Saturday Luncheon with Pam Muñoz Ryan
California Young Reader Medal

Pam Muñoz Ryan, author of Esperanza Rising and Riding Freedom, was born and raised in Bakersfield, California, and received her bachelor's and master's degrees at San Diego State University. She now lives in north San Diego County with her husband and four children.

After college, she became a teacher, an administrator and then, at the encouragement of a friend who thought she could write, began her first book. Twenty-five books later, she is still writing! Pam won the California Young Reader Medal for Riding Freedom in 2000.

The California Young Reader Medal Program gives young readers in our state the opportunity to honor their favorite books and authors, recommend them to others, and enjoy recreational reading. California students nominate, read, and vote for books used in the program. The nearly half a million votes recently counted clearly demonstrates the interest in and enthusiasm for the nominated books and the effectiveness of the CYRM program.


Representing the California Young Reader Medal program, Peggy Gifford introduced Pam Muñoz Ryan.

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