The Pura Belpré Award, established in 1996, is presented 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 the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking, an ALA affiliate.
The award is named after Pura Belpré, the first Latina librarian at the New York Public Library. As a children's librarian, storyteller, and author, she enriched the lives of Puerto Rican children in the U.S.A. through her pioneering work of preserving and disseminating Puerto Rican folklore.
It has been given every other year since 1996. Beginning with the 2009 award, it will be given annually. A listing of Pura Belpré honor books housed in the Curriculum Materials/Media Center is below. These are organized according to the Library of Congress system of classification.
| Award Date | Title/ Author and
Illustrator (For Narrative) |
Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
2009 |
Medal Winner: The Surrender Tree: poem's of Cuba's struggle for freedom / Margarita Engle. |
PZ3555 .N4254 S87 2008 |
|
Honor Books: The Storyteller's Candle (La Velita de los Cuentos) / Lucia M. Gonzlez. |
PZ73 .G5886 2008 |
|
|
PZ7 .M7881927 JU 2008 |
||
|
PS3560 .I55 R43 2008 |
||
|
2008 |
Medal Winner: Juan Francisco Manzano was born in 1797 into the household of wealthy slaveowners in Cuba. He spent his early years at the side of his owner's wife, entertaining her friends. His poetry was his outlet, reflecting the beauty and cruelty of his world. Written in verse. |
PS3555 .N4254 P64 2006 |
|
Honor Books: Frida : viva la vida = long live life / by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand. "Biographical poems about the life and work of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo"--Provided by publisher, verso t.p. |
ND259 .K33 B47 2007 |
|
|
In this humorous retelling of a Cuban folktale, a cockroach interviews her suitors in order to decide whom to marry. |
PZ8.1 .D3782 MAR 2007 |
|
|
Los gatos black on Halloween / Marisa Montes ; illustrated by Yuyi Morales. Easy to read, rhyming text about Halloween night incorporates Spanish words, from las brujas riding their broomsticks to los monstruos whose monstrous ball is interrupted by a true horror. |
PZ8.3 .M775 GAT 2006 |
|
|
2006 |
Medal Winner: The tequila worm / Viola Canales. Sofia grows up in the close-knit community of the barrio in McAllen, Texas, then finds that her experiences as a scholarship student at an Episcopal boarding school in Austin only strengthen her ties to family and her "comadres." |
PZ7 .C161643 TE 2005 |
|
Honor Books: Cesar : si, se puede! yes, we can! / Carmen T. Bernier-Grand ; illustrated by David Diaz. Stylized illustrations by a Caldecott Medalist accompany lyrical prose and poems in this celebration of the life of Cesar Chavez. This thoughtful and beautiful biography illuminates not only the events that made up the great labor leader's life, but also the ideals and inspiration that are his legacy. |
PS3602 .E7624 C47 2004 |
|
|
Dona Flor, a giant lady with a big heart, sets off to protect her neighbors from what they think is a dangerous animal, but soon discovers the tiny secret behind the huge noise. |
PZ7 .M78819 DON 2005 |
|
|
Becoming Naomi Leon / Pam Munoz Ryan When Naomi's absent mother resurfaces to claim her, Naomi runs away to Mexico with her great-grandmother and younger brother in search of her father. |
PZ7.R9553 BE 2004 |
|
|
2004 |
Medal Winner: Before we were free / Julia Alvarez In the early 1960s in the Dominican Republic, twelve-year-old Anita learns that her family is involved in the underground movement to end the bloody rule of the dictator, General Trujillo. |
PZ7.A48 BE 2002 |
|
Honor Books: Cuba 15 : a novel / by Nancy Osa Violet Paz, a Chicago high school student, reluctantly prepares for her upcoming "quince," a Spanish nickname for the celebration of an Hispanic girl's fifteenth birthday. |
PZ7.O785 CU 2003 |
|
|
A young girl describes her feelings when her father decides to leave their home in Mexico to look for work in the United States. |
PZ73.P4654 MI 2002 |
|
|
2002 |
Medal Winner: Esperanza rising / Pam Munoz Ryan Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go work in the labor camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression. |
PZ7.R9553 ES 2000 |
|
Honor Books: Breaking through / Francisco Jimenez. Having come from Mexico to California ten years ago, fourteen-year-old Francisco is still working in the fields but fighting to improve his life and complete his education. |
PZ7 .J57525 BR 2001 |
|
|
Bilingual winter poetry |
PS3551 .L22 I39 2001 |
|
|
2000 |
Medal Winner: Under the royal palms : a childhood in Cuba / Alma Flor Ada. Cuba social life and customs |
PS3551 .D22 Z475 1998 |
|
Honor Books: A bilingual collection of poems in which the renowned Mexican American poet revisits and celebrates his childhood memories of summers, Mexico, and nature. |
PS3551 .L22 F76 1998 |
|
|
A collection of poems in Spanish and English about childhood, place, and identity. |
PS3558 .E74 L38 1998 |
|
|
1998 |
Medal Winner: Parrot in the Oven: mi vida. / Victor Martinez |
Not in collection |
|
Honor Books: Laughing Tomatoes and Other Spring Poems/ Jitomates Risueños y otros poemas de primavera / illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzalez |
Not in collection |
|
|
PS3563 .A733343 S68 1997 |
||
|
1996 |
Medal Winner: An Island Like You: Stories of the Barrio / Judith Ortiz Cofer |
Not in collection |
|
Honor Books: In this cumulative Cuban folktale, a bossy rooster dirties his beak when he eats a kernel of corn and must find a way to clean it before his parrot uncle's wedding. Includes a glossary of Spanish words and information about the different birds in the story. |
PZ74.1 .G76 1999 |
|
|
Baseball in April : and other stories / Gary Soto. A collection of eleven short stories focusing on the everyday adventures of Hispanic young people growing up in Fresno, California. In this unique collection of short stories, the small events of daily life reveal big themes-love and friendship, youth and growing up, success and failure. Calling on his own experiences of growing up in California's Central Valley, poet Gary Soto brings to life the joys and pains of young people everywhere. The smart, tough, vulnerable kids in these stories are Latino, but their dreams and desires belong to all of us. |
PZ7 .S7242 BAS 1990 |
| Award Date | Title/ Author and
Illustrator (For Illustrator) |
Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
2009 |
Medal Winner: |
PZ7 .M7881927 JU 2008 |
|
Honor Books: |
PZ7 .D7294 PAP 2008 |
|
|
PS3560 .I55 R43 2008 |
||
|
What Can You Do With a Rebozo? / Carmen Tafolla. |
Not in collection |
|
|
2008 |
Medal Winner: Los Gatos Black on Halloween / by Marisa Montes ; illustrated by Yuyi Morales |
PZ8.3 .M775 GAT 2006 |
|
Honor Books: My Name is Gabito: The Life of Gabriel Garcia Marquez/ Me llam Gabito: la vida de Gabriel Garcia Marquez / by Monica Brown ; illustrated by Raul Colon |
Not in collection |
|
|
My Colors, My World / Mis colores, mi mundo / by Maya Christina Gonzalez |
Not in collection |
|
|
2006 |
Award Winner: Dona Flor, a giant lady with a big heart, sets off to protect her neighbors from what they think is a dangerous animal, but soon discovers the tiny secret behind the huge noise. |
PZ7 .M78819 DON 2005 |
|
Honor Books: |
PZ74.3 .A77 2004 |
|
|
Cesar : si, se puede! yes, we can! / Carmen T. Bernier-Grand ; illustrated by David Diaz. Stylized illustrations by a Caldecott Medalist accompany lyrical prose and poems in this celebration of the life of Cesar Chavez. This thoughtful and beautiful biography illuminates not only the events that made up the great labor leader's life, but also the ideals and inspiration that are his legacy. |
PS3602 .E7624 C47 2004 |
|
|
My Name is Celia/ Me Llamo Celia: The Life of Celia Cruz/ La Vida de Celia Cruz / by Monica Brown ; illustrated by Rafael Lopez |
Not in collection |
|
|
2004 |
Medal Winner: Just a Minute: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book / Yuyi Morales |
PZ8.1.M7955 JU 2003 |
|
Honor Books: First Day in Grapes / by L. King Perez ; illustrated by Robert Casilla |
PZ7.P4256 FI 2002 |
|
|
The Pot That Juan Built /by Nancy Andrew-Goebel ; illustrated by David Diaz |
NK4210.Q49 A87 2002 |
|
|
Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez/ by Kathleen Krull ; illustrated by Yuyi Morales |
HD6509.C48 K78 2003 |
|
|
2002 |
Medal Winner: Chato and the Party Animals /by Gary Soto ; illustrated by Susan Guevara |
Not in collection |
|
Honor Books: Barrio: Jose's Neighborhood / by George Ancona |
Not in collection |
|
|
The Secret Stars / by Joseph Slate ; illustrated by Felipe Davalos |
Not in collection |
|
|
PZ7.C216354 MAM 1998 |
||
|
1998 |
Medal Winner: Snapshots from the Wedding /by Gary Soto ; illustrated by Stephanie Garcia |
Not in collection |
|
Honor Books: |
PZ73 .L67 1996 |
|
|
The Golden Flower: A Taino Myth from Puerto Rico / by Nina Jaffe ; illustrated by Enrique O. Sanchez |
Not in collection |
|
|
PQ7079.2 .A32 G38 1997B |
||
|
1996 |
Medal Winner: Chato's Kitchen / by Gary Soto ; illustrated by Susan Guevara |
PZ7.S7242 CH 1995 |
|
Honor Books: Pablo Remembers: The Fiesta of the Day of the Dead / George Ancona |
Not in collection |
|
|
In this cumulative Cuban folktale, a bossy rooster dirties his beak when he eats a kernel of corn and must find a way to clean it before his parrot uncle's wedding. Includes a glossary of Spanish words and information about the different birds in the story. |
PZ74.1 .G76 1999 |