Bookstore,
art gallery, children’s books center, community center, and ground
zero for the campaign to get entire communities reading - Libreria
Martinez Books & Art Gallery has emerged from its humble origins
as a barbershop with books into a national phenomenon. Along the way,
Libreria Martinez and its CEO and chief missionary, Rueben Martinez,
has discovered a market for books in Spanish that mainstream publishers
still continue to miss and a hunger for Latinos (and non-Latinos)
to understand who they are, where they have come from, and where they
are going.
To
develop a market for the bookstore, Martinez has relied upon his experience
as a community activist and organizer. He brought in the best authors,
spent endless hours speaking at local schools, hosted events for teachers
and librarians, all the time finding through these guerilla marketing
techniques a demand that had been missed. More importantly, Libreria
Martinez defines its mission as more than commercial success. It is
rather, to develop a community of readers thereby improving the performance
of children in schools, enriching families, instilling pride in the
cultural roots and traditions of Latinos, and celebrating the successes
of learners. Pursuit of this mission gives them deep penetration into
markets that other booksellers struggle to reach.
The
bookstore is a cultural experience. Beautifully appointed, it features
some of the best local art, is a place to browse and relax, and is
a crossroads and meeting place for the community.
Writers
value the invitation from Libreria Martinez to appear for book signings.
Carlos Fuentes, Mexico’s leading intellectual, appeared for his only
book signing ever in the US. Other well-known writers who frequent
the bookstore include Isabel Allende, Sandra Cisneros, Rudolfo Anaya,
Jorge Ramos, Gary Soto and Victor Villaseñor, and so many,
many others.
Rueben
Martinez is a speaker much in demand. He has spoken at the Oxford
University in London, the Sorbonne in Paris, University of Arkansas,
Columbia University, UCLA, USC, Amherst, Smith, Hollyoke, University
of Arizona, Chapman University, California State Fullerton, California
State Los Angeles, and Claremont-McKenna. He has promoted reading
throughout the Southern California area through innumerable speaking
engagements at schools and conferences, and has spoken the last eight
years at the Book Expo America.
Libreria
Martinez is the largest seller of books in Spanish in the US, specializes
in Latino/Chicano authors, and children's bilingual literature. Come
and visit, and have a direct and inspiring experience of la raza as
Libreria Martinez takes its unique vision to a broader audience: to
inform, to challenge, and to inspire young people to do great things.
For
information about Libreria Martinez, please call (714) 973-7900 or
send email to Ruebén.
To make comments, go to our "Guestbook"
page where you can leave us a message. ¡Gracias!
