Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Great Articles for Illustrators

Happy belated Holidays to all and a Happy New Year.

It's been a very busy month and as you can see I've not posted anything in ages. I came across this link in the Children's Writers and Illustrators group on Facebook and thought that it was great. Take a peek:

http://www.intelligentlight.com/PrairieWind/?cat=13

This is the newsletter of the SCBWI Illinois Chapter and they have a great Illustrator Tips section.

Happy reading and I'll see you next year.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

"There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" is Now in Puerto Rico Borders


Great news! "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" is now available in the Borders Plaza Las Americas in San Juan, Puerto Rico. That's the largest mall in the Caribbean. The book has been really popular in Puerto Rico because it touches on so many facets of Puerto Rican culture. Next time you're on the Enchanted Isle stop by the Borders and pick up a copy. Here's a link to the store there:

Upcoming Book Signing for Marisa

I just spoke with Marisa, the author of my first book "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!", and she mentioned that she will be having another book signing this Saturday, December the 6th, from 11:00 am to noon. The signing will be at the Moravian Book Shop in Bethlehem, PA and it has been open since 1745, making it the world's oldest bookseller. How neat is that? Here is a link to their site and their address info. Drop by if you are in the area and say hi to Marisa.


Moravian Book Shop
428 Main Street
Bethlehem, PA 18018-5869 USA
610-866-5481
FAX 610-868-8330
Toll-Free 888-661-2888

Monday, November 24, 2008

Bremer Stadtmusikanten are done!


Here is the final version of the "Town Musicians of Bremen" sketch I had posted a while ago. I finally got the chance to finish it in acrylics. I love my gels and mediums :)

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Pre-order Salt and Soap on Amazon

I just found out that you can pre-order "The Adventures of Salt and Soap at Grand Canyon" on Amazon. It won't actually be out until March of next year but it's neat to see it up on Amazon. Take a peek:

http://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Salt-Soap-Grand-Canyon/dp/1934656046/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1227243337&sr=8-1

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Coqui book Article in Puerto Rico


I just found out that Jaymee Weinreich wrote a second article about "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" for a new newspaper in Puerto Rico called "The Puerto Rino Daily Sun". We met Jaymee when we were at a book signing at the El Yunque Raiforest in Puerto Rico this past July and she is a delightfull person and very talented artist.
Thank you Jaymee for your support.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

I've been tagged!

My good friend Teri "tagged" me. I had no idea what that means so I had to ask her. Shows how blog savvy I really am. It means that I have to post seven facts about myself and then tag four other people. Not sure yet who I'm going to tag, but here are some facts about me:
  1. I didn't speak English until I was 11.
  2. I can't resist icecream or chocolate.
  3. I'm a hug-a-holic.
  4. In addition to my two girls I have two dogs that are like my other 2 kids. Golden Retrievers are the best.
  5. My hubby says I add too many spices when I cook. He says my philosophy of "the more the better" does not apply to spicing food.
  6. I love scuba diving but haven't been in many years.
  7. I've hiked the Grand Canyon rim to rim.
Check out Teri's bol at:
http://princesstomato.wordpress.com/

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Founders' Workshop was incredible!

I'm back from the Founders' Workshop in Honesdale, PA. This workshop was about "the Visual Arts of a Picture Book." As you might have guessed I had high expectations for the weekend seeing that the proposed topic list was outstanding. I was not prepared, however, for the incredible experience I was privileged to share over last weekend. Nick (Dominic Catalano) is an incredible teacher and filled the entire three/four days with so much information, we all agreed that we had gotten our money's worth before Friday was even over.

All I can say is that you must attend this workshop if you are an illustrator. It wasn't just all the incredibly useful and very applicable illustration skills and knowledge that we gained, but also the camaraderie and support of the all the unbelievably talented fellow participants and faculty members. Thank you Nick for making this weekend an experience I will never forget.

Come to our next illustrator meeting and I'll share some of the detail of what we learned. But for now here are some photos of the weekend.

This is Boyd's Mills house where the workshop was held and we had all of our meals. It is such a beautiful and peaceful area that it is a perfect setting to be creative.

These are some of the cabins. They are so cute and comfortable that it felt like being home (only a lot quiter).

This was my cabin. I wish it would have been warmer because I would have loved to sit on that rocking chair to enjoy the beautiful forest view.

Unlike what my husband thought when he saw this picture, this had nothing to do with whiskey. While we were in our workshop an entire flock (is that right? I know it's not a herd but there were a bunch of them) of turkeys ran past. By the time my camera took the picture only one was left. That's what that little dot is. Anyway, I thought that a flock of turkeys is really neat.

If you don't to come for the information at the workshop, come for the food. Marcia is the most incredible chef. These were just some of the appetizers we got before the meal. Those are homemade potstickers, spring rolls and an incdredible artichoke dip. The actual dinners included: Lobster lasagna, shrimp encrusted talapia and pumpkin creme brule. We were in heaven.

This is Tim Gillner, Art Director for Boyd's Mills Press, in his office. Great guy with very helpful feedback on portfolios. His office is rather interesting with all those piles of stuff. ..

Part of the facutly included Dominic Catalano, Kelly Cunningham (Art Director for High Five Magazine), Suzanne Bloom (author/illustrator) and Tim Gillner. We also spent time with Cynthia Farber Smith, Art Director for Highlights Magazine, but I was so enthralled all evening that I forgot to pull out my camera.

This is Lindsay Barrett George, author/illustrator, spent time with us on Friday evening and Sunday and was so helpful when looking at our work. She had great insight and advice which I think will really help me greatly.

This is one of Lindsay's illustrations. She had such a wide range, but her wildlife illustrations were just breathtaking.

Here is Nick while reviewing all the Caldecott winners. Yes, he brought with him every single Caldecott winner since the first one in 1938.


Here are the books that Nick has illustrated. 27 I believe, many of which he also wrote.


Nick also brought with him a great set of illustration resource books. I was excited to see that I have a few of them, but now there are many more that I would love to get.

All the Caldecott Winner since 1938. Reviewing each one was really interesting.
Anyway, if you ever have to opportunity to attend one of these workshops - you must go. There are writing workshops as well as illustration specific ones. I can't speak highly enough about it. If you want more info about the workshop itself, join me at our next illustrators' meeting on:
Tuesday, November 18th, at 7:00 pm in the evening
Barnes & Noble at the Tempe Marketplace
2000 E.Rio Salado Pkwy #1032
Tempe, AZ 85281
480-894-6954
It is located in Tempe where the 202 and the 101 meet off Rio Salado. We’ll be meeting in the cafĂ©. Here is more info about the location as well as directions on how to get there:

http://storelocator.barnesandnoble.com/storedetail.do;jsessionid=18F9DD089372E8294E9BDB99CB3796D6?store=2243
Hope to see you there.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Next Illustrator Meeting Nov 18th

Hello Everyone,

I'll be leaving for Honesdale early Wednesday morning For the Founders Workshop. Yeah! I'm really excited. The topics that will be covered are really interesting and will be so useful on my next projects.

But before I leave I wanted to remind everyone of our next Illustrator meeting. We'll meet again at the Barnes & Noble at the Tempe Marketplace. We met there last time and it worked out to be a great location. Our next meeting will be:

Tuesday, November 18th, at 7:00 pm in the evening

We'll meet in the cafe area again at Barnes & Noble at Tempe Marketplace where the 202 and the 101 meet off Rio Salado. Here is more info about the location as well as directions on how to get there:

http://storelocator.barnesandnoble.com/storedetail.do;jsessionid=18F9DD089372E8294E9BDB99CB3796D6?store=2243

I'll share with you all the great info that I will have picked up at the workshop. Also, bring along any work you would like to show, etc. Drop me a line if you are able to make it so that I know how many people to expect. Hope to see you there.

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Gurney Journey

I've been cheicking out some sites, blogs and discussion boards and stumbled across an incredible blog. Most of you are probably familiar with it already but I was enthralled to look through it.

Check out:

http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/

Such insight and expertise is inspiring to say the least. What a great resource for artists everywhere.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Sketch from Pat Cummings Workshop.

Now that I'm slowly working through my backlog of client projects, it's time I start posting a little more. Here is the sketch that I came up with for the Pat Cummings Workshop. In case you are not familiar with the story this is from the Grimm's Brothers "Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten." In english I think the story is called "The Bremen Town Musicians." It was one of the stories that I grew up with and I always liked it. I like my version of the chicken/rooster. I had the "Titanic" "I'm the king of the world" scene in my head when I drew him. He's having fun...





Saturday, October 18, 2008

Salt and Soap Illustrations are complete!

I haven't had a chance to post this yet, but all artwork is complete for the Salt and Soap project. All the artwork was delivered on schedule and we even got to hike around the Grand Canyon a little. It looks like the book will be out around the end of February, 2009. The actual title of the book is "The Adventures of Salt and Soap in Grand Canyon" and the publisher is the Grand Canyon Association. Here is a preliminary cover of the book. I'll let you all know when it is available next year.



Tanja's website has a new look

It's about time! I finally posted my revised website. It had been over two years since I changed my site and I was really getting bored with the look of it. This is what it used to look like:
This is the new and revised look:

I like it so much better. Also, I finally added new artwork and a link to my blog. Take a peek if you like at http://www.tanjabauerle.com/

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Pat Cummings Illustration Workshop was Incredible

We finally had our Illustration workshop with Pat Cummings last Saturday. It was a full day that started at 8:30 in the morning and didn't end until about 6:30 in the evening. Yes, we went over our scheduled time frame but everyone was able to spend more one-on-one time with Pat during our portfolio reviews. Thank you Pat for an incredible day.

Pat shared with us her insight on what makes and effective Promotional piece for a children's illustrator. The pre-workshop assignment was to select a well know fairytale and produce one image that would make the story easily identifyable to the viewer. She engouraged to use as many of the following in order to make the piece striking and stand out to an art director: ACTION, SPECIFIC MOOD, DRAMATIC LIGHTING, UNIQUE COLOR PALETTE, DYNAMIC SCALE, PATTERN, FACIAL EXPRESSIVENESS, UNUSUAL PERSPECTIVE, DISTINCTIVE LINE, INTERESTING TEXTURE, and P.O.V. At the workshop Pat went through each illustration in detail offered suggestions on what can be done to improve the art. The result were many very nice pieces that will no doubt attact attention.

Here is Pat with Michelle, Juana and myself at the workshop. The person missing is Kathy Parks who was such an integral part of getting this workshop put together. Thank you Michelle, Kathy and Juana for your hard work in getting this workshop put together. As always you surpassed expectations.
Here is Pat with Megumi during the portfolio review. Everyone attending was able to have some one-on-one time with Pat to get advice on their artworks and portfolios. Thank you Pat for all your insightful comments.

Tom, Lewis, Annette and Kathy taking diligent notes during Pat's informative address.

Listening attentively. I don't think there was a single person that did not enjoy and appreciate receiving Pat wisdom.

Here's Kathy with Christine (sorry that I cut your head off), MaryBeth, and Debbie going over how she handled the assignment. Kathy's the hone holding the paper.

Reviewing everyone's assignment was very inspiring. I always feel that you can learn just as much from another person's art as you can from your own.

Pat Cummings Rountable Discussion Last Friday

We had the pleasure of having Pat Cummings out for both a roundtable discussion and our workshop. Thank you Pat for and incredible experience and for sharing so much incredible information and advise with us. The roundtable discussion was so entertaining. Pat is such an engaging speaker and everyone enjoyed the evening. It 's amazing how much everyone learned about the children's publishing market and craft in only two hours. It was so valuable to get insight into both the writing and illustrating aspects from such an accomplished artist.

Here are some photos of the evening:



Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Founders Workshop In Nov - PA


Now I'm really looking forward to November. I'll be attending the Art of Picture Books Founders workshop in November, at the Highlights Foundation in Honesdale, PA. Here is more info on the workshop. I think there are still openings so try to go yourself.


Just look at some of the topics that will be covered:

  • the children's market
  • picturing the narrative and writing with pictures
  • the role of the visual in fiction and nonfiction
  • intertextuality, or how written and visual texts relate
  • beyond interpretation, or relating your pictures to an author’s words
  • book design, pagination, and storyboarding
  • composition and the narrative
  • picture sequencing and the drama of the turning page
  • character development
  • the elements of art as expressive tools
  • building the picture
  • the unique qualities of creating art for a children’s audience
  • dummy preparation
  • preparing the final art for production
  • finding a market
  • contracts and career goals

I don't know a single illustrator that would not be tickled to learn more about any one of these topics let alone all of them.

Hope to see you there.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Coqui Faces out at Borders

Just got great news. Marisa's book signing last Saturday at the Borders at Whitehall Mall, PA, was a great success. They sold 83 books that day. The General Manager was extremely happy and just informed Marisa that "There's a Coqui in my Shoe!" is right now being displayed in their children's section. How exciting is that?

Marisa took some photos at the event and I will post them as soon as I get them.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Salt and Soap Spread 3


Here's another spread from the Salt and Soap book. Only three more spreads and the book is done. Can't wait to see it in print.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Greame Base - My Hero

Seeing that I grew up in Australia I came accross the work or Graeme Base many years ago. He is one of the first illustrators that really spoke to me. Not to me directly, but his work per se. I love looking at each of his images. The longer you look at them the more you discover. You can literally get lost in the spreads of his books. All I could think of was how wonderful it would be to illustrate books like that one day.

The other thing I really like about him was that he was a local artist. I lived in the Melbourne area and went to Box Hill College of Tafe for a year for Art & Design (way back when...) and he had attended Box Hill High School. Granted it was a lot earlier than when I was there, but I still felt a connection to him and his work.

Here is the cover for his book "The Eleventh Hour " and a link to his official gallery site to look at some of his artwork.

http://www.graemebase.com/Home.cfm

I stumbled across the following essay that talks about his work and carreer in more detail.

http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Author/AuthorPage/0,,0_1000002108,00.html

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Coqui Sings - Article

Check out this link.

http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/all-coqui.6576545sep09,0,3086000.story?page=2

This is the article that appeared today in the Morning Call Newspaper in Pennsylvania. What a neat write up about the book. I like the photo of Marisa holding the book open. They also used the photo of the three of us at Chi Chi Rodrigues golf resort, El LEgado.

Thank you Morning Call.

Monday, September 8, 2008

AZ Illustrator Meeting - Tuesday, Oct 14th - 7:00 pm

Hello AZ Illustrators,

Are you ready for our next Illustrator meeting? Our next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, October 14th, at 7:00 pm in the evening. We’ll be meeting at a new location that we talked about at our last meeting. We’ll meet at the Barnes & Noble at the Tempe Marketplace. It is located in Tempe where the 202 and the 101 meet off Rio Salado. We’ll be meeting in the cafĂ©. Here is more info about the location as well as directions on how to get there:

http://storelocator.barnesandnoble.com/storedetail.do;jsessionid=18F9DD089372E8294E9BDB99CB3796D6?store=2243

Seeing that this meeting will be about a week and a half after the Pat Cummings workshop, it’ll be great to see the development of those sketches. Bring along any work you would like to show, etc. It’ll be great to see everyone again. Let’s share ideas and get together with fellow artists. We always have a great time so I hope you can make it.

Drop me a line if you are able to make it so that I know how many people to expect.

Hope to see you there.

Friday, September 5, 2008

PA Book Signing and article in the Morning Call

I just found out that The Morning Call, which is a daily newspaper in the Allentown, PA area, will be printing a feature length article on "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" It will be printed in the Lifestyle section and will appear in the Tuesday, Sept 9th Issue. Anyone in the Allentown, PA area can take a peek.

Also, Marisa de Jesus Paolicelli, the author of "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" will have a book signing comming up to celebrate Latino Heritage Month. Feel free to stop by and say hi. Here's the info

Book Signing at Borders
Whitehall Mall, PA
Saturday September 13th, 2008
From 1:00pm to 3:00 pm

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Salt and Soap Spread 2


Here's another spread from the Salt & Soap book. I don't know why, but I really like this one.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Salt & Soap Spread



Here's one of the spreads that I completed for the Salt and Soap Project. Still working on the finals of the remaining spreads. Almost there...

Center for Biological Diversity talks about Coqui book!

I just received word that "There's a Coqui in My Shoe" was featured in the Activist Spotlight on the Center for Biological Diversity website. That a peek at:

http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/action/spotlight/index.html

It talks about the book and mentions the concern the book brings to light about the endangered coqui species. It's definitely worth the read.

Monday, September 1, 2008

El Yunque National Raiforest Newsletter

Check this out:

http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/el_yunque/about/cnf_newsletter/eynf_newsletter_summer_2008.pdf

The El Yunque National Raiforest Newsletter on page 2 has a little write up about the book signing we had at El Portal in July. Neat, eh?

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Pat Cumming Workshop is a must!!!

Take a peek at this cute flyer that our whiz Juana put together for the workshop. Make sure to sign up soon if you haven't already. I am so excited about it. Pat Cummings is such an incredible artist and is so nice that the day will be filled with great info and stories. Plus, it will be so inspiring to spend the whole day with fellow illustrators. I can't wait.
Make sure you sign up before all the spots are filled.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Salt and Soap Cover in Progress

So, when I'm painting away, I often get the feeling that my piece is progressing so slowly. I decided to take photos at the beginning of each painting session to get an idea of how much I'm actually getting accomplished each time I get to work. This is the cover art for the "Salt & Soap" project I'm working on for the Grand Canyon Association. It's still a work in progress and I'm still editing the puppies quite a bit. Please forgive the crudeness of the photos, but I think you get the idea....

Let me know your thoughts. :)

Monday, August 25, 2008

Pat Cummings Illustration Workshop in Arizona


DON'T MISS THIS GREAT WORKSHOP!

Pat Cummings Is Coming to Arizona!

Award-winning author/illustrator Pat Cummings will be sharing her expertise with SCBWI Arizona this fall. Join Pat and a small group of illustrators for a full day hands-on intensive workshop on Satuday, October 4, 2008. The workshop is designed for artists who want to take their work to the next level. The event will be held at the Brio Fine Arts Center in Scottsdale. For registration details, go to Events. (www.scbwi-az.org/Events.html)

The workshop will also involve creating a promotional piece that is so compelling that an editor would sign up a book based on that one image. This might be a rare occurrence, but it CAN happen. Every promotional piece ought to aspire to that end. This workshop will focus on developing a provocative, narrative image that showcases the widest range of individual skills possible.

Anyone who is interested in illustration should definitely come to this workshop. Register quickly so that you don't miss out.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

You can order "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" online now!

Isla Catalog, is a company that focuses on selling products specific to Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. They are now carrying "There's a Coqui in My Soe!" through their website. Click on:

http://www.islaonline.com/prodinfo.asp?number=6512CRB

To get to the book page. Also, seeing that the response has been so wonderful they will also palce the book in their Christmas catalog.

Where does Tanja work?

Wow! Has it really almost been a month since I posted last? Man-o-Man time sure does fly. I have been very busy working on the finals of my next book scheduled for release by the Grand Canyon Association in the Spring on 2009. I thought it might be interesting to show everyone where I work. I actually have a great little office/studio that I spend a lot of time in.


That's my computer area. As you can see I'm getting ready to do some blog posting. :)


That's my easle and drawing table, etc. The TV is not hooked up right now so it's just using up valuable space. My window looks over a little park which is nice, but it's hard watching people have fun outside while working (even if the work I do is fun) inside.

My solution?

Take over the rest of the house! Yup, I now paint in our dinning/family room area. It's actually kinda fun because I'm with the rest of the family and not so isolated. Thank you family for letting me spread my paints out everywhere.

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Interviewed by El Playero at El Legado Golf Resort

At the book signing in El Yunque, we met Jaymee Weinreich. She is an incredible artist and also writes about Puerto Rican artists, writers, etc. for a monthly free publication in Florida called "El Playero." She requested to interview Mr. Rodriguez, Marisa and myself for an article in one of the upcoming issues of El Playero. We all met, at Mr. Rodriguez Golf Resort, El Legado, outside of Guayama, Puerto Rico. We explained how "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" came to life and what the journey entailed.

Thank you Jaymee for your interest in our story and we are looking forward to reading your article soon.

The three of us again, at Mr. Rodriguez Golf Resort, El Legado. What a beautiful area, even if you are not a golfer. But if you do golf, make sure that you visit El Legado Golf Resort, home of Chi Chi Rodriguez, http://www.ellegadogolfresort.com/ . Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Rodriguez for your hospitality. Thank you also Maria (Morales, Marketing Director) for everything.

El Yunque Book Signing was a great success!

Now that I'm back from Puerto Rico, it's time to let you know how the book signing at El Portal Rain Forest Center in the El Yunque Rainforest went. First, I would like to give a heartfelt thank you to everyone at El Portal Rain Forest Center, especially Zoriada Rosa, Regional Manager for the Easter National Parks Service. We were so warmly welcomed and so well looked after which made the whole day even more enjoyable. I would also like to thank Mr. Rodriguez, the publisher of "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!", for making me laugh more than I have in a long time. He is the most quick witted person I have ever met and kept us laughing all day with his one-liners. My stomach muscles hurt after spending four hours with him.

Here I am with Mr. Rodriguez and Marisa de Jesus Paolicelli, the author, and Pablo Cruz, Forest Supervisor, from the El Portal Rainforest Center. The day was a huge success and there was lots of traffic for the entire time we were there. Mrs. Rosa informed us that we had sold well over 100 books that day which was a record for the store. Thank you to everyone who made the day such a huge success.

If you are ever in the El Yunque area of Puerto Rico, make sure that you visit the El Portal Rain Forest Center. The facility is absolutetly beautiful and is the entrance to the actual rain forest itself. For more information about the center, visit http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/caribbean/ .

Here are a couple more photos of the day:

Here is Marisa and I meeting some of the visitors to the Center and the book signing.

Here Mr. Rodriguez is making us laugh again. What a fun day we had.

Here is Mr. Rodriguez and Marisa with my family, my husband Kevin with the girls who are not cooperating as you can see. I couldn't resist, though. Afterall, how often does one get a chance to take a photo with a legend?

Monday, June 30, 2008

Upcoming Book Signing at El Yunque Rainforest, Puerto Rico

If you happen to be in Puerto Rico, specifically the El Yunque Rainforest, on Saturday, July 26th, 2008, between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., do stop by the gift shop as I will be there signing copies of "There's a Coqui in My Shoe!" In addition, Marisa de Jesus Paolicelli, the author, as well as ChiChi Rodriguez, the publisher of the book will also be there signing.

Here is a link to the El Yunque Rainforest website, if you are interested in learning more about it : http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/caribbean

I'll keep you posted with additional information as it becomes available.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

"There's a Coqui in My Shoe" wins award


After a long wait my first book that I illustrated finally came out earlier this year. We completed work on There's a Coqui in My Shoe! a few years ago and since then Marisa De Jesus Paolicelli has worked diligently with the publisher, ChiChi Rodriguez Books, to get the book into distribution.

I am very excited to let everyone know that There's a Coqui in My Shoe! won "Best Educational Children's Book in English" in the 2008 10th Annual International Latino Book Awards. In addition, There's a Coqui in My Shoe! placed 2nd in the category of "Best Children's Picture Book - English." The awards were presented during Book Expo America (the largest book expo in the country) on May 29, 2008, at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, CA. These awards honor literary excellence in a variety of categories.

About The International Latino Book Awards
In recognition of the many positive contributions being made to Latino literature by publishers and writers worldwide, Latino Literacy Now created the Latino Book Awards in 1999. Due to the dramatic increase in recent years in nominations of literary works from Mexico, Central and South America, and Spain, the title of the awards was changed to the International Latino Book Awards in 2006. Latino Literacy Now is a non-profit organization that supports and promotes literacy and literary excellence within the Latino community and in association with noted actor, director and community activist, Edward James Olmos, produces the Latino Book & Family Festival. For a list of winners and further information on the awards, please visit: http://lbff.us/. This major event showcases the diversity and importance of our multicultural community.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Review copies of There's a Coqui in My Shoe! are available, upon request, directly from A Caribbean Experience Con Amor, LLC; telephone: (610) 806-2013.