Today I will be interviewing YA Author Matt de la Peña for the the blog tour. Matt will be joining Diversity in YA in New York on May 14.Matt is the author of the YA novels Ball's Don't Lie, Mexican Whiteboy, We Where Here and I Will Save You. Matt currently lives in Brooklyn, NY -- he teaches creative writing at NYU and visits high schools and colleges all overIf you were stranded on an island and were able to bring five books with you (not including your own) which ones would you chose?
- Denis Johnson's JESUS'S SON
- Cormac McCarthy's SUTTREE
- Alice Walker's THE COLOR PURPLE
- Marquez's ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF SOLITUDE
- Lispector's HOUR OF THE STAR
What would say has been the most rewarding aspect of writing your book?
I love it when a kid writes and says he doesn't consider himself the type of person who reads books, but he read mine and really liked it. This means he likes books if the books speaks to him. First of all, I feel honored that he liked one of my books. But I also get excited thinking he might like other books, too. And maybe he'll even turn into the type of person who considers himself a reader. Which was one of the coolest transformations I've ever made myself.
If you could be a fictional character for one day, who would it be and why?
I think I'd be any of the boy characters in THE HOUSE ON MANGO STREET. Then I'd have a chance to get with Esperanza, who I had a huge crush on all through junior high and high school. Man, I still have a crush on that character.
For more about Matt, visit his site here:
Win books! You can win a book from one of the Diversity in YA Authors. Comment on this blog post with the name of your favorite multicultural/book between cultures and why this is your favorite book. Be sure to include your email address so I can contact you if you win. Open to US entrants, winners picked random and ends June 15. Extra entry if your blog, tweet, or post this contest on facebook (include the link) Good luck!
My favorite multicultural book is "Who Fears Death" by Nnedi Okorafor--because it's set among a number of interesting African cultures but also about rebelling against troubling aspects of one's culture.
ReplyDeleteOooh, Sarah, I really want to read her books!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite is One-Way to Ansonia. It's a historical fiction book published in the '80s about an Eastern European family who's immigrated to the U.S. and is trying to cope with the new culture.
susanna DOT pyatt AT student DOT rcsnc DOT org
Please enter me in the contest too. I would pick as my favorite, Shanghai Girls by Lisa See
ReplyDeletethanks everyone for the comments! you are all entered! great titles you all named going to check them out!
ReplyDeleteupdate: the contest closing date is postponed to June 15!!
ReplyDeleteSimone Elkeles' Perfect Chemistry is my favorite--the characters in that book are just perfect. You miss them when the book is over.
ReplyDeletebook [dot] splot [at] gmail [dot] com
Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon featuring strong Asian culture <3
ReplyDeletewithinpages @ hotmail dot com
I am not sure how much this counts as a multicultural read, but I recently read and really enjoyed Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale wich is based in an Asian culture. As mentioned above, I have also read Simone Elkeles' Perfect Chemistry which was great and I have had Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon on my TBR list for a while! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the interview and the giveaway! seescootread[at]gmail[dot]com