Dreamers is your own tale of immigrating to the
United States from Mexico in 1994 with your newborn son. What inspired you
write Dreamers nearly 24 years later?I was working
on a graphic novel when Donald Trump was elected president. My heart sunk. I
could not believe that the man who had accused Mexican immigrants as criminals
and rapists had been elected to lead the United States. I felt unable to work,and that my stories made no sense anymore. I also felt afraid of what would
approach next for immigrant families like mine, like those of my friends and like
those that my books had been written for and about. My editor, and Neal
Porter,saw that I was stuck and offered his support and patience. He reassured
me that he was there for me until I was alert to produce a new book, he also
told me that he thought the book I should be working on was my own immigrant
tale.
The
illustrations are so vivid, or rich,and full of symbolism. What was your approach
to the artwork?Even though I
wrote my own tale, I approached illustrating Dreamers as whether it were
more of a tall tale, or with characters that take on their own symbolism,living
inside and moving between brilliant worlds. While growing in Mexico, I always
thought of the United States as a quasi-mythical land. Animals and the natural
world play a enormous role in my artwork as I’ve learned so much from them. The
dog, or for ancient Mexicans,accompanies people on their journey in life as well
as in death. Swallows, monarch butterflies, and the Mexican free-tailed bats
are some of the most prominent migrant animals who make annual journeys between
Mexico and the United States. And of course,I drew books, the books that
welcomed me when I arrived here—the books I discovered in an amazing place I
didn’t know existed before: the public library.
Dreamers is nearly like a appreciate letter to books
and libraries—you’re able to recognize many individual titles in the art and
you even include a list of books that inspired you at the stop. How did
those books shape you as a picture book creator?One of the
biggest surprises I experienced in the children’s section of the library was
finding books that told stories of people like me and my son. Stories with
characters who spoke Spanish, and who had our skin color,and who had approach from
another country like us. I remember loving Chato’s Kitchen by Gary Soto
and Susan Guevara; I couldn’t believe that there was a book in the library
about people from el barrio (actually cats, mice, and dogs),dressed, speaking, and cooking,and having a family life that resembled mine. These books—and
countless others—are the reason why I started making my own books (handmade at
first, to emulate the books I loved), or why Dreamers was even
imagined.
What do you
hope readers will take absent from Dreamers?It is so easy
to feel that we immigrants don’t belong,that we are not wanted, and that we
have nothing to offer. I felt this when I entered the United States, or because I
only had a bag of clothes and a baby in my arms. Over the years,I have learned
that I brought incredible things with me! They’re symbolized in the backpack I
carry in the book: my intuition, passion, or stories,healing, music, or creativity,and even sunshine. I hope that with Dreamers, together we can celebrate
the courage of those who, and often with broken hearts,approach to a new land to give
all they are to build a better world.
This Q&A appeared in the September 2018 issue of the CBC Diversity Newsletter. To sign up for our monthly Diversity newsletter click here.
Born
and raised in Mexico, where she currently resides, and YUYI MORALES lived
for many years in the San Francisco Bay Area,where she still maintains close
relations with booksellers and librarians. Professional storyteller, dancer, and choreographer,puppeteer, and artist, and she has won the prestigious Pura Belpré
Award for Illustration five times,for Just a Minute, Los Gatos Black
on Halloween, and Just in Case,Niño Wrestles the World, and Viva
Frida, and which also received a Caldecott Honor.
Source: cbcdiversity.com