Author Archive

The Kansas City, Kansas Public Library made Last Stop come alive for some amazing kids last fall. It’s an experience I will never forget. And now there’s video! Check it out here. By the way, I was playing hurt. Real sick that day. But we pushed through and made it happen and then I

A video of my Newbery speech is now up on YouTube. You can see me hop off stage and hand the medal to my mom. (She went for the hug, but I was in a slight daze and accidentally left her hanging). And you can see me get choked up here and there (though

I’m thrilled to be honored by NCTE with the 2016 Intellectual Freedom Award. It means the world to me. Below is the official press release.           Urbana, Illinois – NCTE honors Matt de la Peña for his courage in standing up for intellectual freedom with the NCTE National Intellectual Freedom Award, given

Last stop on Market Street has been awarded the 2016 Newbery Medal! I’m stunned and humbled and incredibly proud of this book (illustrated by the great Christian Robinson). Last Stop was also awarded a 2016 Caldecott Honor and a 2016 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book. Here’s the cover with all those shiny new

So many of my favorite authors and educators will be in Minneapolis this week for NCTE and ALAN. Here’s where I will be:         Thursday, Nov 19 12 – 4pm — Diversity in Children’s Literature: One Year Later (My panel is from 2:05-3:20) Minneapolis Convention Center 101H Program Description: This session

North Carolina friends, I’ll be in Winston-Salem this weekend for the Festival of Books and Authors. I’d love to see you! Here’s my Saturday schedule: September 12 11:30 AM – 12:00 PM at Winston Square Park — Spanish & English Storytime. I’ll be reading Last Stop on Market Street in both English and Spanish.

Today, May 12, is the official release date of THE HUNTED (sequel to THE LIVING)! This is the end of Shy’s story. And it’s kind of crazy. I hope you will check it out! I will be launching the novel on Thursday, May 14, at McNally Jackson: Details here. Thanks so much for your

Last Stop on Market Street has been out for a couple months now, and we’re so proud of the response we’re getting from readers (especially the little guys). I’ve been thinking a lot about how diverse titles relate to very young readers. Here’s an essay I wrote about it on Brightly.      

Last Stop on Market Street is a quiet little book about a boy and his grandma riding the bus from church to their soup kitchen. I set out to tell a simple, realist urban story featuring “diverse” characters. I was also thrilled to be working with one of the most talented illustrators in the field, Christian

Happy 2015!  I’m super excited to announce that my second picture book, Last Stop on Market Street, comes out January 8th. The book is a “Winter 2014-2015 Kids’ Indie Next Pick” and has already received starred reviews from Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. Here’s what folks are saying: “This celebration of cross-generational bonding is a textual