MAGIC mirror
Remembering Shirley Harnish Brinker
Attentive Reading and Research
in the Arne Nixon Center
Arne Nixon Center Celebrates
Literacy Award Winners
Doug Hansen’s California and the
Magic Archive
Arne Nixon Center Offers
Two Research Fellowships
Summer Internship in the Archives
Arne Nixon Center Advocates (ANCA)
Fuddles and Puddles and
Frans, Oh My!
The Arne Nixon Center is a unit within the Special
Collections division of the Henry Madden Library
Maya
Christina
Gonzalez
T H E
Newsletter of the Arne Nixon Center
#30
Arne Nixon Center for the
Study of Children’s Literature
The Arne Nixon Center is one of the West Coast’s largest and most significant research
centers for the study of children’s literature. With an emphasis on diversity, the Center’s
collection includes more than 60,000 books, original artwork, letters, photographs,
newspaper clippings, ceramics and other ephemera, including:
■■ The largest LGBTQ collection of books for young people in the United States.
■■ A World Languages collection of books in over 50 languages.
■■ Over 2,100 Spanish-language children’s books.
■■ Over 2,100 editions by, about and inspired by the works of Lewis Carroll.
■■ The Helen Monette Amestory collection of 6,000 books on cats.
■■ Archives for Leo Politi, Alma Flor Ada and F. Isabel Campoy, Margarita Engle,
Michael Cart, Steven Mooser, Robert San Souci and more…
Remembering Shirley Harnish Brinker
The Arne Nixon Center mourns the passing of Shirley Harnish Brinker, a long-time
friend and generous donor. Brinker was an influential businesswoman, a world traveler
and a lover of animals. The Shirley Harnish Brinker Gallery, located just outside the
Arne Nixon Center, features Leo Politi artwork and museum-quality glass cases with
rotating displays of books and artifacts relating to children’s literature. A genuine and
rare individual, Brinker will be deeply missed.
www.arnenixoncenter.org
ArneNixonCenter
The Magic Mirror is published by
the Arne Nixon Center for the Study
of Children’s Literature
Curator
Jennifer Crow
Email: jcrow@csufresno.edu
Library Services Specialist
Jami Sanford
ANCA Board of Directors
President
Arturo Mendoza
First Vice President
Kari Johnson
Treasurer
Jessica Galvan
Recording Secretary
Jennifer Crow
Correspondence Secretary
Shivon Hess
Directors
Kristin Baer, Larrisa Mercado-López,
Randy Morris, Ellis Vance
ANC Advisory Committee
Alma Flor Ada, Steven Mooser
ANC Governing Committee
Del Hornbuckle, Michael Cart,
Leonard Marcus
Public Affairs Communications Specialist
Cindy Wathen-Kennedy
Editor
Jennifer Crow
Graphic Designers
David Celaya, Randy Zamorski
Photos by
David Celeya, Jennifer Crow,
Jami Sanford, Vong Thao
Arne Nixon Center for the
Study of Children’s Literature
Henry Madden Library
California State University, Fresno
5200 N. Barton Ave. M/S ML34
Fresno, CA 93740-8014
559.278.8116
“ It is the function of
some people to be a lamp
and some to be a mirror.
I have been very pleased
to function as a mirror of
others’ work. ” Arne Nixon
Cover illustration by Maya Christina Gonzalez from her book, Call Me Tree/Llámame árbol.
Maya Christina Gonzalez has been awarded the Arne Nixon Center Artist-in-Residence Fellowship for fall of 2017. Gonzalez is the second recipient of the award and will be on campus September 25 - 29. She will engage in student learning by embedding in a variety of classes including those in the graphic arts, women’s studies and early childhood education. The Artist-in-Residence program is made possible by a generous donation from an anonymous donor. Gonzalez is an illustrator, author, progressive educator and publisher. The largely self-taught artist has illustrated over 20 books including: My Diary From Here to There/Mi diario de aquí hasta allá written by Amada Irma Pérez, Fiesta Femenina: Celebrating Women in Mexican Folklore written by Mary Joan Gerson and Prietita and the Ghost Woman written by Gloria Anzaldúa.
Her colorful and recognizable work has earned numerous awards. Among her many honors, she has received a Pura Belpré Honor Award, a Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award and an Américas Book Award. Gonzalez is both the author and illustrator of a number of books, including: Mis colores, mi mundo/My Colors, My World, I Know the River Loves Me and Call Me Tree/Llámame árbol.
Since 1996, Gonzalez has presented to children and educators the importance of creativity as a personal empowerment tool. Her work with public school children has helped her develop several lines of curriculum that offer a holistic approach to learning and open doors to new ways of thinking and relating to the world.
To more extensively examine issues of gender and identity, Gonzalez founded a publishing company, Reflection Press, in 2009. Her educational website, School of the Free Mind (www.schoolofthefreemind.com) offers six online courses with full video and workbook instruction for those interested in creating powerful books for children, attaining self-realization and living creatively.
A catered reception to welcome Gonzalez to Fresno State will be held on Monday, September 25 in the University Dining Hall from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. The public is invited and Gonzalez’ books will be available for sale and autographing. The Arne Nixon Center will collaborate with Fresno State’s Cross Cultural and Gender Center and the Center for Creativity and the Arts to offer a free workshop by Gonzalez on Friday, September 29 in the Kremen Education Building, room ED 140.
The workshop will begin at 10:00 a.m. and will last until 3:00 p.m. Lunch will be included. Seating is limited to 30 people.
For more information, including disability accommodations or physical access, or to sign up to attend these events, please email Jami Sanford at jsanford@csufresno.edu or contact the Arne Nixon Center at 559.278.8116.
Maya Christina Gonzalez
Awarded Arne Nixon Center Artist-in-Residence Fellowship
12
Attentive Reading and Research in the Arne Nixon Center
By Denise Dávila and Pat Enciso
This summer, as the co-recipients of a generous Arne Nixon Center Research Fellowship, we had the privilege of working with Curator Jennifer Crow, Library Services Specialist Jami Sanford and the staff of the Arne Nixon Center in the Henry Madden Library. We spent a week onsite to advance our textbook project, Attentive Reading & Teaching with Critical Literature for Children.
As teacher educators at two different universities, we applied for the Research Fellowship because we wanted to enhance our collaboration and writing process with direct access to the Arne Nixon Center’s extraordinary resources, including the LGBTQ, Michael Cart, World Languages, multicultural and international books collections. We also yearned for the opportunity to meet and work together within the Fresno State campus community, which has long valued and promoted the inclusion of diverse children’s literature in public school classrooms.
While we have access to many books at our different universities, nothing prepared us for the range and volume of the Arne Nixon Center’s children’s collection. We were astounded that the staff were able to pull, quite literally, several hundred titles from the collection that had won diverse book awards such as the Amelia Bloomer Award; Américas Award; American Indian Youth Literature Award; Asian Pacific American Librarians Association Award; Coretta Scott King Award; Dolly Gray Award; Jane Addams Book Award; John Steptoe Award; Lambda Award for Children’s Literature; Middle East Book Award; Pura Belpré Award; Schneider Family Book Award; Tomás Rivera Award; Stonewall Award and the Sydney Taylor Book Award. In our experience, it is rare for a library to have nearly complete sets of these award winners in a single location. Moreover, in addition to surrounding our worktable with piles and carts of award-winning literature, the staff also curated for us impressive collections of immigration and youth activism books from the stacks. Then, they directed us to a stunning set of books and resources associated with the Library’s special exhibition (9066: Japanese American Voices from the Inside) about the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. In short, we could not have imagined a more appropriate, let alone accommodating, venue to cultivate our project on diverse children’s literature.
Being immersed in books that we could place side-by-side for comparison inspired us to re-conceptualize the arc and structure of our book project in a way that differs from the traditional children’s literature textbooks currently on the market. Like many teachers, we know that
Continued on page 33
young people are deeply influenced by the literature they read. We know
that they need to see themselves and others accurately represented,
across many genres and themes. They also need to experience and
discuss diverse literature, among peers, in ways that invite both critical
analysis and open dialogue in relation to their own lives and the voices
and images they encounter through the media, schooling and society.
We engaged in discussions about these topics as we examined the
diverse literature. Our book project is likewise informed by the seminal
scholarship of Rudine Sims Bishop (1990) and her classic essay,
Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors.
“When children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read,
or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they
learn a powerful lesson about how they are devalued in the society of
which they are a part. Our classrooms need to be places where all the
children…can find their mirrors. Children from dominant social groups
have always found their mirrors in books, but they, too, have suffered
from the lack of availability of books about others. In this country, where
racism is still one of the major unresolved social problems, books may
be one of the few places where children who are socially isolated and
insulated from the larger world may meet people unlike themselves.
If they see only reflections of themselves, they will group up with an
exaggerated sense of their own importance and value in the world—
a dangerous ethnocentrism.”
We recognize that the persistent underrepresentation of diversity in
children’s literature adversely affects all children. Young people should
not be subjected to distorted views of themselves and others through the
persistent presence of negative stereotypes and, conversely, the absences
of positive histories, ordinary daily experiences and possible futures.
As teacher educators, we also know that teachers want to address the
call to diversify the literature children read and study in school. We are
aware of the many questions that arise when teachers select, introduce
and discuss literature with young people. We recognize the complexity
of these decisions and conversations, and want to provide guidance and
resources for reading and teaching with students seeking narratives that
reflect their lives as they also extend beyond their familiar experiences.
At the same time, in classrooms and other school settings, youth
struggle with unrelenting social and popular cultural messages about
who and what counts as “normal.” Literature and related discussions
often reinforce limited and exclusive messages about being valued
as a person, especially when only a few voices are heard, or the same
distorted images and characters are introduced time and again.
As a response to young people’s traditional experiences with literature
in school, the aim of our book project is to show adults how to
become more attentive to and capable of mediating story access and
interpretation in the midst of multiple other stories about people’s lives.
Having access to the incomparable number of diverse books and stories
at the Arne Nixon Center has provided a springboard for our work. We
are grateful for their support and look forward to the opportunity to return
in the upcoming year. It has been a privilege for us to become honorary
members of the Fresno State community.
Arne Nixon Center Celebrates Literacy Award Winners
The Arne Nixon Center hosted a catered
reception with the Fresno Area Council of
English Teachers (FACET) on May 11th. The
invitation-only event celebrated the 2017
winners of the California Association of
Teachers of English (CATE) Classroom Award
of Excellence and Award of Merit.
Jessica Galvan, a third-grade teacher at
Jackson Elementary School in Selma and
Arne Nixon Center Advocates Board Member,
was the recipient of the Classroom Award of
Excellence. Though she has faithfully served
as a San Joaquin Valley Writing Project
teacher leader, it was her exceptional work
with children in the classroom for which
she attained this honor. Galvan encourages
her students not only to write papers for
assignments, but more importantly, to write
for pleasure and self-discovery.
Danay Ferguson, Reading Heart’s founder and
literacy advocate, received the CATE Award of
Merit. Ferguson was only 8-years-old when
she started the Reading Heart book donation
program in 2014. Her goal is to give a book to
every student in Fresno County and Ferguson
is well on her way, having collected over
500,000 books. Reading Heart book tours have
given books to thousands of school children
throughout the San Joaquin Valley.
The awards were originally presented at
CATE's annual statewide convention in Santa
Clara in February, but since many friends and
family members were unable to attend, a local
reception for the winners was held in the Arne
Nixon Center.
For more information about Reading Heart, go
to: www.readingheart.org
Continued from page 2
Doug Hansen’s California
and the Magic Archive
What did it take to create the book, California: The Magic Island? The author and illustrator, Doug Hansen,
knows and he’s sharing his behind-the-scenes secrets with everyone in a new donation that will grow his
archive housed in the Arne Nixon Center.
Hansen’s fictional alphabet book describing California landscape and history is meticulously constructed. From
the many iterations of tracing paper developmental work to preliminary sketches, revisions and dummies, these
donated materials are a testament to his craft.
The imaginative story of Queen Califa, who summons the wild creatures of California to justify the adoption of
her magical island’s name by others, is the framework that ties the 26 informative vignettes together. From
north to south, east to west, Californians everywhere will readily recognize the landmarks
portrayed. Children will become familiar with a variety of California’s sites that they have
yet to experience.
The book is a visual and textual delight, and with Hansen’s donation we now
are able to peek at the care and effort poured into it.
Hansen’s recent donation also includes illustration
materials from the picture book, Pen the Tale,
Oogie written by Karen Moore and published by
HBE Publishing’s Barn Owl Media.
A finding guide to Hansen’s previous work can
be found on the Arne Nixon Center’s website at:
www.tinyurl.com/HansenANC
The Arne Nixon Center is pleased to offer a
new round of Research Fellowships to support
scholars from outside the Fresno/Clovis area
who are engaged in graduate-level, post-doctoral
and independent research.
Two Fellowships of up to $2,000 will be
awarded to scholars. The award may be used
for transportation to and from Fresno, living
expenses while in residence and basic research
materials and supplies needed to accomplish the
research. Awards must be used within one year of
notification.
Individuals interested in conducting on-site
research to support projects pertaining
to children’s literature are encouraged to
apply. A completed application form must be
accompanied by a detailed project description
with proposed budget, abbreviated CV and letter
of recommendation from a professional who
knows the researcher’s work.
The Arne Nixon Center is a leading resource
for the study of literature for young people. It
houses a collection of more than 60,000 books,
periodicals, manuscripts, original art and papers
of authors and illustrators. With an emphasis on
diversity, the holdings include the largest LGBTQ
collection of books for young people in the
nation; a World Languages collection with books
in over 50 different languages (more than 2,100
of these in Spanish); the Lewis Carroll collection
(an extensive assemblage of international
books and materials by, about and related to the
iconic author); and the Helen Monette Amestoy
collection of over 6,000 books on cats.
Additional information about the Arne Nixon
Center and its collections, as well as a Research
Fellowship application form, may be found on
its website at www.arnenixoncenter.org.
Most materials owned by the Arne Nixon Center
may be found in the Henry Madden Library
catalog. For further information, please contact
the Curator, Jennifer Crow at 559.278.8116 or
email jcrow@csufresno.edu.
The deadline to apply is November 6, 2017.
Submit applications by email to jcrow@
csufresno.edu. Applications will be vetted by a
committee. Chosen recipients will be notified in
early January 2018.
Recipients must be willing to have their name,
photo and title of their research promoted via
publicity and marketing channels. They will also
provide a lunch-time presentation about their
findings to the Madden Library faculty and staff
and other interested Fresno State personnel.
Arne Nixon Center Offers Two Research Fellowships
4
Meet Keaton Johanson,
the Arne Nixon Center’s
2017 summer intern.
Johanson is a student
earning his master’s
degree in library and
information science from
San José State University’s
iSchool. A full-time
middle school library
technician with Central
Unified School District and father of two young children,
Johanson came to us with an extensive background
in children’s and young adult literature. He interned in
the Arne Nixon Center’s archives this summer, working
with materials donated by award-winning, author and
illustrator, Anna Grossnickle Hines. Before he left at the
end of July, Johanson answered a few questions for us.
What is it you enjoy about working in the archives?
Since I was old enough to confer lasting value on
objects, I’ve been a bit of a sentimentalist. I would hold
on to things that reminded me of important memories or
events, especially if they documented the event in some
way. I came to find out this is the general premise of
archives (i.e. saving whatever documents the important
things). Now I get to see what other people found
important. It’s fascinating!
What was the most interesting thing you found?
In the Arne Nixon Center archive I’ve seen old, well-loved
books, original watercolors for beloved children’s
books and even a quilt; but, the most interesting thing
I came across were the doodles. There are pages of
scrap paper with to-do lists, notes and numbers written
at odd angles parsed out by meandering doodles that,
when you take a moment to really look at them, you can
imagine the phone calls and conversations that sparked
their collages. You can almost feel the flow of thought.
How did you come to work at the Arne Nixon Center?
I’ve been studying archival theory, but knew that tests,
papers and book-learning would only get me so far. I
went searching through the San José State Internship
Database for an opportunity to practice what I’ve learned.
I already work with children’s literature, so the Arne
Nixon Center’s archives seemed like a perfect option to
tie my experience and education together.
We thank Johanson for all his work and wish him luck!
A Message of Gratitude
First of all, let me take a moment and begin
with a simple phrase, “Thank you….”
Thank You: for the opportunity to lead
as president of the Arne Nixon Center
Advocates.
Thank You: to our friends of the Arne
Nixon Center as well as our campus and community
sponsors (past, present and future). Your friendships
and support keep the Arne Nixon Center thriving and
moving forward continuing Arne’s legacy.
Thank You: to our Arne Nixon Center visitors,
students, professors, community, scholarly research
visitors (both domestic and internationally, becoming
friends near and far), guest speakers, authors, illustrators
and others.
Thank You: for the honor and the privilege of working
with a board who is diverse in so many treasured ways,
culturally, sharing a plethora of interests, passions,
talents and educational backgrounds, and
just an overall great group of individuals.
Thank You: a heartfelt thank you to the
dedication and hard work of our past
friends and members of the board who
supported and continue to support us.
Thank You: to our Curator Jennifer Crow
for continuing to uphold the mission as well
as the core value of the Arne Nixon Center—building
our archival collection and network of friends, building
upon community collaboration, branding the Arne Nixon
Center as a global destination for the study of children’s
literature and sharing the message for what Arne
treasured most, the art of a great story and storytelling.
It is with great gratitude for ALL the efforts and
continued support of our friends that we continue the
legacy of Arne Nixon and grow together to continue to
share a great story!
Thank you,
Arturo Mendoza
The Arne Nixon Center gratefully
acknowledges our new and renewing
Arne Nixon Center Advocate members.
Their gifts were received from
April 2017 to July 2017.
New Members
Naomi Arabian
Sheryl Baer
Sandra Balderrama
Jill Barnard
Setty Bashian
Agnes Chielpegian
Muriel Feldshuh
Jessica Galvan
Janice Gillaspy
Geraldine Hawkins
Olivia King
Victoria King Thomas
Susan Medrano
Heather and Kristopher Paul
Jeanette Rivera
Dvera Saxton
Margaret Tynan
Ruth Velazquez
Kathleen Wosika
Renewing Members
Paula Ametjian
Jennifer Crow
Mary T. Degroot
Cherrill Gragg
Susanne Haffner
Sylvia Hart
Eileen and William Hennrikus
Mary Hung
Pamela Jue
Joyce and Bob Kierejczyk
Kelley Kitzmiller
Claribel Lagomarsino
Ann Lamb
Christina Lee
Susan Loucks
Arturo Mendoza
Anita and Randy Morris
Sharon Mullennix
Claire Noland
Marti and David Quadro
Mary Ann Gamegan Richardson and
Eugene Richardson
Joan Russell
Lisa Schoof
P. Susan Silveira
Sharon Smart
Tekla White
In Memory of
Shirley Harnish Brinker
Jennifer Crow
Denise and Sal Sciandra*
* Life Member
Summer Internship in the Archives
Arne Nixon Center Advocates (ANCA)
By Arturo Mendoza, ANCA President
Who is that fat, pampered, spoiled cat
dreaming of big adventures in the great
outdoors and his little barking frenemy?
Why it’s Fuddles, of course!…and his
family’s dog, Puddles!
The Arne Nixon Center Advocates
(ANCA) invite you to join Fuddles’
creator, Frans Vischer (author,
illustrator and animator) for an ANCA
annual meeting presentation on
Thursday, October 19 in the Fresno
State University Dining Hall. A catered
reception for the author begins at 5:30
p.m. with a talk to follow at 6:30 p.m.
The meeting is free and open to the
public. Books will be available for sale
and signing.
Vischer is the author and illustrator
of the picture books, Fuddles, A Very
Fuddles Christmas and Fuddles and
Puddles, plus the middle-grade novel,
Jimmy Dabble. He also works as an
animator for Disney Studios and has
worked on such films as Who Framed
Roger Rabbit?, Cats Don't Dance, The
Road to El Dorado, The Princess and the
Frog and Winnie the Pooh.
During his stay in Fresno, Vischer will
speak to Fresno State graphic design
students about his animation work and
will visit a local elementary school.
To find out more about Vischer and
Fuddles, visit: www.fransvischer.com
Please make a reservation for the
event by visiting our Eventbrite site at
www.fuddles.eventbrite.com or email
Jami Sanford at jsanford@csufresno.
edu or call the Arne Nixon Center at
559.278.8116.
Fuddles and Puddles and Frans, Oh My!
Arne Nixon Center
for the Study of Children’s Literature
Henry Madden Library
California State University, Fresno
5200 N. Barton Ave. M/S ML34
Fresno, CA 93740-8014
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
I would like to become an underwriter at the __________________________ level
or I would like to purchase individual tickets at $65 each ($40 is tax deductible.)
Name _____________________________________________________________________
Address ____________________________________________________________________
City, State, Zip _______________________________________________________________
Telephone ________________________ Email _____________________________________
$1,000 Sponsor (includes 8 tickets)
$500 Patron (includes 6 tickets)
$250 Contributor (includes 4 tickets)
Please make checks payable to
Fresno State Foundation
and mail to this address:
Arne Nixon Center, Madden Library, Fresno State
5200 N. Barton Avenue, M/S ML 34
Fresno, CA 93740-8014
Come and enjoy a tranquil afternoon in a beautiful hidden garden in northwest Fresno!
The location is a secret, but will be revealed when you accept our invitation.
The Arne Nixon Center Advocates invite you to their 14th Secret Garden Party on Sunday, April 8,
2018 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Celebrate the joy of children’s poetry in a lovely garden setting as we
honor National Poetry Month in April and the new Young People’s Poet Laureate, Margarita Engle.
This year’s party supports the creation of a community mural designed by the award-winning
illustrator, Rafael López. Come paint with us! Together, we will add beauty to a Fresno neighborhood.
For more information about the Secret Garden Party, including disability accommodations or
physical access call 559.278.8116 or contact Jami Sanford at jsanford@csufresno.edu
Be an Underwriter for the Party!
You will receive free tickets and your gift will be acknowledged at both the party and in
the Arne Nixon Center Magic Mirror newsletter.
Secret
Garden Party!
A Child’s Verse in the Garden!
SUNDAY
APRIL 8
2018
SAVE THE
DATE!
✁
