Child, you are awake!
You are alive!
You are a bright star,
Inside our hearts.
Told with a combination of powerful, spare language and sumptuous and complex imagery that is typical of Yuyi Morales’s work, this is the story of a fawn making her way through a border landscape teaming with flora and fauna native to the region. A gentle but empowering voice encourages her to face her fears when she comes across an obstacle in the form of an insurmountable barrier.
Yuyi Morales’ first book since her New York Times bestseller Dreamers is a book for very young children looking for their place in a world full of uncertainty. It is a book with resonance for all children, especially those whose safety is threatened due to the immigration crisis in the US.
Bright Star is also available in a Spanish language edition, Lucero.
¿Who is?
Yuyi Morales
Yuyi Morales was born in Xalapa, Mexico on November 7, 1968. The first years of Yuyi’s life were marked by both scarcity and creativity. Yuyi and her two sisters did not have the same clothes or receive the same presents as their schoolmates. Instead, their mother sewed Yuyi and her sisters’ clothes, bedsheets, curtains, and lampshades. When the family couldn’t afford the gifts the girls wanted for their birthdays, Yuyi’s mother would make everything from the cakes to the invitations to their dresses to their shoes. In a sense, her mother’s resourcefulness was Yuyi’s first introduction to art.
Other Books
Dreamers
We are resilience. We are hope. We are dreamers.
Viva Frida
A 2015 Caldecott Honor Book
A 2015 Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award
Niño Wrestles the World
Señoras y señores, put your hands together for the fantastic, spectacular, one of a kind . . .Niño!
My Blog
Projects
ALA Read /Leé poster and bookmark
Yuyi created this poster, which was also sold as a bookmark, with characters from her books, Niño Wrestles the World and Rudas: Niño's Horrendous Hermanitas, for the American Library Association.
2017 Maurice Sendak Fellowship recipient
Yuyi was one of three recipients of the Maurice Sendak Fellowship in 2017. As part of four-week residency in upstate New York, Yuyi had the opportunity to do a thorough study of Sendak's work and discuss and collaborate with the other 2017 Sendak fellows. [...
La Pequeña Gran Biblioteca de Todos – The Little, Great Library for All
In 2016, Yuyi constructed a mini library outside of her home in Xalapa, Veracruz, La Pequeña Gran Biblioteca de Todos. Here, people can exchange books, free of charge. Yuyi plays an active role in maintaining the exchange of books. [...
2015 Pura Belpré Award Ceremony program poster
Yuyi designed the poster for the 2015 Pura Belpré award ceremony using characters from her book, Viva Fria!, and the books of the other Pura Belpré Medal and Honor winners.
Effie Lee Morris Lecture, “Creating Children’s Books: An Immigrant’s Story,” at the San Francisco Public Library
In 2014, Yuyi was invited to be the special guest lecturer for the San Francisco Public Library's 18th annual Effie Lee Morris Lecture, which features the work of a different and notable children's book writer or illustrator every year. Yuyi's lecture at the San...
Cover design for School Library Journal’s December 2014 Issue on 2014’s Best Books
Yuyi designed the cover of the School Library Journal's 2014 December 2014 issue on the year's best books. Yuyi's design incorporated the puppet she made of the titular character for her book, Viva Frida.
For inquiries, contact:
info@yuyimorales.com