COLUMBIA, South Carolina – Longtime Realtor Rusty Shealy knows the value of a good piece of property. So after months of searching, he jumped at the opportunity to purchase a home with 4.5 wooded acres, the perfect place to build … Continue reading 
COLUMBIA, South Carolina — Rusty Shealy Pole Vault Club has pledged five 3-Day Summer Vault Camp slots, valued at $425, for vault fans who contribute $375 to Maggie’s Audiobook Campaign! Coach Rusty Shealy is eager to help narrator Tavia Gilbert … Continue reading 
COLUMBIA, South Carolina — Rusty Shealy Pole Vault Club has pledged five 3-Day Summer Vault Camp slots, valued at $425, as a reward for vault fans who contribute $375 to Maggie’s Audiobook Campaign! The camps includes meals and lodging and … Continue reading 
By: Aline Pereira,
on 10/3/2011
Monica Brown‘s picture book Waiting for the Biblioburro has been receiving rave reviews since it was released this past August. What inspired Monica to write a book about Columbian literacy advocate Luis Soriano and his donkey library? Here she shares “the story behind the story”:
I love librarians. Like me, (and I’ll bet you too if you are reading this), librarians are book people. Book
people find joy between the pages of a book, but their passion doesn’t stop there. True book people must share books with others. They believe that placing books in young hands and sharing stories with young minds is meaningful. Luis Soriano is a book person. Luis first came to my attention when I read the New York Times article, “Acclaimed Colombian Institution has 4,800 books and 10 legs” by Simon Romero. Fascinated, I did some research and came across Valentina Canavesio’s short film Biblioburro—The Donkey Library. The story filled me with joy and not a little pride in the resourcefulness and passion of the Latino culture that Luis and I share. Growing up, Luis Soriano did not have the benefit of extensive formal studies and unlimited financial resources. What he did have was vision—and two donkeys named Alfa and Beto. For years, Maestro Soriano has delivered books in rural Colombia to children who don’t have access to libraries. Some don’t even have teachers or schools. But Luis, who received his school degree at 16, and then became a teacher and librarian, has made it his life’s work to change that.
When I wrote Waiting for the Biblioburro, I didn’t want to presume to tell Luis’s story for him, so I created a fictional story inspired by his, from the perspective of a little girl whose life he changes. I contacted Mr. Romero, the writer, and Ms Canavesio, the filmmaker, and through them, reached Luis himself. I knew as I was writing this book that I wanted Luis’s blessing–I was lucky enough to get it, and to get to know Luis over the phone and through emails. I also wanted to make sure that his foundation shared in the profits from this work, which my publisher made happen. When I first spoke to Luis over the phone and across thousands of miles, I was felt that I was in the presence of greatness—he is great man with a great heart. Luis shared with me his wish to sow the seeds of creativity and to cultivate dreams in the minds of children.
After talking with Luis, I felt inspired to write an imaginative rendering of Luis’s legacy—a legacy not only of literacy, but of sharing one’s own stories with the world. My story is about a creative little girl named Ana who loves books and reading, but who doesn’t have access to a library, books, or even a teacher. It’s her story of waiting, discovery, and finding a voice. I hope that Ana’s story, like Luis Soriano’s vision, will inspire us all to be literacy workers and activist librarians, teachers, parents, and friends. What would you do to bring books to children? Would you ride a donkey for miles, risking attack and robbery? Would you build a library with your own hands? Luis Soriano did. And we can too.
Watch the book trailer for Waiting for the Biblioburro here.
Monica Brown
July 7, 2011
A portion of the sale proceeds from Waitin
By: Aline Pereira,
on 9/27/2011
Enjoy illustrations from 2011 Spirit of PaperTigers book Biblioburro and other books by Jeanette Winter in our online Gallery. The majority of Jeanette’s books are inspired by real people and events: in her recent interview with us, Jeanette said:
I am drawn to true-life stories, and true stories that relate to world events. Stories about brave and courageous individuals are personally so inspiring to me, and I want children to know about these people. I feel that children have the capacity to understand the big issues of our lives, if in a simplified way.
Her books certainly succeed in drawing out the essence of the people and situations she profiles, in a way that makes them memorable and inspiring for children. For example, I love her book (included in our Gallery) Mama: A True Story, in Which a Baby Hippo Loses His Mama During a Tsunami, But Finds a New Home, and a New Mama (Harcourt Children’s Books, 2007) because really the story is told in the title. With only a few speech bubbles calling “Mama!” among the visually stimulating illustrations, the turmoil and ultimate reassurance are conveyed without over-frightening small readers.
A vibrant illustration from Biblioburro fronts Jeanette’s Gallery. It tells the true story of Colombian teacher and literacy advocate Luis Soriano, who founded his donkey library to take books out to remote villages and ensure that children have access to help with their schoolwork. Read this post from True Tales and a Cherry on the Top for a beautiful anecdote that exemplifies why he got started; and watch this video:
By: Aline Pereira,
on 9/17/2011
PaperTigers is pleased to announce that Biblioburro: A True Story from Columbia by Jeanette Winter is one of the three books included in the Spirit of PaperTigers book set. For more information about the Spirit of PaperTigers Project, please click here.
Jeanette Winter,
Biblioburro: A True Story from Colombia
Beach Lane Books, 2010.
Ages 4-8
We have all met children with a never-ending hunger for books. Some of them have shelves full of them, but it seems there can never be too many: the prospect of a new story always whets their appetite for more.
There are other children whose hunger for books goes much deeper. These are the children who may read a single book over and over because it is the only book they have, children who dream about that book when they are not reading it and wish they had others. Deep in the jungles of Colombia, some of these children’s dreams have come true thanks to the ingenuity and determination of Luis Soriano, a schoolteacher and avid reader who has devised a way to bring books to these isolated communities: The Biblioburro, a mobile lending library carried on the backs of two donkeys.
Each week Luis loads up books from his private collection and carries them from his remote village of La Gloria to even more remote villages in the Colombian jungle. Luis and his burros, Alfa and Beto, endure heat, tiredness, and even bandits as they carry their precious cargo to people hungry for books. When Luis arrives, he reads to the children before allowing each of them to select a new book and return their books from the previous week. Then Luis returns home and reads his own book late into the night.
With characteristic simplicity and her signature bold, bright colors, Jeanette Winter tells the beautiful story of this man who has enriched the lives of hundreds through his efforts. Children with an insatiable appetite for reading despite full shelves and access to local libraries will appreciate the tale of the Biblioburro that brings books to children who would not have them otherwise. The fact that Luis himself lives a simple life and is willing to endure inconvenience and even danger to bring books where there are none underscores the value and power of reading to those of us who have come to take it for granted. Biblioburro is a heartwarming profile of one man who is making the world better in a simple yet profound way.
Abigail Sawyer
September 2011
.jpg?picon=834)
By: Mary Cunningham,
on 7/21/2011
By: Aline Pereira,
on 7/20/2011
Following up on yesterday’s post about the premiere of the documentary Biblioburro: The Donkey Library, I thought I would share with you that a new children’s book about Luis Soriano and his donkey library is set to be released this summer. Waiting for the Biblioburro, written by Monica Brown, illustrated by John Parra and published by Tricycle Press, will be available starting August 9th. A portion of the sale proceeds from Waiting for the Biblioburro will go to support Luis Soriano’s BiblioBurro Foundation.
Here’s the book trailer:
Waiting for the Biblioburro is already receiving rave reviews (see below) and to celebrate it’s release Monica will be giving away three dedicated and signed copies of the book on August 9th. Visit Monica’s Facebook page for all the details.
The Horn Book, July/August 2011
“This sample of the impact of traveling librarians on rural children, inspired by a Colombian teacher-librarian [Luis Soriano], not only celebrates their work but eloquently portrays a matchless way to inspire learning: by feeding the natural hunger for story….Small, brown-faced Ana’s enthusiasm is contagious, and the satisfying denouement, in which she donates her homemade book to the traveling collection, is just right.”
Kirkus Reviews, June 15, 2011
“Parra’s colorful folk-style illustrations of acrylics on board bring Ana’s real and imaginary worlds to life…The book is perfect for read-alouds, with occasional, often onomatopoeic Spanish words such as “quiquiriquí,” “tacatac” and “iii-aah” adding to the fun.”
Publishers Weekly, May 9, 2011
“Parra’s naïve-styled acrylics brim with scenes of country life. A palette of salmon pinks and turquoise and sky blues, painted on board, give the book a rough-hewn, handmade quality and an innocent, childlike appeal (with her wide face, delicate features, and rouged cheeks, Ana even resembles a porcelain doll). In a metafictional ending, readers will notice that the book Ana hands the bibliotecario upon his return is this very book–fitting, as this truly is Ana’s story.”
By: Aline Pereira,
on 7/18/2011
An Inspired Elementary School Teacher Launches a Revolution in Reading For Colombia’s Rural Children in POV’s “Biblioburro: The Donkey Library”, Premiering Tuesday, July 19, 2011, on PBS
Donated Books, Two Donkeys and One Determined Man Refashion the Bookmobile For a Region Better Known for Guns, Drugs and Poverty
A Co-presentation With Latino Public Broadcasting
Watch the full episode. See more POV.
Luis Soriano is surely the most famous resident of La Gloria, a small town in a rural area of northern Colombia plagued by poverty, crime and armed insurrection. But Soriano’s fame has little to do with guns, drugs or politics. His reputation rests on the eight hooves of two sturdy donkeys named Alfa and Beto, his own two feet and his willingness to spend weekends tramping through rugged and dangerous backcountry. These are the components of a simple but brilliant idea using donkeys to bring a circulating library of donated books to the children in some of Colombia’s poorest and most remote towns and villages.
Carlos Rendón Zipagauta’s new documentary, Biblioburro: The Donkey Library, tells the story of 39-year-old Soriano and his traveling library from the point of view of the man himself and, one might say, his two hardworking burros. The film rides along with Soriano on one of his arduous weekend rounds and discovers a world of dense tropical beauty, nearly impassible trails, dangers both natural (snakes, swollen streams) and human (guerillas, bandits), open-air classrooms and, most wonderfully, a thirst for reading and knowledge. But Biblioburro is also a portrait of Soriano — an unassuming, small-town elementary school teacher who not only had a great idea, but has been acting on it every weekend for over a decade
Biblioburro provides a bracingly up-close sense of the determination and hard work required to saddle up each Saturday in the early morning darkness, and the sheer nerve and patience — not always expressed quietly by man or donkey — needed to brave Colombia’s poor and violence-torn hinterlands. Why would a man, and his family, persist in bearing such a burden? It soon becomes clear that Soriano is bringing more than books to the education-starved children of northern Colombia. He is bringing a gospel of education as the way the members of the next generat
0 Comments on Biblioburro: The Donkey Library premieres July 19th on PBS! as of 1/1/1900Add a Comment
By: Anastasia Goodstein,
on 11/1/2010
Today we bring you another installment of Youth Media Movers and Shakers. We've culled through industry publications looking for the recent executive placements we think you should know about. If you have executive news that you want us to... Read the rest of this post
Add a Comment
By: Jerry Beck,
on 10/18/2010
Following in the footsteps of Warner Home Video and Universal Pictures, Sony has started a new Columbia Classics archive program, making available dozens of old movies previously unavailable on DVD. For animation fans, this could be a gold mine… emphasis on the word “could”.
The studio is sitting vivid masters of all their UPA cartoons, and their libraries of Charles Mintz Scrappy, Krazy Kat and Color Rhapsodies are all restored. The 1940s Screen Gems cartoon shorts they hold include rarely seen work by Frank Tashlin, Dave Fleischer and John Hubley, with characters such as The Fox & Crow, Li’l Abner and Tito & Burrito. Columbia also has several independent works, such as Mel Brooks’ Oscar winning The Critic and anime features like Jack and The Beanstalk (1974).
The studio is taking requests on what they should offer through this program. I’d like to encourage our readers to check out the site and offer some suggestions. The Columbia cartoon library has been neglected for far too long. This might just be the opportunity we’ve been waiting for to unlock the vault.
Add a Comment
By: shelf-employed,
on 7/19/2010
Every week, Luis and Alfa and Beto set off across the countryside to faraway villages in the lonely hills. This week they travel to El Tormento. ... The Biblioburro continues on its way over the hills, until at last, Luis sees houses below. The children of El Tormento run to meet him.
By: Anastasia Goodstein,
on 4/8/2010
Death of the keyboard? (new research shows over 50% of computers purchased for kids under 15 will have touchscreens by 2015. Also ReadWriteWeb asks if the iPad is ready for campus. And Gen Y is interested in TV in 3D) (CNET) (Business Week)
- 'South... Read the rest of this post
NASA’s Apollo 11, which was crewed by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, was launched on its four day journey to the Moon from Pad 39A at Cape Kennedy by a Saturn V launch vehicle on 16th July 1969. On arrival in lunar orbit Collins remained in the command module Columbia whilst Armstrong and Aldrin transferred to the lunar module Eagle and descended to the surface of the Moon where they landed at 20:17:39 GMT on 20th July (see NASA’s Apollo 11 Timeline). Armstrong and Aldrin both walked on the surface of the Moon while Collins remained in lunar orbit.
Another five Apollo missions, namely 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17 successfully followed Apollo 11 to the Moon with two astronauts on the lunar surface on each occasion meaning that during the entire Apollo programme 12 men walked on the Moon.
James Lovell and Fred Haise should have walked on the Moon during Apollo 13 but their lunar landing was aborted after a malfunction. As Lovell had previously been in lunar orbit on Apollo 8 he is the only person to have been to the Moon twice without landing on it.
Image via Wikipedia
NASA’s Apollo 11, which was crewed by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, was launched on its four day journey to the Moon from Pad 39A at Cape Kennedy by a Saturn V launch vehicle on 16th July 1969. On arrival in lunar orbit Collins remained in the command module Columbia whilst Armstrong and Aldrin transferred to the lunar module Eagle and descended to the surface of the Moon where they landed at 20:17:39 GMT on 20th July (see NASA’s Apollo 11 Timeline). Armstrong and Aldrin both walked on the surface of the Moon while Collins remained in lunar orbit.
Another five Apollo missions, namely 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17 successfully followed Apollo 11 to the Moon with two astronauts on the lunar surface on each occasion meaning that during the entire Apollo programme 12 men walked on the Moon.
James Lovell and Fred Haise should have walked on the Moon during Apollo 13 but their lunar landing was aborted after a malfunction. As Lovell had previously been in lunar orbit on Apollo 8 he is the only person to have been to the Moon twice without landing on it.
Image via Wikipedia
Add a Comment
