2004 Pura Belpré Award

Alvarez, J. (2004) Before we were free. Laurel Leaf.

Before we were free [Photograph]. Retrieved April 28, 2015, from www.amazon.com

Anita and her family fearfully live the Dominican Republic which is ruled by Dictator Trujillo. Several of her family members have fled to New York and left their tropical home. Anita starts writing a diary about the unusual things that she sees happening around her parent’s house. Her family is trying to escape a terrible régime and want to live in peace and with freedom. Anita’s innocence makes us

capture and envision the cruel violence lived in the Dominican Republic in the 1960s.

2013 Pura Belpré Award

Garcia McCall, G. (2013) Under the mesquite. Tu Books.

Under the mesquite [Photograph]. Retrieved April 28, 2015, from www.amazon.com

Lupita and her Mexican-American family live in the border town of Eagle Pass, Texas. She has seven younger siblings and is used to being busy and helping her parents with them. When she finds out that her mother has cancer and that she must take more parental responsibilities, she is terrified.

This emotionally touching novel also touches Lupita’s high school years along with the complex live of being an immigrant. After reading the novel, we value our stability and our health.

Pura Belpré Award

Greenfield Thong, R. (2014) Green is a chile pepper. Chronicle Books.

Green is a chile pepper [Photograph]. Retrieved April 28, 2015, from www.amazon.com

The Mexican-American culture is full of color as is depicted in this picture book. Green is a chile pepper, yellow is a tortilla, and red are the spices that all form an important part of the Latino

kitchen. Other different Mexican customs are also described in this children’s book.

2011 Pure Belpre Award

Muñoz Ryan, P. (2012 reprint edition) The dreamer. NY: Scholastic.

The dreamer [Photograph]. Retrieved April 28, 2015, from www.amazon.com

Pablo Neruda is a shy, but very talented Chilean boy whose father’s negativity prevents him from becoming an artist. He adopts a pseudo name and starts writing and expressing his thoughts. As he grows older, he becomes aware of the social injustices from the Indigenous Mapuche people. This novel, full of magical realism, teaches how reading helps to become creative. Also, how a

young person can overcome his shyness and follow his dreams.

2002 Pura Belpré Award

Muñoz Ryan, P. (2002) Esperanza rising.NY: Scholastic.

Esperanza rising [Photograph]. Retrieved April 28, 2015, from www.amazon.com

Esperanza is used to an accommodated life with servants and fancy dresses in Mexico, but after her father is murdered she and her mother are forced to move to California. Her struggle is doubled because not only is she in a different country, she is also a worker in a farm. Her story teaches how

to overcome harsh situations we face and that we should never lose hope, which means esperanza in Spanish.

2012 Coretta Scott King Award

Nelson, K. (2013 reprint edition) Heart and soul: the story of America and African Americans. Balzer and Bray.

Heart and soul: the story of America and African Americans [Photograph]. Retrieved April 28, 2015, from www.amazon.com

The black men, women, and children that suffered discrimination and were held slaves and picked cotton under the hot sun were the ones that helped our country achieve the promise of liberty and justice. These courageous persons never lost their hope and inspired many to fight for equal rights.

2015 Coretta Scott King Award

Woodson, J. (2014). Brown girl dreaming. Nancy Paulsen Books.

Brown girl dreaming [Photograph]. Retrieved April 28, 2015, from www.amazon.com

Jacqueline Woodson describes her childhood in this children’s poetry book. She was raised in South Carolina and New York and she loved both places. She shares how it was to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s. Her love of writing helped her find her place in the

world. This book teaches us to follow our dreams and do what we love in order to live in happiness.

Presented by Maribel G. San Miguel