Captain Mama Reviews & Awards
and honors!
Reviewed by School Library Journal & Midwest Book Review
“Marco’s second grade class goes on an Air Force base field trip. His mom is the navigator on an aerial refueling tanker, and the kids are excited about touring the plane and meeting the crew. In an easygoing first-person narrative, Marco describes the adventure. Everything from the refueling process to the manual landing gear crank is explained to the eager students. The smiling, accommodating crew members outline their responsibilities and the importance of working as a team…Tiscareño-Sato is a Mexican-American military veteran/aviator, and in this continuation of her bilingual series “Captain Mama,” the author affords young readers the opportunity to observe a coed, multiethnic crew performing their vital tasks. In addition, the final six pages include an English/Spanish glossary, a list of educational resources and their respective links, and an art/engineering project. VERDICT: An accessible and positive portrayal of the mothers and people of color who serve proudly in the military; a good purchase for bilingual collections.”
Mary Margaret Mercado, Pima County Public Library, Tucson, AZ
“From Gracefully Global Group’s bilingual Captain Mama series, Captain Mama’s Surprise/ La Sorpresa de Capitan Mama is an exciting new Spanish/English children’s title written by former Air Force officer and aviator Graciela Tiscareño-Sato and illustrated by the daughter of an Air Force veteran, Linda Lens. Including a helpful Spanish/ English glossary of terms, list of educational resources, and instructions for an exciting art/engineering STEM project for kids age 6 and up, Captain Mama’s Surprise is from an award winning bilingual series about mothers and other women who proudly serve in the U. S. Volunteer military air force. Each page of Captain Mama’s Surprise is written in English and Spanish, with colored illustrations of the characters, a second grade class with their teacher and the airplane crew touring a refueling tanker plane. After a thorough and educational tour of the aircraft, Captain Vicky Castro and her daughter, Mimi, surprise her son Marco and classmates with a wonderful adventure: a ride in the plane! Captain Mama’s Surprise is an exciting title for children age 6 and up, with many positive messages of empowerment for women, those of Hispanic and multi-cultural backgrounds, and all.”
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief and Diane Donovan, Editor
Military Writers Society of America Gold Medal
In 2019, Captain Mama’s Surprise/La Sorpresa de Capitán Mamá was honored by the Military Writers Society of America with a Gold Medal in the Children’s Book category. News release is here.
International Latino Book Awards
Good Night Captain Mama was honored in the “Best Educational Children’s Book – Bilingual” category at the International Latino Books Awards held at the American Library Association convention. Two years later, Captain Mama’s Surprise took top honors at this same event – 1st Place in the “Most Inspirational Children’s Picture Book – Bilingual” category.
2014 Writer’s Digest 1st Place Winner
First Place Prize, Writer’s Digest Magazine Self-Published e-Book Awards, Children’s Picture Books category.
2014 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards Silver Medal
Silver Medal at the 2014 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards (Independent Publishing Awards) in the Languages/Cultural category.
Military Writers Society of America Bronze Medal
Bronze Medal at the Military Writers Society of America Book Awards, “Children Ages 12 and Under” category.
Honors & Features
Woman Veteran Leader Champion of Change
OBAMA WHITE HOUSE
Graciela Tiscareno-Sato was honored by the Obama White House for her leadership as a “Woman Veteran Leader Champion of Change” for her work as Founder and CEO of the award-winning, multicultural, educational publishing company Gracefully Global Group LLC and for her mission to raise educational expectations of Latino students and voices of veterans. Details are here. Her White House blog post on that subject is here.
Congressional Tribute
FLOOR OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
The day after the Champion of Change Ceremony at the White House, Graciela’s service and business leadership was honored in a moving tribute on the Floor of the House of Representatives by her Congressman. Here’s the video of the Congressman’s speech.
The Congressman’s tribute was entered permanently into the Congressional Record as seen here in TEXT version and as a PDF document.
National Business Women’s Week Award
BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL WOMEN’S FOUNDATION
In November of 2014, Ms. Tiscareño-Sato was honored by the Business and Professional Women’s Foundation with an National Business Women’s Week award. The ceremony was part of the Women Veterans Career Development Forum that took place at the Women in Military Service for America Memorial and included a keynote speech by First Lady Michelle Obama. The “Personal Branding for Military Veterans” panel on which Graciela participated may be on YouTube.