Tomás Rivera Award facts for kids

The Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award is a special prize. It celebrates authors and illustrators who create books about the Mexican American experience. This award was started in 1995 by the Texas State University College of Education. It honors Tomás Rivera, a very important educator, poet, and writer. His books often showed the challenges faced by Mexican migrant farmers. Tomás Rivera was also the first Mexican American to lead a university as a chancellor at the University of California.

What the Award Is About

This award helps recognize amazing books that share stories about Mexican American life. It's important because it helps young readers see themselves in books. It also helps all readers learn about different cultures and experiences.

Who Was Tomás Rivera?

Tomás Rivera was born in Texas in 1935. His family were migrant farmworkers. This meant they traveled a lot to find work picking crops. Tomás Rivera learned a lot from these experiences. He later became a teacher and a writer. His most famous book is ... y no se lo tragó la tierra (...and the Earth Did Not Devour Him). It tells stories about migrant workers. He was a very successful educator and became a chancellor at the University of California. This was a big achievement. The award is named after him to keep his memory and work alive.

How Books Are Chosen

Books are chosen for the Tomás Rivera Book Award based on a few important rules:

• The book must be for children or young adults, from babies up to 16 years old.
• The writing and pictures in the book must be excellent.
• The way Mexican Americans are shown in the book must be real and interesting. They should not use stereotypes. Characters should feel like real people.
• The book can be either a true story (non-fiction) or a made-up story (fiction).

Award Winners

Many talented authors and illustrators have won the Tomás Rivera Book Award. Here are some of the winners from recent years: