Gary Soto

1. Gary Soto by Chazzman Caldwell and Andrea Thomas

2. About the author • Gary Soto is known for a body of work that deals with the realities of growing up in Mexican-American communities; in poems, novels, short stories, plays and over a two dozen books for young people, Soto has recreated the world of the barrio, the urban, Spanish-speaking neighborhood where he was raised, bringing the sights, sounds and smells vividly to life within the pages of his books. • Soto’s poetry and prose focus on everyday experiences drawn from his own childhood friends and family while evoking the harsh forces that often shape life for Chicanos, including racism, poverty, and crime. including memoirs, short stories and novels • sense of ethnicity and, simultaneously, his belief that certain emotions, values, and experiences transcend ethnic boundaries and allegiances • He is the author of eleven poetry collections for adultsmost beloved as a writer for children and young adults. A producer • Exploring universal themes like alienation, family life, and choices • Several prizes and awards... a 1995 finalist for both the Los Angeles Times Book Award and the National Book Award • Gary Soto was born in Fresno, California in 1952 to working-class parents who often struggled to find work. Soto worked in both the fields of San Joaquin and the factories of Fresno as a young man; though he did not excel in school, by the time he was an adolescent Soto admits to having discovered the work of Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, Jules Verne, and Robert Frost. • Soto went on to college at Fresno City College and California State University-Fresno, where he earned a BA in English in 1974. now taught English to Spanish speakers as a volunteer • oto earned an MFA from the University of California-Irvine in 1974. His first book, The Elements of San Joaquin (1977) • The Tale of Sunlight (1978), was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. childhood reminiscences • A Fire in my Hands (2006) includes one of Soto’s most popular poems, “Oranges • The Level at Which the Sky Begins, University of California (poems1976... Heaven,Aralia Press, 1970 (young adult/children). PLAYS: Novio Boy, 1997. SHORT FILMS The Bike, Gary Soto Productions, 1991. • United Farm Workers

3. My Little Car by Gary Soto Picture book with illustrations by Linda DalalSawaya

4. Soto, Gary. (2006). My Little Car. Illus. by Pam Paparone. New York: Penguin Young Readers Group.  First grader Teresa thought she was too old for her tricycle so her grandfather bought her a little car. She was proud and showed it off to everyone in the neighborhood. For a while, she took good care of her car but then she started to neglect it and it became damaged. When her Grandpa Benny came to visit her, she was embarrassed by the condition of her car. Her grandpa was nice enough to help repair the car and also gave her a gift of chili pepper headlights.  Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Picture Book Suggested Age or Grade Level(s): K- 2nd Grade

5. The Afterlife by Gary Soto Chapter book for young adults

6. Soto, Gary. (2003). The Afterlife. Orlando: Harcourt, Inc. Seventeen year old Chuy is stabbed in a club by a stranger. In Chuy’s “after-life”, he meets new friends one of which is a new love interest. Chuy not only learns the ropes of being a ghost but he also helps others who are new to death. In the afterlife, he visits and watches his friends and family he left behind, accomplishes some goals, and performs a few acts of kindness. He comes to find that his family truly loved him. He also watches his killer. Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Chapter Book Suggested Age or Grade Level(s): 6th- 12th Grade

7. Jesse by gary Soto Chapter book for young adults

8. Soto, Gary. (2006). Jesse. New York: Harcourt, Inc. set during the Vietnam War, Jesse is a teenage boy who was raised with his older brother Abel for most of his life by his mother and stepfather. His father died when he was about two years old. His stepfather was an alcoholic. To avoid their step father alcoholic tendencies, Jesse drops out of high school in his senior year and he and his brother moved out. Facing adulthood and the pressures that come with it, Jessie and his brother now have to worry about what they were going to eat how they will pay rent. He and his brother enroll in community college in hopes of finding a better jobs than picking cotton and fruit. While in college a friend of his convinces him to join a united farm workers movement for better jobs. As his brother, his friend is drafted into the military, Jesse stills struggles with the thought of not achieving his dreams and still becoming an unappreciated farm worker. ..poverty and prejudice Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Chapter Book Suggested Age or Grade Level(s): Awards:

9. Picture Books by Gary Soto The Old Man and His Door Too Many Tamales • Chato’s Kitchen • Chato Goes Cruisin‘ • Chato and the Party Animals If the Shoe Fits

10. Other Books by Gary Soto Chapter Novels, Ages 7-11 Short Stories, Ages 10-14 Marisol Help Wanted The Skirt Baseball in April

11. Other Books by Gary Soto Poetry for Younger Readers, Ages 8-14 Novels, Ages 10 - 14 Mercy on these Teenage Chimps Neighborhood Odes A Fire in My Hands Accidental Love

12. Books for adults and High School Students Biographies Cesar Chavez: A Hero for Everyone A Simple Plan Jessie De La Cruz: A Profile of a United Farm Worker Buried Onions

13. References Information retrieved from: http://www.garysoto.com http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/gary-soto Photos retrieved from: mendocino.edu someonvelideas.typepad.com theprescooltest.blogspot.com