Story Time with a Young Ambassador featuring Michael Genhart and John Parra
Join us for a special story time and fun art activities with award-winning author Michael Genhart and award-winning illustrator John Parra. Come learn about the many educational resources available to you via the Smithsonian and your National Museum of the American Latino.
The story time will feature Spanish is the Language of My Family, an intergenerational story of family ties, cultural pride, and spelling bee victory following a young boy who bonds with his beloved abuela over a love of Spanish. The book will be read in English and in Spanish.
The National Museum of the American Latino gratefully acknowledges major and continued support from Ford Philanthropy.
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Author Bios:
Michael Genhart, PhD, is the author of twelve picture books including Spanish is the Language of my Family (illustrated by John Parra, Neal Porter Books/Holiday House, 2023) which received seven starred reviews and won the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award and an Américas Book Award Honor. His work has been featured in the New York Times Book Review, San Francisco Chronicle, Bon Appétit Magazine, BookTrib, KidLit411, and BookRiot. Several of his books have been translated into different languages. Michael is a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice in San Francisco, California. He received his BA in psychology from the University of California, San Diego and his PhD in clinical and community psychology from the University of Maryland, College Park. He has been a member of APA for over thirty years, SCBWI since 2011, and is a book reviewer for the New York Journal of Books. He lives with his family in Marin County.
John Parra is an award-winning artist, illustrator, author, and educator, best known for his, Latino themed, children’s picture books. His work on, Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos, was named a New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book of the Year. His MTA artcard poster, Birdhouse Subways, was displayed throughout NYC subways and his art was seen on six U.S. Forever Postage Stamps titled: Delicioso. He regularly speaks as a visiting artist at schools and literary conferences across the country, advocating art and reading education and was also invited by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY to present a special event about his career and illustrations. His book, Growing an Artist: The Story of a Landscaper and His Son, is his debut as both author and illustrator and has received numerous starred reviews and recognitions. John currently lives with his wife, Maria, in Queens, New York.