Jorge Argueta (born in El Salvador and a Pipil Nahua Indian) is a Salvadorian award-winning poet and author of many highly acclaimed bilingual children’s books and short stories, covering themes related to Latino culture and traditions, nature, and the immigrant experience. He immigrated to the United States in the 1980s during the Salvadorian Civil War.
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Early life
Argueta grew up in Santo Domingo de Guzmán, El Salvador, where his grandmother, an Indian healer, told him stories from his indigenous heritage and their belief in a human-nature connection, instilling in him great respect for the environment and appreciation for oral tradition. He spent time in the city helping his parents run a small restaurant as well as in the countryside, helping his grandparents tend to their farm. He left El Salvador when he was 19 years old due to the ongoing Salvadoran Civil War.
Career
Argueta has worked as a gardener and in a coffeehouse. He has written numerous children’s books, short stories as well as poems that have been included in textbooks and anthologies. His children’s books are written in poetry form, in two languages (English and Spanish), and reflect the Latino experience and heritage; he also writes about the Nahuatl Indians and their deep appreciation and respect for nature. His adult poems cover themes of the hardships of growing up in El Salvador during wartime and the difficulties experienced by immigrants in the United States. He has spent over 15 years as a workshop and classroom presenter, speaking about the power of poetry on children’s lives.
Awards
2001 Américas Award for Latin American Literature, A Movie In My Pillow
2002 Independent Publisher Book Awards Multicultural Fiction Juvenile/Young Adult – Winner, A Movie In My Pillow
2002 Skipping Stones Honor Award for Multicultural Literature, A Movie In My Pillow
2003 Américas Award for Children & Young Adult Literature – Commendation, Xochitl and the Flowers/Xochitl, la niña de las flores
2004 Independent Publisher Book Award Multicultural Fiction Juvenile/Young Adult – Finalist, Xochitl and the Flowers/Xochitl, la niña de las flores
2005 NAPPA Gold Award – Preschool/Kindergarten, Moony Luna/Luna, Lunita, Lunera
2006 Américas Award for Children & Young Adult Literature, Talking With Mother Earth
2008 Américas Award for Children & Young Adult Literature - Commendation, Alfredito Flies Home
2011 Northern California Book Award – Finalist, Arroz con leche: Un poema para cocinar/Rice Pudding: A Cooking Poem