The Pura Belpre Award

Have you ever heard of Duncan Tonatiuh?

Before the ALA Youth Media Awards, I hadn't heard of this artist/author.

He won a Pura Belpre Illustrator Award last month.

From the ALA website, here is information about the Pura Belpre`:

"The award is named after Pura Belpré, the first Latina librarian at the New York Public Library. The Pura Belpré Award, established in 1996, is presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth. It is co-sponsored by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), and REFORMA, the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking, an ALA affiliate."

Duncan Tonatiuh is the 2012 Illustrator Award Winner for his book Diego Rivera: His World and Ours.

I couldn't find THIS book in our library, but I did find this one:

In this book, a cousin from the United States writes a letter to his cousin in Mexico. The pages are side-by-side comparisons of the day-to-day life of two boys including their traditions and activities.

I can see this being a great model/prompt for a paired writing activity.

I will be using this in my classroom soon! And I have already ordered the Diego Rivera book.