The Power of Stories
Join author and professor Dr. Norma E. Cantú for a discussion on using words and narrative to create a better world.

Norma Elia Cantú currently serves as the President of the American Folklore Society and Murchison Professor of the Humanities at Trinity University. A daughter of the borderlands, she focuses on the US-Mexico border for her research and scholarly work as well as her poetry, fiction, and personal essays. She has coedited more than 10 books on a number of subjects including art (Moctezuma’s Table: Rolando Briseños Chicano Tablescapes and Ofrenda: Liliana Wilson’s Art of Dissidence and Dreams), STEM (Paths to Discovery: Autobiographies of Chicanas with Careers in Mathematics, Science, and Engineering), Texas Studies (Entre Guadalupe y Malinche: Tejanas in Literature and Art), and folklore (Chicana Traditions: Continuity and Change and Dancing Across Borders: Danzas y Bailes Mexicanos). She has received awards for her work from the Modern Languages Association, the American Folklore Society, and the Tejas Foco of the National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies. She co-founded CantoMundo and is a member of the Macondo Writers Workshop, currently serving on the board of the latter and of the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center. A frequent keynote and plenary invited speaker, she has read her work in Europe and throughout the US and Mexico. Her research and creative writing have earned her an international reputation. The award-winning Canícula: Snapshots of a Girlhood en la Frontera, is taught in numerous universities in the US and in Europe. She translated Gloria Anzaldua’s Borderlands/la Frontera into Spanish. Her most recent publications include the co-edited anthology, meXicana Fashions: Politics, Self-Adornment, and Identity Construction and Teaching Gloria E. Anzaldúa: Pedagogies and Practices for our Classrooms and Communities; the novel, Cabañuelas, and Meditacion Fronteriza: Poems of Love, Life, and Labor.
 

Moderator: Laura Tadena (she/her/hers) is an Inclusive Services Consultant at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission in Austin, Texas. She is Tejana from South Texas and a former school and diversity resident librarian. Laura's background is in architecture and education. She specializes in addressing inequities in the built environment, creating inclusive and welcoming library spaces and services, and in developing accessible and culturally competent educational opportunities.

The #TXBookChat series offers brief discussions and programs with authors, librarians, and literary professionals. These informal “coffee chats” last about 30 minutes and offer a quick look into different aspects of the state’s literary world. The #TXBookChat series seeks to bring together diverse voices and perspectives.

For a full schedule of the #TXBookChat series, please visit: www.tsl.texas.gov/txbookchat

Past #TXBookChat Discussions