Latino children's literature

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Latino children's literature encompasses works such as stories, books, and poems about Latinos in the United States, often touching on the Latino cultural experience in the U.S. This includes people of Latin American heritage born in the United States, including Puerto Rico, or those who have immigrated from Latin America, with the term encompassing their contributions to the field of writing for children in the United States. These works are oftentimes written in English but can include works written in Spanish or a mix of both languages. [1]

Contents

Latino children’s literature has had a long history in the United States and the Americas but did not gain popularity until the 1960s and 1970s, coinciding with the rise of the Chicano movement and a new focus on multiculturalism by Latino authors. [2] Since then there have been multiple awards created to recognize notable works and influential authors of Latino children's literature.

Thematically, Latino children’s literature often touches upon many topics including identity and immigration and follow the styles of oral traditions, folklore, and memoirs, oftentimes incorporating Spanish vernacular or phrases. [2]

History

Cover of La Edad de Oro by Jose Marti 61NmeHyTJXS. SL500.jpg
Cover of La Edad de Oro by José Marti

Latino children's literature gained much popularity in the 1990s, however its beginnings can be traced all the way back to the 19th century. During this time period, Spanish-language newspapers circulated throughout the United States with the inclusion of different stories and poems [3] Another notable contribution to this subgenre's beginnings, is one made by Father Felix Varela, who published a Spanish magazine which included religious texts for children. More prominently, in 1898, a magazine entitled La Edad de Oro or The Golden Age, was published and written by Cuban poet José Marti for children in the Americas. It is recognized as the beginning of Latin American children's literature. [1] Beyond written pieces of literature, many of the Spanish speaking settlers who lived west of the Mississippi, as well as Spanish settlers in what is now Florida, brought with them a deep oral literature that only grew as their children were born in the United States. [1]

Later in the century during the 1960s to early 1970s, Latino children's literature became popular alongside the Chicano movement, which embodied social issues, peace, and education. [4] Pura Belpré, a Puerto Rican librarian in New York wrote many children's books in the 60s based on Puerto Rican Folklore. One of the books she wrote was Perez y Martina, [5] a Portican folktale about a beautiful cockroach named Martina and her "gallant" suitor, a mouse named Perez. Another example of this revitalization is the Colecćion Mini-libros, [6] published in the early 1970s in English and Spanish, with bilingual versions as well, by Mexican-American author Ernesto Galarza. [1] The collection included Mother Goose rhymes that took place in the Rio Grande. [1]

By the 1980s, The Council on Interracial Books for Children found that non-Latino authors, who wrote most Chicano books at the time, upheld white racial biases in their books [7] and usually exoticized Latin America. [8] After this report, more Latino authors started to emerge, coinciding with a rise in the Latino population in the United States. [8] [1] However, the amount of Latino children books actually published stayed very low, which Ruth Quiroa argues in Diversity in Youth Literature was a result of conservative politics in the 1980s. [8]

Latino children's literature gained additional recognition during the 1990s when author Alma Flor Ada launched a book series that explored these messages of identity. [9] During this time the Americas and Pura Belpré Awards were introduced to recognize outstanding pieces of Latino children's literature. [10] [11]

Currently, the amount of books that fall into the category of Latino children's literature are small, which Sally Nathenson-Mejía and Kathy Escamilla have described as indicative of ethnic children's literature as a whole. [12] However, data from the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison shows that in 1994 there were only 90 children’s books published by and about Latino people as opposed to 371 by and 237 about Latinos in 2022. [13] Within the last few years, there has been a push for more inclusive books within education. [14] Due to increasing number of the Latinos within the United States, many articles have promoted the importance of including Latino literature in the classroom. [15] This allows for Latino children to see themselves in the literature discussed within schools, as well as promotion of a more inclusive learning environment and equity in the classroom. [15]

Subject matter

Within Latino children’s literature, there are a few big topic areas that tend to show up in many books. Big topic areas covered within these books are immigration, identity/cultural, the notion of English being a privilege, and gender roles. [16] [8] Focusing on immigration, many books written on this topic cover ideas of identity, deportation, and assimilation. [7] Along these same lines, books also mention wishes to fulfill the American dream. [17] The topics and ideas that come from books about immigration are relatable to many Latino children, as many of them have either experience immigration themselves or have parents that are immigrants. [8]

Identity and culture are big ideas that also come up in many books. Latino authors and illustrators are known to create more authentic depictions of subcultures without generating stereotypes. [18] When Latino authors write books based on their own experiences, they are able to give a more accurate picture of the experiences their own subcultures goes through. [15] Moving towards the message of English being seen as privilege, a lot books written today within this subgenre are written in English. This sends the message that is more significant in comparison to English since it is generally the preferred language that books seem to be written in. [8] One article states that "it is important to consider how language is privileged in the books and how it advantages some and disadvantages others". [16]

Latino children’s literature has had themes that have been identified by some scholars as problematic. [8] [7] This can be seen with the presentation of gender where Latinas are largely portrayed as domestic workers and as less competent. [7] This is also seen in the imagery of Latin America as poor and unwelcoming, with descriptions of the region full of racial stereotypes. [7] This negative depiction is also given to urban barrios which are treated as dangerous and poverty-ridden. [7]

Style

Latino children’s literature encompasses a diverse array of stylistic choices such as the usage of metaphors, similes expressed through riddles, proverbs/sayings, tongue twisters, and nursery rhymes. [19] Poetry is also a common practice. [7] In order to bring authenticity to the text authors will sometimes include Spanish or Chicano vernacular and phrases, or offer a completely bilingual version of a story, a stylistic choice that is very specific to this body of literature. [2] Adult Latino literature is known for the magical realism that is popular among Latino writers, and this style is imbued in the oral traditions and folklore that make up Latino children’s literature. [20] In addition to magical realism, memoirs are part of the Latino body of work that is incorporated into children’s literature, with Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street being a prime example of this. [1]

Awards

Notable authors

Notable works

Notable books include:[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Parra (illustrator)</span> American illustrator (born 1972)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monica Brown (author)</span> Peruvian-American academic and author

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Goetz., Cullinan, Bernice E. Person, Diane (2005). Continuum encyclopedia of children's literature. Continuum. ISBN   0-8264-1778-7. OCLC   61478089.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. 1 2 3 Zipes, Jack (2006). The Oxford encyclopedia of children's literature. Oxford University Press. ISBN   0-19-514656-5. OCLC   865552579.
  3. ↑ Lafuente, Elia Michelle (2013). "Latino Children's Literature: An Overview". Latinos and American Popular Culture. Praeger. pp. 273–288. ISBN   978-0313392221.
  4. ↑ Rosales, F. Arturo. Chicano! : the history of the Mexican American civil rights movement.
  5. ↑ Larew, Leonor A.; Belpre, Pura (1967). "Perez and Martina". Hispania. 50 (2): 410. doi:10.2307/337634. ISSN   0018-2133. JSTOR   337634.
  6. ↑ de Anda, Robert. "Ernesto Galarza and Mexican Children's Literature in the United States" (PDF). Camino Real. 4 (7): 11–28 – via Instituto Franklin-UAH.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Naidoo, Campbell, Park, Dahlen, Jamie, Sarah (2013). Diversity in Youth Literature : Opening Doors Through Reading. American Library Association. ISBN   978-0-8389-1143-3. OCLC   760990515.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Delgado, Priscilla K. "Windows and Mirrors in Latino Children's Literature: A History and Analysis of the Latino Cultural Experience". The Reading Professor. 43: 5 – via St. John's Scholar.
  9. ↑ "Alma Flor Ada and You, Volume I | Alma Flor Ada". 2009-12-14. Retrieved 2023-12-10.
  10. 1 2 "Americas Award @ CLASP, Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs". www.claspprograms.org. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  11. 1 2 JDUBIN (2021-03-24). "Pura Belpré Award". Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). Retrieved 2022-05-06.
  12. ↑ Nathenson-Mejía, Sally; Escamilla, Kathy (2003). "Connecting With Latino Children: Bridging Cultural Gaps with Children's Literature". Bilingual Research Journal. 27 (1): 101–116. CiteSeerX   10.1.1.521.6395 . doi:10.1080/15235882.2003.10162593. S2CID   144350622.
  13. ↑ "Books by and/or about Black, Indigenous and People of Color 2018". Cooperative Children's Book Center. Retrieved 2023-12-10.
  14. ↑ Ph.D, Tanji Reed Marshall; Ph.D, William Rodick. "The Search for More Complex Racial and Ethnic Representation in Grade School Books". The Education Trust. Retrieved 2023-12-10.
  15. 1 2 3 Alamillo, Laura A.; Arenas, Rosie. "Chicano children's literature: Using bilingual children's books to promote equity in the classroom". Multicultural Education. 19 (4): 53–62 – via ProQuest Central.
  16. 1 2 Braden, Eliza G.; Rodriguez, Sanjuana C. "Beyond Mirrors and Windows: A Critical Content Analysis of Latinx Children's Books" (PDF). Journal of Language and Literacy Education. 12 (2): 56–83.
  17. ↑ Beram, Nell (2017-08-25). "Sorry, Mom, I'm an Aspiring Punk Rocker". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-01-23.
  18. ↑ Naidoo, Jaime C. "Opening Doors". Children & Libraries. 6 (2): 27–35. ProQuest   212174372 – via ProQuest Central.
  19. ↑ Day, Frances A (1997). Latina and Latino Voices in Literature. Heinemann. ISBN   978-0435072025.
  20. ↑ Wolf, Shelby; Coats, Karen; Enciso, Patricia; Jenkins, Christine, eds. (2011-04-27). Handbook of Research on Children's and Young Adult Literature (0 ed.). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203843543. ISBN   978-1-136-91357-0.
  21. ↑ JDUBIN (2021-03-24). "Pura Belpré Award". Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). Retrieved 2023-12-10.
  22. 1 2 3 Delgado, Priscilla K. "Windows and Mirrors in Latino Children's Literature: A History and Analysis of the Latino Cultural Experience". The Reading Professor. 43 (1) – via St. John's Scholar.
  23. ↑ "DLE Virtual Center". education.sdsu.edu. Retrieved 2023-12-10.
  24. ↑ Naidoo, Jamie Campbell (2011). Celebrating Cuentos: Promoting Latino Children's Literature and Literacy in Classrooms and Libraries. ABC-CLIO. ISBN   9781591589044.
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  26. 1 2 3 Caminero-Santangelo, Marta (2000). "Contesting the Boundaries of "Exile" Latino/A Literature". World Literature Today. 74 (3): 507–517. doi:10.2307/40155817. ISSN   0196-3570. JSTOR   40155817.
  27. ↑ Vocal, Patricia (2019). "Examining Mental Health and Latina Identity in Erika Sánchez's I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter (2017)". Proceedings of the 2019 AERA Annual Meeting. Washington DC: AERA. doi:10.3102/1445432.
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