Unique Bilingual Celebration of Books
& Reading:
Día de los Niños/Día de los Libros, April 28
Celebrate with us at Austin's 3rd Annual Día de los Niños/Día de los Libros, on Saturday, April 28, 2001 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Southeast Austin Community Branch of the Austin Public Library, 5803 Nuckols Crossing Road. Last year, 2,000 children and parents attended this unique community celebration; over 1,900 new free books were given to kids and families to support reading in the home.
The 2001 celebration will include readings by San Antonio author CARMEN TAFOLLA, an award-winning poet, children's author, and storyteller/performance artist, and visiting author from Mexico City, MARGARITA ROBLEDA MOGUEL, a renowned children's author of over 23 books. Also joining the celebration will be children's author and storyteller MAGDALENA SOFIA CARDENAS GARCIA of Saltillo, Mexico, who comes to Austin under the auspices of the Austin-Saltillo International Sister City Committee. Storytellers IRENE GONZALES and CONSUELO SAMARRIPA will delight the audience with their tales drawn from the Mexican-American experience in Texas. (See BIOS on next page)
There will be entertainment for all ages including a teen poetry corner and drumming circle hosted by teens from River City Youth Foundation and Say-U, and performances by Jovenes Latinos, The Golden Echoes, Daniel Llanes, and Roy Lozano's Ballet Folklorico. Hands-on educational activities, storytelling, a book give-away, and refreshments will also be part of the celebration. The event is free and open to the public.
Since 1999, over 20 community groups, more than 200 volunteers, and over a dozen public schools have worked together to make Día de los Niños/Día de los Libros a model collaborative partnership promoting books, reading, and family literacy. Honored for its success as an innovative, collaborative community outreach project, Austin's celebration has received several awards: Highsmith Award for community collaboration, Hotho Award for model family literacy outreach, REFORMA'S Mora Award, and ALA/School Library Journal and Gale Group's Giant Step Awards, as part of Austin Public Library's children's outreach efforts.
For more information, contact Deborah Coronado, Southeast Austin Community Branch Library, 462-1452, or visit www.main.org/ninos.