KU Libraries to host KU alum, American Girl author Angela Cervantes for Hispanic Heritage Month

LAWRENCE — Before she became an award-winning children’s author, Angela Cervantes was a University of Kansas student, searching for where she belonged and how her own story might unfold. That experience set her on a path to tell stories rooted in her Kansas upbringing and Mexican American heritage. 

Cervantes will return to KU on Oct. 17 for “Stories That Connect Us: An American Girl Conversation with Author Angela Cervantes.” The family-friendly event at Kenneth Spencer Research Library will celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, American Girl’s 40th anniversary and the power of stories to connect people across generations. 

The Kansas City-based author behind American Girl’s 2026 Girl of the Year, Raquel Reyes, will discuss her writing journey, Mexican American heritage and the creation of a character with local roots. Visitors can also enjoy activities for all ages and explore a display of Spencer Library collection items inspired by Raquel’s story. 

Tickets are free, though advance registration is encouraged.    

Long before she wrote award-winning children’s literature rooted in identity and belonging, Cervantes said, she was searching for her own place in an unfamiliar environment.  

“I have a memory of attending KU for the first time, being overwhelmed,” she said, “but also seeing it as a huge adventure, feeling so lucky that I was there, that I had the chance to go to the university in Lawrence. I saw it as a huge city full of really smart, intelligent, academic people, and I wanted to be part of that. I just didn’t know if I could reach that level. And despite all of KU’s efforts to make me feel comfortable — that whole first week of orientation, and all the excitement around the history of KU and Lawrence, which I loved — I still felt very lost and overwhelmed.” 

Fellow students invited Cervantes to join the Hispanic American Leadership Organization (HALO), a student-led group focused on promoting Latino culture, supporting academic success and developing leaders that has existed at KU in various forms since the early 1970s, continuing today as the Latin American Student Union.  

“I don’t think I really felt like I belonged until I joined HALO,” Cervantes said. “Some students just kind of found me and invited me to come to one of their meetings and then I really felt like I belonged. All of a sudden, I found a place for myself.” 

As she progressed through her classes, Cervantes said she also found community and confidence in the Department of English.  

“It was a poetry class that really made me feel like I had a place and like my voice could be heard,” Cervantes said. “These teachers were very patient, spent lots of time with me, would invite me to their poetry readings, therefore expanding my world even more in Lawrence.” 

Cervantes remembers senior lecturer and poet Brian Daldorph, creative writing professor Luci Tapahonso and English professor George Worth as “huge in my life.” She said she not only valued their classes but jumped at the chance to attend poetry readings off campus. 

“I remember lots of walking at KU. I did not have a car, but that made me just more grateful for the experiences I was getting, and I’m not afraid to walk anywhere these days,” she said. “People say it’s going to involve a lot of walking, and I say you have no idea how much I’ve walked in my life and up and down KU.” 

One of Cervantes’ most memorable library experiences came when she entered KU Libraries’ Snyder Book Collecting Contest as an undergraduate student in 1993. Drawn to books about the Chicano civil rights movement, she had begun building a personal collection from visiting used bookstores in Lawrence and throughout Kansas.  

“I was such a lover of words,” Cervantes said. “I saw a sign for the Snyder contest and thought, ‘Well, what if I tried for this?’ It forced me to organize my collection and write about why those books were important to me.” 

She won second place in the contest and saw her books displayed in the library, an experience she still remembers decades later. 

“It felt really good. It felt like just being seen, being heard, and that someone else valued my book collecting,” she said. 

Cervantes said the learning and confidence she gained at KU helped transform a love of words into a career that has included work with Disney, Scholastic and American Girl. Drawing on inspiration and a solid foundation from family — including her grandparents, who she called her “first storytellers” — as well as experiences in her home community in the historic Oakland neighborhood of Topeka, Cervantes has built a body of work centered on some of the people and places she loves. 

“I try to write the stories of my community because I don’t want them forgotten,” she said.  

A commitment to preserving stories and sharing them with future generations is one reason the event at Spencer Research Library feels like an especially fitting return to campus for Cervantes. 

“What a library does is it keeps those books, preserves those stories, those histories, so they will not be forgotten,” Cervantes said. “Our work is the same.” 

“The Latina/o collections at Spencer are growing collections focused on preserving the history and culture of Latinos in Kansas. It’s so important to document the stories of this community, especially as the Latino population continues to grow in the state,” said Rebekah Ramos, KU Libraries Latina/o Collections curator. “We’re actively looking for donations of materials that can help preserve this history for future generations.” 

Attendees at the Oct. 17 event will hear Cervantes reflect on her writing journey and the inspiration behind Raquel Reyes in conversation with Ramos, with a book signing and photo opportunity to follow. Visitors can also explore collection materials and family-friendly activities inspired by the themes and experiences reflected in Cervantes’ work.  

"Many of us remember books and stories that invited us to different worlds or sparked our imaginations when we were young. For me and many others, American Girl was one of those touchstones, so it's especially exciting to welcome Angela Cervantes to Spencer Library,” said Caitlin Klepper, public engagement librarian at Spencer Library. “We hope families, readers, collectors and anyone who loves a good story will join us. All ages and all dolls are welcome." 

Parking and access information is available through the event registration link or via the library’s Visit page.