McAllen school hosts Hispanic authors to encourage reading

McALLEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Sam Rayburn Elementary hosted its first "Reading Rock Star" visit in honor of Read Across America week.

Three children's book authors were invited to read and interact with students in order to promote reading. The authors; Jasminne Mendez, Adriana Camacho-Church and Michael Genhart have all written books that are centered around Hispanic culture.

"Each one is special because it has to do with Hispanics, culture, love language and they are very realistic that children can identify with them," said Cynthia Hernandez, a librarian at Sam Rayburn Elementary.

The authors were not only encouraging reading, but also the importance of embracing their culture. "Grandma Where Will Your Love Go?" is written by Camacho-Church in both English and Spanish.

"I believe it is very important to inspire children from both cultures to read in both languages because it is part of our learning. It's part of continuing to appreciate literature in different cultures and different ways," Camacho-Church said. "It opens us up to accepting others and accepting ourselves."