David Bowles (author)
David Bowles (born 1970) is an American poet, translator and author.
David Bowles | |
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Bowles at the 2018 Texas Book Festival | |
Born | David Oscar Bowles, Jr. February 27, 1970 Upper Marlboro, Maryland, United States |
Occupation | Poet, novelist, translator |
Notable works | The Smoking Mirror They Call Me Güero |
Notable awards | Pura Belpré Author Honor; Texas Institute of Letters Translation Award; Walter Dean Myers Honor; Claudia Lewis Award for Excellence in Poetry; Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award |
Website | |
www |
Life and career
David Bowles was born to residents of the Rio Grande Valley of Texas in 1970. He is of Mexican descent.[1]
Much of Bowles' work stems from his research into border legends and pre-Columbian Mesoamerican mythology, featured on Monsters and Mysteries in America.[2] He is currently developing a TV series based on his book Border Lore with Mucho Más Media and Campanario Entertainment.[3]
In addition, Bowles has translated multiple books, poems and stories from languages as diverse as Spanish, Nahuatl,[4] Yucatec Mayan,[5] and Japanese.[6] He is also a poet, with two books of verse and poems published widely.[7]
Bowles also writes speculative fiction,[7] such as his MG/YA fantasy series Garza Twins,[8] that features Latino protagonists and Mesoamerican mythology.[1] He worked with Adam Gidwitz on the Unicorn Rescue Society series for Dutton Penguin.[9] His speculative fiction work includes graphic novels like the steampunk title Clockwork Curandera he created with illustrator Raúl "the Third" González.[10]
Bowles resides in Donna, Texas. Holding a Master's in English and a doctorate in Education, he is a professor in the Department of Literatures & Cultural Studies at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, where he teaches children's/adolescent literature and Nahuatl.[11] [2]
In February 2017, David Bowles was elected to the Texas Institute of Letters.[12] In January 2020, he co-founded the hashtag / literary activist campaign #DignidadLiteraria.
Awards and honors
- Flower, Song, Dance: Aztec and Mayan Poetry: awarded the Texas Institute of Letters' 2014 Soeurette Diehl Fraser Award for Best Translation.[13]
- TOP SHELF Book Review Column: received a 2014 Texas Associated Press Managing Editors' Headliners Excellence in Journalism Award for Comment and Criticism.[14]
- The Smoking Mirror was selected as a Pura Belpré Honor Book in 2016 by the American Library Association.[15]
- Inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters in 2017.[12]
- They Call Me Güero has received multiple accolades:
- Selected Best Book of 2018 by the School Library Journal
- Selected a 2019 Notable Verse Novel by the NCTE Award for Excellence in Children’s Poetry Committee
- Named one of the 2018 Best Children's & Teen Books of the Year by Shelf Awareness.
- 2019 Honor Book for the Walter Dean Myers Award for Outstanding Children's Literature in the Younger Reader category.
- 2019 Pura Belpré Honor Book
- 2019 Claudia Lewis Award for Excellence in Poetry
- Association for Library Service to Children Notable Children's Book, 2019
- 2019 Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award
- 2018 Jean Flynn Award for Best Middle Grade Book from the Texas Institute of Letters
- Selected for the 2020-2021 Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List by the Texas Library Association
- Selected as a 2020-2021 nominee for the South Carolina Children's Book Award by the South Carolina Association of School Librarians.
- The International Youth Library Foundation named it a White Raven, a recommended title for international children’s and youth literature.
- Feathered Serpent, Dark Heart of Sky received the Texas Institute of Letters Award for Best Young Adult Book. It was also selected a Best YA Book of 2018 by Kirkus Reviews and was a YALSA Award Nominee for Excellence in Nonfiction.
Works
AS AUTHOR
Novels
- The Chupacabras of the Rio Grande (The Unicorn Rescue Society, #4). Co-authored by Adam Gidwitz. Illustrated by Hatem Aly. New York: Dutton Penguin, 2019.
- Lords of the Earth. Hobart, Australia: Severed Press, 2016.
- Garza Twins Series
- The Smoking Mirror (#1). Melbourne: IFWG Publishing, 2015.
- A Kingdom Beneath the Waves (#2). Melbourne: IFWG Publishing, 2016.
- The Hidden City. (#3). Melbourne: IFWG Publishing, 2018.
Picture Books
- My Two Border Towns. New York, NY: Kokila, 2021. (Forthcoming.)
Story Collections
- Chupacabra Vengeance. Tigard, Oregon: Broken River Books, 2017.
- The Seed: Stories from the River's Edge. Spring, TX: Absey & Co., 2011.
Graphic Novels
- Tales of the Feathered Serpent series
- Rise of the Halfling King. Illustrated by Charlene Bowles. El Paso, TX: Cinco Puntos Press, 2020. (Forthcoming.)
- Clockwork Curandera series
- Vol. 1—The Witch Owl Parliament. Illustrated by Raúl the Third. New York, NY: Tu Books, 2020. (Forthcoming.)
Chapter Books
- 13th Street series
- Battle of the Bad-Breath Bats (#1). New York, NY: HarperChapters, 2020 (Forthcoming).
- The Fire-Breathing Ferret Fiasco (#2). New York, NY: HarperChapters, 2020 (Forthcoming).
- Clash of the Cackling Cougars (#3). New York, NY: HarperChapters, 2020 (Forthcoming).
- The Shocking Shark Showdown (#4). New York, NY: HarperChapters, 2020 (Forthcoming).
Myth and Legend
- Feathered Serpent, Dark Heart of Sky: Myths of Mexico. El Paso, TX: Cinco Puntos Press, 2018.
- Ghosts of the Rio Grande Valley. Charleston: The History Press, 2016.
- Border Lore: Folktales and Legends of South Texas. Beaumont, TX: Lamar University Press, 2015.
- Creature Feature: 13 Frightening Folktales of the Rio Grande Valley. McAllen, TX: AIM Media Texas, 2013.
- Mexican Bestiary. Donna, TX: VAO Publishing, 2012.
Poetry
- They Call Me Güero: A Border Kid's Poems. El Paso, TX: Cinco Puntos Press, 2018.
- Shattering and Bricolage. Dallas, TX: Ink Brush Press, 2014.
AS TRANSLATOR
- The Sea-Ringed World: Sacred Stories of the Americas. Translation of Diccionario de mitos de América by María García Esperón. New York, NY: Levine Querido. 2021 (forthcoming).
- Me dicen Güero: Poemas de un chavo fronterizo. Translation of They Call Me Güero. New York, NY: Vintage Español. 2020 (forthcoming).
- Snake Poems: An Aztec Invocation. Special Edition for Camino Del Sol Series. Nahuatl translation of the original text by Francisco X. Alarcón. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press. March 12, 2019.
- El verano de las mariposas. Translation of Summer of the Mariposas by Guadalupe García McCall. New York, NY: Tu Books, 2018.
- Flower, Song, Dance: Aztec and Mayan Poetry. Beaumont, TX: Lamar University Press, 2013.
Notes
References
- Adam Gidwitz (2018). "In the Beginning Was the Name". Nerdy Book Club. Nerdy Book Club. Retrieved 2018-01-08.
- Madeline Smither (2014). "Donna author to talk about 'Big Bird' local legend on national TV". The Monitor. The Monitor. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Rasmussen, Peter (July 28, 2015). "The Smoking Mirror: Stories of Shapeshifting Drive Bowles' New Novel". The Monitor. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Vourvoulias, Sabrina (April 10, 2015). "Meet David Bowles, author of The Smoking Mirror". AL DÍA. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Vourvoulias, Sabrina (June 29, 2015). "Introduction to "Winds that Stir Vermillion Sands"". Strange Horizons. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Fowler, Olivia (2015). "Author Interview: David Bowles on Inclusive Literature, the Hugos, and the Future of Genre Fiction". Geeka Chicas. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Texas Associated Press Managing Editors (March 31, 2015). "2014 Texas APME Awards List". Texas Associated Press Managing Editors. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
- Cummins, Amy (July 2015). "Postcard Review of The Smoking Mirror" (PDF). Bookbird: A Journal of International Children's Literature. 53 (3): 81–101.
- Birkelbach, Alan (June 2014). "Perform with Drums (A Review of Flower, Song, Dance: Aztec and Mayan Poetry)" (PDF). American Book Review. 35 (4): 22–23. doi:10.1353/abr.2014.0065.
- Hoerth, Katherine (Winter 2014). "Flower, Song, Dance: Aztec and Mayan Poetry". Pleiades. 34 (1): 248–250.
- Texas Institute of Letters (n.d.). "Winners Announced in Texas Institute of Letters Competitions" (PDF). Texas Institute of Letters. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-02-16. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Texter, Douglas (May 15, 2015). "Review of Apex Magazine #72". Tangent. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Gyasi, Geosi (March 24, 2015). "Interview with David Bowles, Author of The Seed". Geosi Reads: A World of Literary Pieces. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- Donna Independent School District (n.d.). "Bilingual/ESL Department". Donna ISD. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
- PR Newswire (January 11, 2016). "American Library Association announces 2016 youth media award winners". PR Newswire. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
- UTRGV (n.d.). "Dr. David Bowles". UTRGV. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
- David Bowles (Presenter) (October 6, 2015). Story and Identity: Moving Beyond the Self (video). McAllen: TEDx. Retrieved 2016-09-10.
- TIL Press Release (2017). "Fifteen elected to Texas Institute of Letters". Lone Star Literary Life. Lone Star Literary Life. Retrieved 2017-02-05.
- Full Circle Literary (2017). "David Bowles". Middle Grade & Young Adult. Full Circle Literary. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
- Michael David Wilson (2017). "TIH 132: David Bowles on Mexican-American Folklore, Southern Gothic, and Story Ideas". This Is Horror Podcast. This Is Horror. Retrieved 2017-07-01.
- Nicole Brinkley (2017). "What authors received YA book deals in February?". YA Interrobang. YA Interrobang. Retrieved 2018-05-08.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to David Bowles. |
- Official website
- David Bowles on IMDb
- David Bowles at WorldCat – multiple people with this name