Gloria Amescua | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| Nationality | Mexican American |
| Citizenship | American |
| Education | B.A., Masters of Education |
| Alma mater | University of Texas at Austin |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, poet, educator |
| Notable work | ': "Windchimes"; and "What Remains" |
Gloria Amescua is a Latina and Tejana writer from Austin, Texas. Amescua is most known for her poetry chapbooks, "Windchimes" and "What Remains." She won Lee and Low's Honor Award (2016) for her picture book manuscript in verse originally titled: Luz Jiménez, No Ordinary Girl. Her most recent book is Child of the Flower-Song People Luz Jiménez, Daughter of the Nahua, a picture book illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh and published by Abrams books for Young Readers in 2021, was a 2022 Pura Belpré Award Author Honor Book.[1][2]
Amescua was born in Austin, Texas.[citation needed] Her father was born in Michoacán, Mexico.[3] Her mother was Mexican American. She has dedicated poems to her mother, including "Fall into the Fig," which appeared in Entre Guadalupe y Malinche: Tejanas in Literature and Art.[2]
Amescua received her B.A. and Masters of Education from University of Texas at Austin, and began her career as an English teacher.[citation needed]
Amescua became a high school assistant principal and the Secondary Language Arts Curriculum Director for a school district in Texas. In 2013, she won the Austin International Poetry Festival Contest, the Austin Poetry Society Award, and the Christina Sergeyevna Award for poetry.[4] She most recently was chosen to receive the Lee and Low 2016 New Voices Award Honor for her poetry manuscript, Luz Jiménez, No Ordinary Girl. She is an inaugural member of CantoMundo, a national Latinx poetry community. Additionally, she is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators’ Austin Chapter and alumna of Hedgebrook's Writers-in-Residence program.[citation needed]
Her most recent book, Child of the Flower-Song People Luz Jiménez, Daughter of the Nahua, features a Nahua woman who overcomes various cultural obstacles through her experience as a teacher and art muse in Mexico.[5] As of 2017 she has been a workshop presenter for youth and adults in Austin, Texas.[4]
Amescua's work has appeared in several publications.[4]