CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — There is nothing like letting your imagination run wild --reading a good book.
However, there is concern about literacy rates in South Texas –especially in the Hispanic community.
3NEWS anchor Lexis Greene shows us how one beloved Coastal Bend children's author is doing something about that by visiting classroom after classroom.
We caught up with Diana Lopez, an author from Corpus Christi who honors her hometown and heritage through stories that speak to young Latinos.
We spoke with her at an event where she was reading to local students.
"Most of my books are set here in the Corpus Christi area. I love all of the things that make Corpus special, the ocean, the culture, the food, it's a great place to live."
You can probably guess one of the many people who have inspired her...she was surrounded by kids singing 'Bidi Bidi Bom Bom' when we spoke with her.
Her books: 'Sing With Me: The Story of Selena Quintanilla,' and her novel adaptation of the film Coco are nostalgic for students, and even adults who are left wanting more.
"I think there's been a lot of um time where books uh culturally relevant books have not been available. They certainly were not, were not very many when I was growing up. so part of my mission has been to create stories that I feel are reflective of the students that I met as a teacher."
And Lopez is right, we sat down with the Corpus Christi Literacy Council to get a better idea of where our area stacks up when it comes to people engaged in reading... – and according to board member Judge Melissa Madrigal– Nueces County currently has a 17% illiteracy rate.
Judge Melissa Madrigal is a board member on the Corpus Christi Literacy Council
"It starts when people are very young – I had an interview with the parent the other day. Their child is in the 3rd grade but reading at the 1st grade reading level."
According to Madrigal who is a full-time judge for Nueces County, this is an issue she sees firsthand …and the reason she got involved with the Literacy Council.
"With these programs we are hoping the adults that go and seek more education – it will transcend to the other generations. Their kids their grandkids. It will show its never too late to get an education"
As for Lopez, she hopes her stories can continue to inspire the next generation of authors and change-makers.
"So, I think that having books uh that are like this for the students, helps them see themselves. And if they see themselves, they might be more interested in reading and they might feel a deeper connection to the stories and be inspired to write their own someday."
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