Harrisburg campus to host award-winning author Pedro Martin April 6

MIDDLETOWN, Pa. - Award-winning author Pedro Martin will visit Penn State Harrisburg on Monday, April 6, for two speaking events featuring art demonstrations for students and the community.

"The Power of Visual Storytelling: Conversations with Pedro Martin" will include two sessions: a noon session for education students, teachers and other educators in the Madlyn L. Hanes Library, room 101, and a 6 p.m. session for the general public in the Mukund S. Kulkarni Theatre.

Seating is limited. Registration is required in advance via an online form.

Martin is the award-winning creator of "Mexikid, A Graphic Memoir," which received a Newbery Honor and won the Eisner Award, Harvey Award, and Pura Belpré Author and Illustrator Award. The book has appeared on numerous end-of-year best-of lists, including those from The New York Times Book Review, NPR, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, Amazon, New York Public Library, Chicago Public Library, The Guardian and Booklist.

The son of an immigrant sharecropper and one of nine children, Martin spent his childhood working in the strawberry fields of the Monterey Bay Area. He earned a graphic design degree from San Jose State University.

He later worked at Hallmark Greetings, where he became a manager of a 20-person art studio before becoming a master artist. He helped pioneer the company's animation/properties department and was nominated twice for Annie Awards for production design.

He retired from Hallmark and pursued his dream of writing an ongoing graphic memoir that honors his family and their struggles.

The event is sponsored via a grant from Barnes and Noble College and presented in partnership with Penn State University Libraries' Madlyn L. Hanes Library, the teacher education program in the School of Behavioral Sciences and Education, and the Harrisburg Latino Hispanic American Community Center.

Refreshments and giveaways will be available while supplies last.