Note: This is a revision of a Bloga essay I wrote two years ago. More a mission than an essay, I hope readers are moved by Primo Villanueva's story as I was, especially when I learned UCLA Athletics had never inducted him into its athletic Hall ..read more

I am so happy to share the news that Do I Belong Here? ¿Es este mi lugar? received the 2024 Paterson Prize for Young People in the category of Grades Pre K-3. The award is given by the Poetry Center at PCCC, Passaic County Community College, in New Jersey.  The Book Ted Kooser: More Than a Local Wonder written by Carla Ketner and published by University of Nebraska Press also received the award in the category of Grades Pre K-3. .  To find the winners in all the different categories, click this link https://www.poetrycenterpccc.com/news-winners/2024/4/30/2024-pate ..read more

5 de Mayo Was No Match for Poetry Michael Sedano The first weekend in May arrived with a full schedule of poetry readings in communities across the land. The nation's cultural life appears fully re-awakened in the wake of the GOPlague years that kept the nation sequestered and isolated. Literary events were stiff competition for Cinco de Mayo stuff. This was particularly the case in Altadena and Pasadena, California, where a two-day book and reading festival, "LitFest In the Dena 2024" filled the elegantly cavernous halls comprising Mountain View Mausoleum. Aside from a pizza truck and a ..read more

  Poesía de resiliencia por Temeyissa Patalé Justine   El poemario Corazón de agua de Xánath Caraza refleja de manera global los cambios sociales, individuales y colectivos provocados por el advenimiento de la pandemia Covid-19 así como las cuestiones éticas, curativas y existenciales puestas de relieve por esta crisis mundial. Los poemas siguientes: “Confinamiento”, “Nostalgia” y “Esperanza” ofrecen perspectivas sobre la manera cómo la pandemia transformó la vida de los ciudadanos de manera permanente. La pandemia creó “distancia virtual”, situación incómoda en la que se encuentra ..read more

by Ernest Hogan  It’s like good ol’ AZ can’t stand having the Ukraine, Gaza, Israel, and Iran get all the attention. Who would have thought that the Arizona Supreme Court was planning on setting off this bombshell? Right after Trump did his mealy mouth announcement about letting abortion be a states right deal if he gets his old job back. Ain’t that kind of jumping the gun? They either can’t wait until after the election, or they no longer feel God’s Chosen Candidate is going to be a shoe-in in November, or they’re now thinking that maybe their dreams of shredding the Constitution and es ..read more

From Lee & Low Books www.leeandlow.com   Teacher Appreciation Week Giveaway We see all you hard-working educators out there.   THANK YOU for everything you do to instill a love of learning and reading in young people.   In celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week, LEE & LOW is giving away a library of 700+ paperbacks from our exclusive Bebop Books imprint to 6 lucky educators.   Bebop Books are delightful, child-centered stories that support literacy learning. Appealing texts and pictures by outstanding authors and illustrators from diverse backgrounds engage chi ..read more

La Bloga-Tuesday celebrates community-making as the natural outcome of writing, performing, and reading poems. A poetry reading represents community in numerous dimensions, from organizers to seasoned readers to debut readers to involved listeners to venue hosts. Beyond the immediacy of a reading, in the background, a community of publishers and broadcaster-streamer technicians work to make the event memorable. It's the nature of community that people have and share things in common. In a poetry community, what all have and share in common is a motivation to express and, as listeners, to be m ..read more

  Neighborhoods, whether real or fictitious, conventional or boundless, changing for better or worse, bestow an identity; give us a way of seeing things – a way of seeing the world. It’s more than a collection of houses on a network of streets. A neighborhood could be defined as a collection of people with unique experiences, conditions and desires, who together form something bigger and deeply affecting. People who engender powerful stories together. Join us for two days of FREE author panels and readings at this year’s LitFest in the Dena, Mt. View Mausoleum, 2300 N. Marengo Ave, Alta ..read more

                                                                                                                                                          Faces of experience, full of surprises ..read more

By Dr. Kathleen Contreras Hero.  Super hero.  Living Legend.  Role model.  Humble.  He had all these attributes.  Why weren’t books written about him? Children need both mirrors and windows to reflect their own cultural background and allow them to see the light of others. That was my motivation to research one of L.A. Dodger’s living legends and cultural icons… Fernando “El Toro” Valenzuela.  Few adult books talk about Fernando; but yet, no books for children on one of baseball’s most talented and popular ball players could be found. Why not?  ..read more