealing with the Vermont Office of Homeland Security.
I have nice memories of Margarita Engle with the Poet Slave
of Cuba meeting her illustrators Sean Qualls for the first time.
And he brought her an original of his art for that book
and it was their first time to meet and how very moved she was.
Several years ago Amelia Lau Carling who did the book Mama
and Papa have a store about growing up in a Chinese-Guatemalan family
with the story in Guatemala City.
One of our committee members Puerto Rican Heritage Josie O'Neil really
wanted fireworks to be part of the presentation because she--
to recognize you know the Chinese celebration
and she thought she really shouldn't try to bring fireworks
into the Library of Congress but she did bring on unlit sparklers
which came in handy when there was a power outage that night
in the neighborhood and some of us used them
to celebrate the millennium in 2000.
Jorge Argueta author of A Movie in My Pillow, a Salvadorian born
who we had just through connections
from the committee Oyster bilingual school.
A number of their students came that year.
A number of whom were of Salvadorian descent and the first boy got
up to read an essay he had written because the principal
of the school they read the book all the full school the principal wrote
them a letter they a response and he got up and read a piece
that started, "my mother walks so many thousand miles
And lastly I've often come back to Francisco Jimenez who won twice
for the circuit and breaking through,
incredibly eloquent individual who would always speak
to how important it was for him to write books
where children can see themselves
because he didn't remember ever seeing himself in his culture
and his life represented in a book.
So that's what he comes back to me when I stand
up here very quickly thanks to our committee members
who do all the work of the committee, the consortium
of Latin American studies programs.
Here at the library the Hispanic division the center for the book
and the special events and public programs office, scholastic--
our center for Latin-American Caribbean studies at UW
and Milwaukee, teaching for change busboys and poets
who are doing our sales in the back of the room and also if you look
on the program and we're kind of proud of this.
If you look at the bottom we have support from other class member
of Latin American studies at Ohio State, Stanford, Tulane, Vanderbilt,
University of Florida and the University of Mexico coming together
to support children's books and ways
that children's books can help teach about the world.
So once again be sure at the end
to write your name [inaudible] register it.
We'll have post it notes to write your name
and enter the drawing for The Dreamer.
And now I'd like to introduce Denise Woltering-Vargas
from Tulane University.   [ Applause ]
[ Pause ]   >> Good morning.
My name is Denise I'm from Tulane University and I had a real pleasure
of being on the committee this year.
The following 16 books that you've been seeing
on the powerpoint display were honored and commended this year
for their beauty, their style, and over all ability
to explore the diversity of the Americas.
From Colombia to Haiti to Cuba to Harlem these books explore identity
and the rich cultural heritage of the Americas.
This year's books explore issues of social justice, immigration, food,
disaster, literacy, identity, and women's rights among others.
Margarita Engles' The Firefly Letters earned honorable mention
for the unique way of exploring race and gender in colonial Cuba.
The story is woven together through poems told
from three women exploring the lush countryside of Cuba.
I'm just going to give you a brief description
of why we commended these books as you see them passing behind me.
The first is-- on the commended list for Jorge Argueta's Arroz con leche:
Un poema para cocinar, Rice Pudding: A Cooking Poem.
Families will really love the poetic style and useful cook book recipes
that you could almost smell while reading.
Jeanette Winter tells the story, the true story of Luis Soriano
who loves books so much he built a burro library and travels
to Colombian countryside bringing books to children
in Biblioburro a true story from Colombia.
The life of Caesar Chavez is told to the powerful photographs
by Ilan Stavans; the Aprimo
by Duncan Tonatio [phonetic] explores identity
by providing an age appropriate vehicle for comparing
and contrasting life in rural Mexico and urban United States.
Explore the language and rhythm of love in Pat Mora's Dizzy
in Your Eyes, poems about love;
Edward And [inaudible] portrays a young boys experience
of a Haitian earthquake with vivid illustrations and powerful messages
about family and community in Eight Days: A Story of Haiti.
2010 Americas Award winner Carmen Tafolla's Fiesta Babies parade
and sings about pinadas and flower coronas
in this book about celebration.
The bilingual book by Rene Colato Lainez illustrated by Joe Cepeda
From North to South, Del norte al Sur, explores the painful experience
of deportation and the complex issues
of immigration through vibrant images.
Eric Velasquez shares a family story about his abuela in Spanish Harlem
in the book Grandma's Gift.
The gorgeous illustration and personal touch
in this book really make this a fantastic read.
Winner of the 2010 Americas Award Julia Alvarez added another book
to the Tia Lola series.
Her new book, How Tia Lola Learned to Teach is a great story
about community and family.
Francisco Stork, his book, The Last Summer
of the Death Warriors is an intriguing Hispanic coming
of age story told in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
Me, Frida by Amy Novesky illustrated
by David Diaz explores Frida Kahlo's experiences while in San Francisco.
The illustrations are striking
and uniquely commemorate artistic style of Frida.
Napi Funda un Pueblo, Napi Makes a Village by Antonio Ramirez
and illustrated by Domi explores indigenous identity
and the difficult issues facing many communities in Latin America.
George Ancona's Ole Flamenco shares beautiful photos
of one community incorporating flamenco
into their community in New Mexico.
And finally Laura Resau tells the coming the age story exploring
issues of deportation in her book star in the Forest.
As you see the beautiful images of the books that we were able
to read this past year, I encourage you to go and check out some
of the commended list, the commended books that we decided to put
on the list and go on our website and look
I'd like to introduce Elena.   [ Applause ]
[ Pause ]
>> So I think I'll be the 5th or 6th person to say good morning while I'm
up here so good morning everyone.
My name is Elena Serapiglia and I have had the pleasure
of spending the last 3 years as a committee member
for the Americas Award and I just wanted to thank my school district
for letting me take yesterday as a travel day so I c d come here down--
so I could come down here to DC.
The authors, the illustrators, the publishers, CLASP,
the Library of Congress and I think most importantly,
I'd really like to thank Julie Kline who really has been
so inspirational, not only in creating this award but in being
so involved, and just in the way that it has been carried out step
by step through the years.
So, in thanking Julie for everything that she's done I'd also want
to say thank you to Denise Woltering-Vargas
and to Claire Gonzales who will be taking over
and filling some big shoes in the years to come.
So I'm sure, all of you who are here will be seeing Denise
and Claire in the future.
So thank you and obviously, none of us would be here without the authors
and illustrators of these amazing books,
so this is a really wonderful experience.
I get to talk about the book Clemente
which I really, really enjoyed.
For those who-- for those of you who have already read this book,
you know what an exciting book it is.
It's the marriage of exceptional bilingual text
and captivating watercolor and collage images
that really capture the intense energy possessed
by the legendary Roberto Clemente.
If it hasn't already, I hope that this book find its way
into your local libraries, school libraries, classrooms and homes
as it is already part of my personal collection
and though my 9-month old twins are not able to read yet.
I'm keeping the book away from them now
because they just want to tear the pages.
Once they're a little bit more careful,
it's a book that I know they will treasure.
In Clemente Willie Perdomo tells the story of a young boy
who is name Clemente after his father's favorite baseball player,
Roberto Clemente.
Not only was his namesake a hall of fame baseball player
but he was also incredibly proud of his Puerto Rican
and Afron Latino heritage as well of course as the Spanish as well
as being proud of the Spanish language.
Roberto Clemente is well known for his excellence as an athlete
as we all know and also as we know as he--
he's also as just as well known for his humanitarianism.
As much as Roberto Clemente, the baseball hero was loved by all
of his fans, the little boy Clemente in the story is loved and adored
by his family and it's really these ideas of love and hope
that connect both individuals in this story.
Bryan Collier's images add an exceptional depth
to Perdomo's story whether meeting the gaze of a rising baseball star,
feeling the motion and the energy of a bat
as it is about to hit a baseball.
We can almost hear the crack of the bat and the ball.
As we look upon the desolate ocean in which Clemente perished.
We're able to feel the same kind of sorrow that I'm sure that his family
and his fans felt as he passed.
And Collier's unique images are striking and add even more intensity
to the life of this wonderful book.
For me, this book really embodies the spirit of the Americas Award.
Clemente links people across race, national boundaries, languages
and generations and as it links people through time,
it also highlights the interconnectedness of the Americas.
It's about a child in the Bronx whose hero is a baseball player
who was born in Puerto Rico and lived playing a sport he loved
in Brooklyn and in Pittsburgh
and at the same time he died a true humanitarian helping the people
of Nicaragua.
A true hero, Roberto Clemente embodies all the characteristics we
can hope to find in each generation of new leaders and I hope
that that something that everyone is able to take away from this book.
Thank you so much to Willie Perdomo and Bryan Collier for writing
and illustrating such a meaningful and beautiful work of art and one
that is absolutely perfect for the Americas Award
as we know this can clearly be used in classrooms across the country.
At this point I'd like to present the award to Willie and to Bryan
so I'd love for you to come up and join us.
Thank you   [ Applause ]
[ Pause ]
>> Good morning or should I say morning good,
yeah in true poet fashion just rearrange the words.
Well I just like to begin by I guess thanking the consortium
for land mark and studies program, Julie Kline and the Library
of Congress and my publishers Henry Holt as well and also to my family
and friends who have attended, who were there pretty much
at the beginning of this dream I had to become a writer and were
in full support of that and for that I'm grateful.
You know it's always a good thing where you get recognized
by a group who's mission is to kind of break boundaries
and to break borders and somehow in this the spirit I think
of Roberto Clemente and writing in general to have achieved that
and be recognized for that I think it's a great honor.
You know most writers can tell you all the books they read when they
where kids, you know and what's weird is
that the only book I remember really reading
when I was a child was Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH
and I only remember that because I was-- I had a heavy fever.
I was sick and I was forced to stay home and I read this book straight
through and was totally intrigued by these group of rats
who had human level intelligence you know
and you can imagine what my fever dreams were
like in those nights as well.   They were pretty bizarre, yeah.
So-- but this is when I realized I think
that you know fundamentally writing and reading are acts
of transportation so that you can be a young child in east Harlem
and be transported all over the world
through text, through illustration.   So that was one thing.
When I wrote this book, I wrote it
in California almost 6-7 years ago I think and as anyone who is
in the publishing industry knows sometimes it takes a while
for the book to actually get published so I was talking
to a librarian about it and she said that your writing a book
about Roberto Clemente like we don't really need another book
about Roberto Clemente.
And I was thinking to my self you can never really have enough books
about your heroes.
You could never over saturate the "market" with books
about your heroes and growing
up in east Harlem you always heard about Roberto Clemente.
As a matter of fact an image of Roberto Clemente was about as calm
and [inaudible] the portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. on a wall.
When any time people spoke about Clemente they spoke about him
with such awe, such respect but the funny thing
about writing children's book is that one of the thing that I wanted
to was I didn't want to delay the process by which our kind
of younger generations actually get introduce to their heroes
because it was a while before I actually fond
out about Roberto Clemente and I found out because I went to look
for it and I wanted to see video footage and everything
that people had said about Roberto Clemente was true
to have seen video footage of him of him play was actually really
like seeing a ballet in effect.
It was extraordinary and Langston Hughes was the same way.
There was no reason why I should have waited
until I was 15-16 years old to find out about Langston Hughes
who actually wrote books for children as well.
So this kind of writing-- it was an attempt to introduce,
you know younger generations to the heroes earlier
and I'm happy to do that.
One of the other things that I wanted to do was kind of focus
on parenthood, you know when I was reading
through these children's books and talking to editors what I found
that there was a dearth of strong father figures in the literature
and me being a father
and unfortunately my son couldn't be here today because' he's a little
under the weather right now but the idea that this young man has
such a strong relationship with his father was extremely appealing to me
and you know to compliment that the fact
that this young man can actually write and tell his story
in 2 languages and even 3 languages because I don't know
of you read the book, but Clemente the young kid
in the book has a little swag to him though you know he has way
with words and that kind of brings to my point that writing
in a sense also is an act of possession, you know and that
when you hear this voices they kind of take over
and young Clemente's voice actually--
you know I was sitting in this room in a dorm at the University
of San Francisco and the young boy's voice just comes
into my consciousness and takes over and I knew that he was going to be
from the Bronx because the Bronx is probably like the second capital
of Puerto Rico after San Juan you know.
And it's a lovely thing to be able to celebrate your culture,
your language and that's hopefully to kind of open the doors
to more celebration of the heroes that we have.
And finally I think for me
that writing is also an act of reflection.
I think in the opening kind
of speech there was this one writer was quoted as saying,
well you know I never really saw books about my self,
oh the same thing happen to me I think you know.
You know writing this book was to give that young boy
from the Bronx an opportunity to see him self, to hear himself
and to understand the value of what it means to have a family
that support and love you through your dream
and through your obstacles as well.
I think I'm really grateful to have worked with Bryan Collier
because I scored as a text person when I got teamed up.
If you know anything about children's books it's kind
of an editor's medium which mean that more often
than not the text writer will not meet the illustrator at all.
Sometimes they'll be in different parts of the world.
Sometimes they'll be in different parts of the country.
I lucked out in that my illustrator was in Harlem.
And so we would go and hang out and you know have meals and talk
about the books and Bryan was extremely open to any kind of ideas
that I might have had and we would share materials and resources
and I don't think I'll write another children's book unless Bryan is
going to illustrate it you know.
I've been kind of spoiled at this point being new to this genre
to have been teamed up with Bryan, so you know I always kind
of sign off the children's book with the term that Langston use
to use called hold fast and the other part of that was
to your dreams and that I just feel fortunate that I'm able kind
of realize and see my dream of a writer which I shared to my friends
so many times to manifest itself and be here to be recognized and awarded
for you know for a little boy's voice who actually took over me.
So it really wasn't me it's Clemente that really is getting the award
and I thank you for bestowing that upon me, thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Can I say good morning and thank you again and welcome to the--
it's just an honor to receive anything but it's an honor
to receive and be recognized for some of the work that you do that
and also that it is a group effort and a team effort.
That's when you see a book.
There were a lot of hands that come into play.
I was fortunate enough again to work with Willie.
We did our first book of Visiting Langston which was a book of joy
and labor of joy as well as Roberto Clemente.
But before I talk about the actual book,
I want to give you a little groundwork in terms of how I sort
of arrived at this place and the idea
of making a book always sends me back to my roots where I grew up in,
on the eastern shore of Maryland, in a small little country town.
And I remember my first encounter with the library setting.
It wasn't a library.
It was a summer day when a book mobile pulled up to my driveway.
I don't know why it stopped there because there is a cornfield
on every side and it's not there.
And my brothers and sisters and I, we went on and climbed
on to this old book mobile.   I can still smell it.
Those old wonderful book smells you know, and it was a summer time
and it was air conditioned inside there.
So, that always sends me back to that very first ideal of books.
Now, growing up in school, and we would have books at the library,
going to the library in the school but unfortunately no one ever said,
well, you know somebody wrote that book and--
I can't quite remember somebody saying, well,
it's a person that put this book together there's a face
and a human being behind these books.
And then if we fast forward to me making books now,
and I'll go into schools and talk to kids, how an awakening happens.
The idea that you can make a book or you could tell a story.
You could write a story.   You can write your story.
As much as the fact that this book is about Roberto Clemente,
as an illustrator, I connect.   So, it's me up there as well.
What was the thing that drew me to the idea
of this book beyond the wonderful way that Willie wrote the text
and how the little boy is gleaming at all the great attributes
of Roberto Clemente is that, the thing that struck me is,
everything that he, Roberto had done,
whether be a great baseball player and the odds that he beat
from the sheer poverty of growing up to making it
to the major leagues is a major leap.
It doesn't happen.   He was greatly gifted.
He is worthy to be talked about.
But what struck me about Roberto Clemente is he shared love
for the people.
We can never really get away from that and you know, we are in an era
of everybody, all these heroes that we sort of name and--
but with Roberto Clemente and all the people that I talked about,
talked to in terms of research and finding out about this person
that we're talking about you know, something lights
up when you say Roberto Clemente you know, and people they know,
they never-- had never seen him play.
They never know anything about him.
But in the research of finding out how this man became who he is
and what he's really about and that whole label of that hero stuff
and how it fits on number 21 Pittsburgh Pirates is to know
that okay, there was an earthquake in Nicaragua.
Roberto Clemente didn't have to get on that plane.
He didn't have to load that plane up with supplies and--
he didn't have the true idea is that there were 2 planes.
He loaded up a plane full of supplies
and medicine and sent it over.
And it landed but the troops stole the supplies in Nicaragua.
So they called back and said, "Roberto,
the supplies were not given to the right people,
you got to come, you have to come."
And that was the second plane that he loaded up with supplies
He could've sent the plane, he didn't have to go but he did.
Now, hold that idea.   He didn't have to go but he did.
Jump over to Dr. King, he didn't have to go and lead the movement
but he did, those moments because he had everything to live for.
He was young, athletic, grooming him self
for his second life after baseball.   He had everything in place.
Beautiful family, everybody was comfortable he took,
he's taking care of everyone but he did it because he--
when you want to serve the people,
that's the only way you can save the people, is you got to love them
and you have to sacrifice all those attributes and I connect to Dr. King
with Roberto Clemente because I found out that when Dr. King went
on vacation, he stayed with Roberto Clemente.
You know, so, there's no accident, history is a chain
and it's connected and these are the things that swirl in my mind
when I'm illustrating a book like these.
This is what keeps me going because as illustrators
and as writers, we're isolated.   We're alone.
No one could help us but us.
We got to find a way to find clarity and focus and find that place
to let these things sort of flow through us.
Roberto Clemente was painted in watercolor and collage
and what I tried to show in the imagery is the power
and the artistry and the beauty that you didn't have
to fix up or dough it up.
The beauty is there, you just got to find the way to express it.
Here is these prints and I don't say it lightly he was a prince
on the field, the artist would just, he couldn't-- you can't hide it.
It can't be hidden even though in major league baseball
with all the biases of that time especially Latin ballplayers
because even the writers, they didn't know how to,
to truly appreciate these ballplayers and so they mocked them
with their lack of grasp of the English language.
They did all those things and all the things
that a personal call would go through all the trials
and tribulations at that time Roberto did.
And it was hard to fit into a new system,
he went through all the changes and all those things and still got
on that field and played his heart out.
If he was ailing and hurting, he would tell you
but there was an unknown, unwritten word that says
if you were a ballplayer you had to be stoic
and if a reporter asked you a question about how was your day
or how you're feeling, you would brush it off and just go back
to baseball but if they asked Roberto Clemente that,
he'd tell them, well, I'm doing alright but I got a little pain here
and I got that, you know he'd tell them the truth.
I call Roberto the truth because he would always just tell you
like it is, the way it is you know.   He knew no other way.
He held nothing back.
He held nothing back on the baseball field and I try to show the speed.
The watercolor and collage allow that--
me to do layers and so that the whole act.
And they hear the sound of the bat, the explosion of the bat.
And I use stars and I used numbers for the stats.
I sort of combined all those types of things to illustrate,
to give it sound and taste and smell visually.
And also, try to do it justice as well.
There's an interesting look and a color that the book has.
Every book has it's own light and color as the illustrator that's part
of the storytelling aspect as well.
It's like a burnishing look because he's burnished
on a memory bank in our minds.
So, all there's no accident that it looks the way it looks.
I tried to make it look 1970ish dated and burnished
in our memory bank and he did this miraculous thing as the MVP
of the World Series before he spoke in English he spoke in Spanish
to say and give thanks to his family and his, and his parents.
And just looking at that you might not know how important that was
but it was the first time it happened on network TV,
so the Latin community rose.
Everybody listened on the radio and on TV.
It just lifted everyone's spirit.
It just blew everyone away there's a shift
that happens and it was only 1972.
It seems like just yesterday how a small act like this
to shift the whole, the whole earth shifts
when something like that happens.
And then we're talking about that you know that plane the day
of the plane and how the whole Island of Puerto Rico came out
and cried for 4 days waiting
for their dark prince to walk out of that sea.
They really prayed for that to happen.
I felt that you know and I-- this was one of the hardest images to do,
to just totally express that [inaudible]
to that loneliness, that tragic moment.
But this book is not a sorrowful book.
It's not a solemn book.
It's a book of celebration, you know the way Willie put this thing
together we celebrate Roberto Clemente.
We celebrate with his names on bridges and statues
and all these wonderful things but he's in our hearts.
His courage and commitment and love is in our hearts.
We know we have an example, a living example.
A testimony of what this is.   He's not talked about enough.
I don't know how many books on Clemente there is
but he's not talked about enough.
This should be in every rookie major league ball player's bag.
This is what we mean when we say hero athlete.
It should be in every little league bag, every kid,
girl and boy to know this man.
So we celebrate it and I thank you for recognizing this person.
This wonderful hero Roberto Clemente.
I think I've talked your ear off enough.
But thank you again.   [ Applause ]
[ Pause ]
>> I told the committee I could introduce myself.
I'm Ruth Quiroa.
I'm an associate professor at National-Louis University
and this is my second year on Americas Review Committee
and I've greatly enjoyed my time.
I'm honored to have the opportunity to introduce 2 recipients
of the 2011 Americas Award for the book The Dreamer published
by Scholastic Press in 2010.
In this fictionalized account of the childhood
of Nobel Peace Prize Poet Pablo Neruda, named Neftali Reyes
at birth, the reader meets a timid child who enjoys daydreaming
and observing the details of the world around him so different
from his stern, domineering father.
Neftali longs to absorb and enjoy all aspects of life and especially
to record his thoughts in writing.
Viewed as an idle, sickly child his father seemingly embarks
on a mission to strengthen his son physically and mentally.
Although such a rigid family life left little room for his own dreams,
Neftali slowly emerged as an individual able to overcome despite
or maybe because of these challenges as well as the loving support
of his step mother and uncle.
Along the way he also became involved in humanitarian movements
for the Mapuche people in Chile,
an out growth of his keen observational skills
and growing sense of social justice.
Now a bit about the creators of The Dreamer,
I will begin by introducing illustrator Peter Sis
and although he is not able to be
with us today I hope he will later enjoy this small tribute
for the gift he has given us in this book.
Peter Sis grew up under the iron curtain in Czechoslovakia.
An artist in a creative family that encouraged his talents
yet the devastating effects of a totalitarian society
and creative critical thinking
and art were particularly painful during his teenage years.
However Peter's experiences at the Academy of Applied Arts in Prague
and the Royal College of Art in London resulted
in an initial career as a film maker.
And he received multiple awards for his productions.
The Czech government eventually sent him to produce a film
on the 1984 Winter Olympics in Los Angeles.
A project later canceled due the eastern bloc boycott of this event.
After receiving asylum in the US, Peter struggled
to start a career there until his introduction to the world
of children's literature by Maurice Sendak.
Peter soon began a new stage in his artistic career moving
to New York City in 1984 where he became a leading artist in the field
with multiple publications.
The list of Peter's accomplishments is long and varied
and includes a McArthur fellow, numerous book awards
and honors including the Robert F. Sibert and Caldecott.
With more than a thousand drawings
in the New York Times book review he has also designed book jackets,
posters, murals and a stage set for the Joffrey Ballet.
All in addition to illustrating his own and others' books.
Some tittles of his picture books for older readers include the Tree
of Life, Tibet Through the Red Box, The Three Golden Keys,
Starry Messenger and The Wall.
In the January 2008 book [inaudible] interview Peter reflected
on the role and effects of adversity on creativity.
He stated the art students in his native Czechoslovakia found ways
to include hidden messages against the totalitarian society
of the time into their art.
He said, "In a way the restrictions were inspiring and noted
that creativity can come out of adversity."
This quote made me reflect back on Pablo Neruda and how his work,
much like that of Peter's blossomed within
and despite his difficult early years.
Peter's illustrations in The Dreamer capture the angst
of young Neftali particularly his deep learning
to express his thoughts.
Let's give Peter even though he's not here a round of applause
in appreciation for giving readers young and old the chance
to visualize dreaming and the dreaming creative mind
of the child Neftali Reyes.   [ Applause ]
>> Next, Pam Munoz Ryan is an author who is able to reach a wide range
of levels, reading levels through books
and different genres and formats.   In fact Pam has co-authored a book
for adults titled A Family is a Circle of People who Love You.
She then began writing for children
and has published more than 30 books.
Some of which include Tony Baloney published just this year in 2011.
Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride, When Marian sang
and my favorite Mice and Beans.
You see I know this one by heart having read it multiple times
to my children and their peers.
Pam has also written chapter books for intermediate
and older readers namely Paint the Wind, Becoming Naomi Leon,
Esperanza Rising, Riding Freedom and of course The Dreamer.
These chapter books are all available in both Spanish
and English editions as well
as in audio forms making them accessible to a wide readership.
Pam has received numerous awards
for her books including The National Education Associations Human
and Civil Rights Award, The Americas Honor award, The Pura Belpre Award
and The Jane Addams Peace Award.
Her books are included on notable lists across the country
and I believe personally that some can be considered
to have reached the classic status.
As part of an important [inaudible] of books in the elementary
and middle level literacy curriculum.
Pam was born in Bakersville, California,
the oldest of three sisters and grew up in a large extended family.
Weekends were spent at noisy family dinners filled with Spanish,
Italian, and Oklahoma phrases.
After school she devoured books especially encyclopedias
at her grandmother's home.
Pam's love for books led her in the pursuit of a career
that would allow her to continue working with books.
First as a coordinator of Vietnamese play schools for the Red Cross
and then as a bilingual [inaudible] had start teacher.
She then spent 12 years with her own 4 children, 2 girls and twin sons,
and worked part time as a pre-school teacher
and an administrator before pursuing a masters of art.
The seed of authorship was planted when one of her instructors inquire
if she had conserve a careers as an author, imagine that.
After several years, and as she notes
on her web page, many rejections.   This idea became a reality.
Pam's book tell stories that are long overdue namely The Tales
of Real and Imaginary People a protagonist who realistically rise
to meet challenges and grow in strength along the way.
Some important themes in her books include love of family,
various aspects of Latino and Latina cultures and endurance in the face
of challenging times and situations.
Pam is able to weave together many thematic threads
to form a beautiful tapestry much like this packaged as a book.
This is particularly evident in The Dreamer
as she aptly draws the reader into the mind of young Neftali
to feel his conflicted emotions towards his father,
his passionate desire to express himself through poetry
and his growing determination to follow a literally path.
Pam's lyrical writing style and inclusion
of Spanish terms creates a deep sense of Neruda's own poetry.
It is through the echoes of Neftali it is as though the echoes
of Neftali himself call from the pages of this book.
Therefore on behalf of the review committee for the Americas Award
for children's and young adult literature I'm pleased
to present Pam Munoz Ryan today, thank you.
[ Applause ]   [ Pause ]
>> Thank you.   It's so nice to be here.
I'm not going to say good morning.
Thank you to the University of Wisconsin and the Consortium
of Latin American Studies Program, to The Cender for the Book
and John Cole and to Julie Kline the coordinator of this award
and for her stellar number of years in coordinating this event to Elena
and her committee., Hope, Ruth, Hollis and Denise.
And I'm thrilled that you chose "The Dreamer" and I feel privileged to be
in the company of such fine writers and artists
who you've honored this year and in the past.
It is especially poignant to be here at the Library of Congress,
the quintessential grandmother of all libraries,
where Pablo Neruda recorded his poetry in 1966
and where those recording can still be accessed today.
My book "The Dreamer" is a coming of age story
about a boy, Neftali Reyes.
A singular event in the young Neftali's life seduced me to write
"The Dreamer", the incident of the hole in the fence.
When an unknown child
in the backyard next door passed him an old toy sheep
through an opening in the wood planks.
Neftali reciprocated with a treasured possession,
a pine cone from the [inaudible] forest.
He never discovered who passed him the sheep
or to whom he passed the pine cone.
But even after he grew up and changed his name,
he wrote about the innocent childhood moment.
Initially after a trip to Chile, I wrote the story
as a picture book for older readers.
I worked with my editor on and off for over a year,
finished what I thought was the final rewrite and sent it off.
I gathered up all the books I checked
out from the library, 38, and returned them.
I put all of my research notes in a box,
labeled it and put it in a closet.
I felt like a mother who had finally put an errant 3-year old to bed,
tucked it in, turned off the light and said, "Buenas Noches."
I breathed a sigh of relief.
I was ready to set my sights on my next book.
My editor Tracy Mack read the manuscript and conferred
with our then Creative Director David Saylor.
She called a few weeks later and said, "David and I had a brainstorm
and we have a suggestion for a new approach to the manuscript."
These are not the words you want to here
when you think you have finished a book,
when you have emotionally left the book.
She asked me to consider reworking it and expanding it into a novel.
What? I had put it too bed.   As I listen to their rationale,
I had this sinking feeling that they were right.
But I knew that this change would mean going back to square one,
physically and emotionally.   I admit it.
I cried for about 3 days.
Ultimately though I was convinced and I discovered
that the book was not asleep at all.   It wanted another drink of water.
It needed more than one more story.
It was scared and wanted to be rocked.
It was cold, it was hot.
It wanted a night light and a lullaby.
It was another 2 and a half years before it allowed me
to pull the covers beneath its chin and kiss it good night.
While I wrote "The Dreamer", I focused on the elements
in Neruda's young life that I hoped would resonate
with particular readers.
His estranged relationship with his father,
his struggle for independence, his painful shyness,
his escape into fantastical worlds, and especially his suspicion
and hope that there was something yet to be discovered about himself
that was magnificent, something that he had to share.
I think that young readers, especially today,
need to feel that they can still become something they've never been
before the age of twelve, that they are not mired and trapped,
and that their destiny has yet--
not yet been determined before adolescence.
I want them to know that there is something splendid dwelling inside,
some talent or ability yet unknown.
I often envision middle grade boys and girls as the potential readers,
brooding adolescents who might feel misunderstood
and might be classic poets, artists, scientist or musicians
who are too embarrassed to speak their heart.
When I first presented the idea for the dreamer to my editor,
Tracy Mack, she was encouraging and unfailingly enthusiastic.
My publisher Scholastic embraced it with all of its idiosyncrasies
and all of my wild ideas and joy of joys, brought Peter Sis on board,
who dot by dot enhanced the ethereal world of the child, Neftali Reyes.
It's what every author hopes that there will be an editor,
an illustrator, and a publisher who stand beside the work
and behind the work investing their own particular magic.
And speaking of magic, I would like to share some stories
about Peter Sis with you and tell you some of the serendipities
and mysterious epiphanies
that occurred during the course of this book.
I've been a fan and admirer of Peter Sis' work for a long time.
Years ago when I was in Chicago to speak at a University,
I went to see his exhibit at the museum.
Of course as I walked through the halls admiring his original art
from Tibet, Through the Red Box, I never dreamed or imagined
that some day he might illustrate one of my books.
As the dreamer progressed, my editor and the art director began
to discuss who might enhance the book with illustrations.
And when Peter's name came up, I was understandably thrilled.
For me that they even thought to Paris was a huge complement.
I couldn't imagine that he would say yes.
On the trip to New York, I went to lunch with my editor
and the art director and Peter,
to see if he was intrigued with idea of the book.
After all, the format was quite different from any of the books
that I had ever done before.   We were hopeful but anxious.
After all, my vision, the format were unusual.
We knew the book had a cosmopolitan feel which seemed
like a good match for Peter.
But as in the case with illustrators, we did not know
if he had the time or quite frankly if he would
like the story or the writing.
Fortunately, after a number of months
of consideration, he said yes.
It wasn't until over a year later that I found out why.
Peter and I had been asked to come to the Scholastic office in New York
to do a presentation about the book to the--
all the employees and the sales reps.
Peter had revealed some of his original art work and we both talked
about the inceptions of the book from our own respective standpoints.
Someone asked Peter why he agreed to illustrate this book.
I thought the reason he said yes, might have been that he grew
up behind the iron curtain and that he appreciated the themes of freedom
and speech and social justice,
or I thought the reason he said yes might have been
that he was an artist and a reader and a storyteller himself
and that he appreciated that in Neftali.
His answer surprised everyone.
He became quite serious and quiet, and he said,
"I agreed to illustrate this book
because Neftali's father reminded me so much of my father.
Not in his suppression of my art, I had my art and my father supported
that but in his indomitable presence and his strict
and domineering personality."
And then Peter looked at me and said,
"They could have been the same man."
Then he smiled and said, "But how could I not illustrate this book?
When I was a child in Czechoslovakia, I grew up in a house
on Neruda street, named after John Neruda,
the writer from whom Pablo Neruda took his name.
If you look at Peter's dedication in this book,
you'll see that it's dedicated to his childhood home.
Sometimes, the most unusual coincidences show us the way.
I'm going to show you just some of Peter's illustrations.
Here's that sheep similar to what might have been the sheep
that was passed through the hole in the fence to Neftali.
Oh, this one looks much better, and the pine cone,
and Neruda as a young man.
One of Neruda's idiosyncrasies was to write in green ink.
He thought that green was the color of Esperanza of hope.
For that reason as an homage to Neruda,
the entire book is printed in green ink.
[ Pause ]
I'm just going to let you appreciate this.
[ Pause ]
I would like to tell you a story about my grandmother.
I was together with my sister and a group of my cousins recently
and we became hysterical with laughter while reminiscing
about my grandmother Esperanza and how she used
to embarrass us, sometimes to tears.
If any of you in this room have a Mexican grandmother,
this might sound familiar.
If she had anyone of us girls and there were 23 grandchildren
on my mother's side, 17 of us were girls, and if she had anyone of us
with her at the market, at church or walking in the neighborhood
and she stopped to speak to someone she knew or didn't know,
she'd pull us forward and say, "Hello Mrs. Gonzales.
This is my granddaughter, isn't she beautiful?
Oh how we wanted to crawl in a hole
but it did not matter one bit to my grandmother.
She would tell the bus driver, a sales clerk, a male carrier
or just a passerby and she was pleased with herself
and she expected an affirmation.
Once when I was an awkward, acne-ridden adolescent, who had not
yet grown into my nose or my feet, I was with my grandmother
at Mr. Luis' market standing in front of the meat counter.
She shoved me front and center and she said,
"Mr Luis this is my granddaughter, isn't she beautiful?"
Mr Luis said nothing.
He smurfed and handed her a roast wrapped
in white paper and he turned away.
It was clear he did not see anything special in front of him.
The butcher had dismissed me.   I was paralyzed with embarrassment.
My grandmother grabbed my hand, pulled me away and in the bazaar
where she sometimes translated Spanish
to English, she said, "Do not worry.   He does not see the bones of you."
At that age I remember thinking that of course he couldn't see my bones.
I was covered with flesh and skin and clothing.
I remember thinking
that my grandmother was ridiculous and infuriating.
Now, I know she meant that he could not see my core,
the essence of me, the potential in me.
I cannot help but feel that the committee in this luminous medal are
like my proud grandmother, a persistent complement.
The award, not just the book forward, it suggests that educators
and librarians pay attention to the Latino experience.
An award points out that there might be something special here,
something that should not be dismissed.
The Americas award by its presence,
promises that someone might see the bones of us.
I can't imagine this book's journey without my editor Tracy Mack
who always saw the potential in the book, shared my vision
and was unfailingly supportive.
And my gratitude spills over for the complement of Peter Sis' art,
and now I can wholeheartedly appreciate David Saylor
for his brainstorm.
I thank him along with his department and Charles Kreloff
for their art direction and beautiful bookmaking.
I do not want to miss the opportunity
to thank my publishing family at Scholastic in that odd
and insecure window of time when the manuscript was finished
but not yet published.
They invested their time and enthusiasm and expertise
in my book before reviews, before readers, before committees.
Now, back to the story that inspired the book, what happened to the sheep
that was passed to Neftali through the hole in the fence?
After Neruda moved away from home, he lost it in a house fire
but wherever he traveled even as a man in his 50's,
he looked into toy store windows for a sheep exactly
like the one he had as a child.   But he never found one.
Even then he still reflected and wrote
about that moment during his childhood when he exchanged gift
through a hole in the fence.
He wrote that exchange brought home to me a precious idea
that all humanity is somehow together.
Just as I once left the pine cone by the fence,
I have since left my words on the door of so many people
who were unknown to me, people in prison or hunted or alone.
Maybe this small and mysterious exchange
of gifts remained inside me deep
and indestructible, giving my poetry light.
I love that.
That that small exchange remained with him,
giving his work a radiance.
No matter what we do, no matter our profession,
we don't always know whose lives we will touch.
We hope that someone will admire our illustrations,
will use the knowledge we left behind, emulate our actions,
consider our views, wield our hammer, lived in the house we built,
eat the bread we baked, learned from our skills
or appreciate our endeavors.
The passing of our respected gifts to those we know
or will never meet is our spiritual union with humanity.
It is how our essence keeps burning.
I feel fortunate to be in this profession of writing for children
and young adults and I hope that I'll continue
to have the opportunity to pass my work to readers.
I'm thrilled and grateful that the Americas committee was
on the other side of the fence
and that the dreamer found its way to your backyard.
And that possibly, many years from now,
an aspiring teacher will take a children's literature class
and will be assigned to read an Americas award book.
I hope, if that student chooses "The Dreamer" that at that distant time
and place, our souls will meet.   On mil gracias.
[ Applause ]   [ Silence ]
>> Yup. Heartfelt.   We use the word dreams a lot today.
I like that.
I'd like to thank you all very much for coming.
I also want to make a point.
I mentioned that this is my last year coordinating the award.
If Claire and Denise, Claire Gonzalez
at Vanderbilt University Center for Latin American studies,
Denise Woltering-Vargas from The Stone Center
for Latin American Studies at Tulane in New Orleans will be taking
on the awards, so you'll be seeing them this time next year.
Don't forget your dream.
I mean, you know, your dream where you write your name
and enter the drawing for "The Dreamer".
Does anybody still need to do that?
Boy, [phonetic] Boy has sheets of paper and the cup that they go in.
There is one more part to the award.
Could I have Pam and Willie and Bryan come back up.
>> We like to do a little symbolic piece.
I'm going to take the decorations apart now.
We'd like to give backstrap loom weavings as a symbol of the award
and of the weaving of stories.   [ Inaudible Remark ]
These were woven.
They're from a weaver whose [inaudible] name is [inaudible] Dona
Maria Ramona Perez in Aguascalientes in Guatemala.
Backstrap loom weavings and we give them to you in appreciation
of all your dreams and the stories you've woven.
Thank you.   >> Thank you very much.
>> Please join us.   [ Applause ]
This is also your photo op if you need one.
We do have again, this-- the book sales from teaching
for change busboys and poets in the back.
The Dream drawing in about 10 minutes and also the authors
and illustrators will sign their books
on the back right corner of the room.
Thank you all very much for coming.   [ Pause ]
>> This has been a presentation of The Library of Congress.