|
Meadow Lark
is the third book in Mary Peace Finley's Santa Fe Trail Trilogy,
13-year-old Teresita Montoya dreams of learning to read and
of leaving her small village to follow her brother Julio and
her father eastward. When she joins a wagon train headed to
Bent's Fort and beyond, her courage and resourcefulness are
tested with each challenge. Teresita's adventure-filled journey
from Taos, Mexico to Independence, Missouri marks the beginning
of a future teeming with possibilities.
COLORADO
BOOK AWARD WINNER
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Christiane H. Citron
303 839-8320
13th Annual Colorado Book Award Winners Announced at Awards
Gala November 18, 2004
 Denver-The
Colorado Center for the Book (CCFTB), the state affiliate of
the Library of Congress, and a program of the Colorado Endowment
for the Humanities, announced the winners for the 13th annual
Colorado Book Awards in a gala ceremony on Thursday, November
18, 2004, at the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum,
attended by more than 425 people. Governor Owens issued a proclamation
calling the day "Colorado Book Awards Day" and commending
the CCFTB and the Colorado authors. The keynote speaker was
Sir Harold Evans. Harold Evans' about his latest book, They
Made America-From the Steam Engine to the Search Engine: Two
Centuries of Innovators. Evans was publisher of Random House
and editor of the London Sunday Times and the Times.
The awards are given annually to the Colorado authors of the
best books published in the preceding year judged by the Colorado
book community. The purpose of the awards is to champion all
Colorado authors and to specially honor the winners and to promote
their titles throughout Colorado and the nation. Forty-six finalists
had been named, and most attended the event. Winners were announced
in fourteen categories.
CCFTB Director Christiane Citron said "because our goal
is to encourage enthusiasm about reading and discussing ideas,
Evans' presentation about American innovators was perfectly
suited to the occasion. Since Wilbur and Orville Wright are
featured in the book, Wings Over the Rockies was a perfect setting
for us." Media personality and former Denver Bronco player
Reggie Rivers presided as Master of Ceremonies. Rivers is an
honorary board member of the Colorado Center for the Book.
THE WINNER IN THE YOUNG ADULT CATEGORY:
 Mary
Peace Finley, Meadow Lark
(Filter Press)
A 13-year-old girl dreams of learning to read and following
her father and older brother eastward out of her small village.
She soon joins a wagon train headed towards Bent's Fort and
begins a journey from Mexico to Missouri, on the challenging
path towards self-discovery.
Mary Peace Finley, of Boulder, grew up near the site of Bent's
Fort, where she began her life-long fascination with the Santa
Fe Trail. Her book, White Grizzly, was a finalist in the 2000
Colorado Book Awards and won an award from the Colorado Independent
Publishers Association. She is a former teacher
Reviews
SOUTHWEST BOOK
VIEWS: "Finley's Santa Fe Trail Trilogy...definitely
a worthy batch of books for older children."
THE HISTORICAL
NOVELS REVIEW: "Teresita's journey turns out to be one
of heart, mind, and spirit, and we are all richer in her company."
CHILDREN'S LITERATURE
REVIEW: "Many characters, especially the women,
are drawn with realism, from angry Mamá to Teresita's rich Spanish
mentor. "
Southwest BookViews:
"In 13-year-old Teresita Montoya of Taos, Mary Peace
Finley has created a courageous young woman who travels the
Santa Fe Trail in 1846 with dreams for a better life. She joins
a wagon train headed to Bent's Fort and beyond, following her
brother and father eastward. This is an exciting story of bravery
in the face of adversity which is sure to engage readers of
many ages. I read it with pleasure. In those days, the Santa
Fe Trail was a dangerous place, and it has most often been written
about from a man's point of view. Mary Peace Finley, whose own
passion for the history of the Santa Fe Trail began when she
was a child living near Bent's Fort, the trading center on the
Trail, is a vivid storyteller. She has written other
books for young readers and often speaks
to school groups and writers. Meadow Lark completes Finley's
Santa Fe Trail Trilogy that began with Soaring
Eagle and continued with White
Grizzly, definitely a worthy batch of books for older children.
-- Copyright ©Winter 2004, Southwest BookViews. All rights reserved.
Hardcover edition, Published
by Filter Press, 2003. ISBN:0-86541-070-4. To Order Call 1-888-570-2663
|
