New! Día Author & Illustrator Ambassadors

Pat Mora

How wonderful that respected authors and illustrators such as Monica Brown, John Parra , Jeanette Lars on, Cynthia Leitch Smith  and René Colato Laínez are going to add their voices to the importance of linking all children and young people to books, languages and cultures. In the letter below, I invite all published authors and illustrators to join us in promoting bookjoy. Help us by sharing this invitation.

Dear Talented Authors & Illustrators,

To help promote Día (El día de los niños/El día de los libros, Children’s Day/Book Day; also, El día de los jovenes/El día de los libros, Young People’s Day/Book Day), my Web team and I are creating a Día Author and Illustrator Ambassadors page on the Día section of my site.  As you’ll see in the visual history section, I founded Día in 1996 , so this April is the 16th Anniversary of this year-long, family literacy initiative now housed at ALSC, a division of ALA. We say: every day is Día. If you believe in Día and its goals, I hope that you already mention Día in your presentations and web site. (We so need your help!) Read more …

A Letter to Child Readers

Pat Mora

Each year Pat writes a letter to her young readers. You can read this year’s letter below and earlier letters are archived on Pat’s website.  Teachers, feel free to use this letter for Author Studies or other language arts activities.

Dear Girls and Boys,

Are you patient? I’m not. Right now, far away from me, illustrators are working on art for some of my new books. I can’t wait to see the sketches, and I can’t wait to hold the finished books in my hands. I always have to wait years for that special moment. I don’t get to talk to the illustrators ahead and sometimes I never meet them. I sure like to though.

What do you like to do best: write or draw? Maybe you can do both, or maybe you do the writing and your friend or brother or sister or cousin can illustrate your words. It’s fun to make your own books at school, the library and at home.

I’m a writer because I’m a reader. I love to read! Do you know how important being a good reader is? It helps you in all your classes, it helps you be a good writer, and reading is fun. If you’re not a good reader now, start practicing. Read every day—for you. Find books about the things you like—horses, bugs, bikes—and read about them. Then you can write your own new book and share it with your family, teacher or friend.

My next book, THE BEAUTIFUL LADY: LA SEÑORA DE GUDALUPE will be out at this time next year. It’s an old story about a special lady who years ago appeared on a hill in Mexico. I can’t wait to see it! As always, I’m busy working on new books too.

I hope you’ll visit my website and see all my books and even some family photos. You can write and tell me what you liked.

Your reading friend,

Pat Mora


 2012: 20th Anniversary





El día del amor y la amistad

Pat Mora

My favorite translation of Valentine’s Day in Spanish is El día del amor y la amistad, love and friendship day. Doesn’t the addition of friendship make the red-heart-and-sweets-day even more special? Friends have always been an important part of my life: when I was growing up in El Paso, when I taught, and when I was a university administrator. I’m too private to be a Facebook person, but now that I work at home, through phone and e-mail, in addition to my family and long-time friends, I have amigas and amigos who are book friends: authors, illustrators, librarians, educators, members of the publishing world, and my special Día buddies who promote bookjoy all year long. May we cherish those who help us laugh and who believe in us.

photo credit: misfitsalon.blogspot.com