Isabel Quintero

Isabel Quintero is an American writer of young adult literature, poetry and fiction.

Isabel Quintero
Quintero at the 2019 Texas Book Festival
BornInland Empire of California
OccupationWriter
LanguageEnglish; Spanish
EducationB.A. in English; M.A. in English Composition
Alma materCalifornia State University, San Bernardino
SpouseFernando Flores (2003-present)
Website
laisabelquintero.com

Early life

She was born in the Inland Empire of Southern California. Quintero grew up in the city of Corona. An elderly couple, Victor and Lucia Mejia, helped raise Isabel and her younger brother, and they became their grandparents (Spanish: abuelito). Quintero attended California State University in San Bernardino where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in English, and later a Master of Arts in English Composition [1]

Career

She taught English at San Bernardino Valley College and Mt. San Jacinto College. Quintero also is a freelance writer for the Arts Council of San Bernardino[2] and an active member of PoetrIE, an organization working to bring literary arts to Inland Empire communities. She wrote a young adult fiction novel Gabi, A Girl in Pieces (2014),[3] and two books for younger children, Ugly Cat and Pablo (2017)[4] and Ugly Cat and Pablo and the Missing Brother (2017).[5] She has also written a graphic novel, Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide[6]

Works

Books
  • Gabi, a Girl in Pieces. El Paso, TX: Cinco Puntos Press, 2014.
  • Ugly Cat & Pablo. Illustrated by Tom Knight. New York, NY: Scholastic, 2017.
  • Ugly Cat & Pablo and the Missing Brother. Illustrated by Tom Knight. New York, NY: Scholastic, 2018.
  • Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide. Illustrated by Zeke Peña. New York, NY: Getty Publications (Distribution by Abrams), 2018.
  • My Papi Has a Motorcycle. Illustrated by Zeke Peña. New York, NY: Kokila, 2019.

Awards
  • Gabi, a Girl in Pieces has received multiple recognitions:
    • Winner of the William C. Morris Award for YA Debut Novel[7]
    • Gold Medal Winner of the California Book Award for Young Adult 2015
    • School Library Journal Best Books of 2014
    • Booklist Best Books of 2014
    • Amelia Bloomer List, part of the American Library Association, Social Responsibilities Round Table's Feminist Task Force
    • 2015 YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, Top 10 Selection[8]
    • 2015 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults[9]
    • 2015 Tomás Rivera Award, Works for Older Children
    • 2015 Paterson Prize for Books for Young People, Grades 7-12
    • 2015 Capitol Choices: Noteworthy Books for Children and Teens
  • Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide won the 2018 Boston Globe–Horn Book Nonfiction Award[6]

Themes

A few key themes arise throughout Quintero's writing. In all but one of her published works, the protagonists are women. Quintero unwraps sexism and prejudice through both young and adult characters, in both adolescent and middle-aged periods of life. Gabi is coming of age, whereas Martha concludes in her coffin. The male characters often demand submission, as in Moanin' the Blues, and in Stories Our Mother Told Us and Mi Tía La Bruja, an element of magical realism dances around witchcraft.

Another key theme is racial inequality, especially that of the Mexican American community in Southern California and the southwest region of the United States. Quintero writes about the immigrant experience, often through the eyes of a first-generation character. She highlights the struggles of a working-class family and the socioeconomic status that binds the Mexican American community. In a 2017 interview Quintero stated, "Whenever I drive on 91 going toward Orange County, and I see the homes on the hills, I think about how much my dad worked in homes we could never afford...That is a strange paradox in which to exist." In the same interview, Quintero declared, "My writing is my activism."[10]

References
  1. "Isabel Quintero Archives". El Paso Herald-Post. 3 April 2018. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  2. Sandi. "Home - Arts Connection". artsconnectionnetwork.org. Retrieved 2018-01-06.
  3. "Gabi, a Girl in Pieces". Kirkus reviews. 1 September 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  4. "Ugly Cat and Pablo". Kirkus Reviews. 25 April 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  5. "Ugly Cat Pablo and the Missing Brother". Kirkus Reviews. 28 April 2018. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  6. Steiner, Robert (31 May 2018). "2018 Globe-Horn Book winners named". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  7. "2015 Morris Award". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). 15 November 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  8. "2015 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). 2 February 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  9. "2015 Best Fiction for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Archived from the original on 12 May 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  10. ""My Writing is My Activism": An Interview with Isabel Quintero - Los Angeles Review of Books". Los Angeles Review of Books. Retrieved 2018-01-06.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.