Latina artist, writer to kick off Latino Children’s Literature Conference

Yuyi Morales, an award-winning Latina artist and children’s author, will perform puppetry and storytelling Friday, April 25, at the Lexington Main Library to launch the University of South Carolina’s inaugural Celebration of Latino Children’s Literature Conference.

The Lexington event will begin at 6:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Children who attend the event will receive a free copy of one of Morales’ books. The Friday event also marks the American Library Association’s annual celebration El día de los ninos/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day).

A native of Mexico, Morales is an artist, puppet maker, writer and storyteller who lives in California. Her books include “Little Night,” “Sand Sister,” “Los Gatos Black on Halloween,” “Just a Minute” and “Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez.”

For more information about the Lexington event, call the Lexington Main Library at 803-785-2600, or e-mail Dr. Jaime Naidoo at jnaidoo@gwm.sc.edu.

Events on Saturday, April 26, will take place on the university’s campus and are for librarians, school administrators, K-12 teachers, as well as pre-service and ESL teachers. Organized by the university’s School of Library and Information Science and College of Education, the conference will address the state’s growing Latino population and how librarians and teachers can serve Latino children’s educational needs and provide quality literature that reflects Hispanic culture and encourage literacy in the Latino community.

In addition to Morales, the conference will feature Lucía Gonzáles, well-known storyteller, writer and librarian with the Broward County (Fla.) Library, and Dr. Kathy Short, a professor of language, reading and culture at the University of Arizona, who will discuss the importance of why Latino children should have books that feature Latino characters.

Professionals interested in the conference should visit the Web site: www.libsci.sc.edu/latinoconf/.