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Sheryl Cannady:

Hello, I'm Sheryl Cannady from the Library of Congress. Last year, more
than 100,000 book lovers of all ages visited the nation's capital to
celebrate the joys of reading and lifelong literacy at the National Book
Festival, which is sponsored by the Library of Congress and hosted by
first lady Laura Bush. Now in its seventh year, this free event will
take place on the National Mall, Saturday, Sept. 29. Festivalgoers will
interact with the nation's best-selling authors, illustrators and poets.
There will be activities for the entire family. If you are unable to
attend in person, we invite you to experience the festival online. Our
podcast interview series with well-known authors, along with Webcasts
from the festival, will be available through the National Book Festival
Web site at loc.gov/bookfest.

We now have the honor of talking with award-winning journalist and
investigative reporter, María Celeste Arrarás, who is currently the host
and managing editor of Telemundo/NBC's "Al Rojo Vivo." Her first book,
"Selena's Secret," became a bestseller. Her latest book, "The Magic
Cane," is written for young readers and is available in both English and
Spanish. Thank you so much for being with us today. I'd like to know
what inspired you to go from investigative journalism to writing
children's literature.

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, precisely that; I wanted to go to something from something
completely different. I had written before, "Selena's Secret*,*" which
was an investigative report on the murder of Selena Quintanilla-Pérez,
the Tejano, Tex-Mex queen. And it was a very difficult book to write
because her murder was so horrible, and the process of writing a book
that is investigative is very, very tedious. You have to spend endless
months reading different court documents and investigating and reading
police reports. And the story itself was so sad that I really wanted to
go to something that was the complete opposite, something that was
happy, that was fantasy, that was kind of under my control when I had to
write it, and that I could edit or change at my own whim. And it's
really \-- when the idea came to write a children's book, it was like
the perfect option to what I wanted to write.

Sheryl Cannady:

What's you underlying message in the book, *"*The Magic Cane*"*?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well there's several ones. I definitely wanted a book that was a magical
fable like the kind that I grew up with, with my grandparents when they
sat me in their laps and told me a story. And they all began like, "Once
upon a time," and that's what I wanted. I wanted to have the kind of
book that was like a generation \-- like it was a bridge for the
generations. And all these books had the particular characteristic that
they had a lesson, or different lessons.

And in my case, *"*The Magic Cane*"* had four different lessons, one of
them being that you have to be kind to people that are in a
disadvantage, in this case the old lady that has the cane. And
obviously, there's two boys at beginning of the story, and one of them
is really evil and mean to the lady, and at the end, he pays a high
price for that. And another one that is very kind and loving and
considerate with her, and at the end of the book, he is rewarded in an
incredible way. At the beginning of the story, it comes across like it's
really the other way around, that the bad one is blessed and the other
one really gets nothing for his act of kindness. And then the story
shows that, you know, it wasn't that way at all.

The second story is a \-- the second story \-- the second lesson in the
book is that more is not always better. Why? Because the boy that was
the evil one, Moconoco, becomes the evil emperor later in the story \--
he ends up having three of each of his senses, three noses, three
mouths, three ears, and basically at the beginning he thinks that's a
good thing, but then he realizes that by being so greedy, he sold his
soul to the devil, and he basically became a miserable being.

And then there's another one, which to me is the most important one,
which is that a family that sticks together is invincible. In this case,
the three kids that have the superpowers \-- the three kids of the good
boy at the beginning of the story \-- they learn that only by fighting
together can they defeat evil, in this case the evil emperor, Moconoco.
So \-- and the reason why I wanted to convey that message is because
when I first started, you know, working on the story, I had three small
children, ages \-- now they're nine, eight, and six. Back then they were
two, three years younger. And they used to get into a fight every time I
started telling a story because each one had something they wanted to
hear about, and so I had to invent a story for them and start telling
them something that they wanted to hear and they were interested in so
that they would stop fighting. And in the other story, they realized
that only by fighting together and using their superpowers in
conjunction with each other, can they defeat the evil emperor. While
they try on their own, they were not successful.

Sheryl Cannady:

You mention that the three children in your book had magical powers. Of
course you're very talented, but if you had to have one magical
superpower, what would that be?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well it would not have anything to do with book. If had to have one
magical superpower, it would be definitely the ability to make sure that
justice and peace ruled in the world.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well that's certainly \-- I guess, if you had to have one opportunity or
one power, that would be a very good thing to wish for. You were born
and raised in Puerto Rico, but you attended college in New Orleans. And
obviously you lived there for a few years. Did Katrina affect you more
personally because you lived there for several years?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Tremendously. Tremendously. As a matter of fact, when I went to college
in the Loyola University in New Orleans, and I loved that city
tremendously, and \-- two months before Katrina, I had been there after
a long time that I had not visited. And when Katrina took place,
amazingly enough I was on vacation in Africa, and when it hit, and the
days after that, I was in the middle of literally the savanna in a
camping ground with no electricity, so I had no idea what happened, and
I was in Kenya exchanging \-- making a change of flights, and I saw the
television, and I'm watching the news. And I'm hearing the mayor of New
Orleans talking about everything that was going on at the time, and I
started to cry in the middle of the airport. And I was with a colleague
of mine who had gone to school with me in Loyola at the same time, and
it was like we were both devastated. So we found out in the middle of a
very happy time about a very, very big tragedy.

Sheryl Cannady:

Your illustrations in the book \-- the illustrations in the book are
striking, and the depiction of the king with his extra appendages is
very creative. Explain the collaboration process between a writer and
the illustrator.

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well listen, in this case it was sort of like a magical formula because
we never spoke to each other during the entire process until the book
was finished, which I called him to congratulate him. First of all,
Scholastic hired the illustrator, and he turned out to be a very
talented Argentinean illustrator named Pablo Raimondi, who used to work
with Marvel superheroes. And at the beginning there was a slight concern
because, you know, those superheroes are very futuristic and very harsh,
and this was a magical fable with a lot of fantasy and this kind of very
romantic kind of world. And he really added a tremendous element of the
future together with the story, which is a story like a classic story.
And we \-- I think we \-- it was a great combination.

At the beginning, you know, we kind of have to tone down the characters,
but when he came up with the emperor, and I saw it in black in white,
even before it had color, I was mesmerized because he really did a
fantastic job. I imagined the evil emperor, Moconoco, in one way, but it
was kind of abstract, I didn't have a clear vision, and I was concerned
that if I didn't have it clear, how could the illustrator have it clear?
And this guy, you know, really killed it on the first draft. He really
did a fantastic drawing. And he really captured what I wanted to have in
that emperor. And it went so good with \-- along with the name that it
was just a magical combination, number one.

And number two, interestingly enough, obviously the three kids in the
story are my three children, and he had never seen a picture of my
children, yet he drew them in way that they looked so much like my real
children that I was surprised. My daughter has light brown hair, and so
does the girl in the book. My middle son is blond with black eyes, and
so does the character that is him in the book. And my other son has
black hair with like caramel-color eyes, and so does this boy that has
the power of the wind in the book. And I was so surprised that it was
just like an incredible coincidence. So we had a great match without
ever speaking to each other.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well, you know, that sounds truly magical. Now \--

María Celeste Arrarás:

And it was, it was. And so, you know, the whole book \-- it has been an
incredible source of satisfaction for me because it was a dream that
I've had for a long time. And I like it because it's a book that, number
one, is not for Hispanics, it's not for an English audience, it's for
everybody. It's a universal story. It has several universal messages.
And like I told you before, it draws a bridge between generations. It's
the kind of the book that we, the parents, used to grow up with. And
it's a book that has the elements of magic and superpowers our kids are
used to.

And funny enough, when I was trying to come up with a name for the
characters, I consulted with my son Julian, who is an avid reader \--
just to give you an example, he's in fourth grade and his reading level
is at a freshman in high school, second semester student. And he's
always loved reading, so he was a great person to talk to. And I said to
him, "Hey, what do you think I should call the evil emperor?" And in
Spanish, "moco" means buggard. And he was trying to be \-- I guess he
was trying to be, you know, like funny and shocking, and he goes, "Oh,
let's call him Moconoco," using the word "moco," buggard. And I was like
\-- he was trying to like shock me, not thinking that I was going to,
you know, take him seriously. But when he said it, it was just like so
perfect. I said, "That's it." And he was like, "Hey, I didn't mean that
seriously." But that's the name and it goes perfect the evil emperor.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well, how did your children react when they saw themselves reflected in
living color in this book?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, they started to try to contribute a little bit too much because
they were so excited. And they were, you know \-- they were kind of
trying to add, you know, different elements into the story, but you kind
of have to be in that sense like an emperor, and say, "Okay, enough."

Sheryl Cannady:

\[Laughs\]

María Celeste Arrarás:

Because I have to draw the line somewhere. And of course their input is
in the book, but you have to go print at some point, and they were very
happy with it. They were very happy that \-- my kid's names are Julián,
Adrián, and Lara, and in the book, the characters are Julianchi,
Adrianchi and Laralu, which are the nicknames that I tell them in
Spanish in real life. So they knew perfectly from day one that those
three kids were them.

Sheryl Cannady:

Is there a special talent that you need to write for children?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, I don't know, because for me, when I \-- when I accepted to do
this project, I had no previous experience writing children's books. And
when I first started to write the book, I was going through the process
of a divorce, so it was very difficult, and I had to stop the project
because, you know, the last thing in my mind at that time was to be in
the world of fantasy of a child. Yet, the magical thing that happened
was that it was the process of a divorce that gave me the idea, because
then, as a single mom, when I would come home from work after a long
day, I would have my three kids, you know, stretching their little arms
for my attention, and I would get very frustrated because I would grab
one, and the other ones would cry. And it was trying to reconcile that
that I found the underlying massage of the story, which is we have to
work together and a family that's united is invincible. Let's work
together instead of fighting with each other. And true enough, things
happened in a way that they have a reason to be, and that's how I see
it.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well certainly that's something that single parents can remember to do.
What words of wisdom would you share with parents to encourage their
children to read?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, I would say, if you have the problems that I had, make up a story.
Make up the story that engages them and includes things that they're
interested in, because no outside writer knows that better than
yourself. Imagination can really, really pull together a family. And in
this case, it did.

Sheryl Cannady:

What did you like to read as a child?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well I'm glad you asked that question because I loved to read since I
was little. And one of the things that I wanted to accomplish with this
book was to include elements that I had and I was fascinated with as a
child. I used to read books like "King Midas," which is a magical fable.
And it was wonderful because it's the kind of book like I hope *"*The
Magic Cane*"* will be, which you can read when you're young, a little
bit older, and then later, and you will still be fascinated because it
has lessons and a deeper meaning that throws light into your personal
life, at whatever level you're in or whatever stage of your life you're
in. And that was the case with "King Midas*.*" I also liked "The Little
Prince." I liked "The Little Prince," because again, it was a story that
I read in different periods of my life, and then each time it brought a
deeper meaning and threw light on something that maybe was going on in
my life at the time.

And then I also loved Greek mythology because when I was little, my
father was the chancellor of the university in Puerto Rico, so every
afternoon all the professors from the university would gather in my
house and they would play music and read poetry or literature, and there
was this particular professor who would always tell me stories about
Greek mythology. I used to wait with great expectation the moment in
which he told me the story of the day. So I grew up with all the, you
know, stories from Greek mythology, and I loved it. And as a matter
fact, when I saw Moconoco, the evil emperor, he looks like it could be
out of Greek mythology because he \-- of course not exactly, but he has
that little element like Medusa, although she had serpents, you know.
But in this case, that deformation of the face and what goes on, it's
kind of a little bit like that, and I love that.

Sheryl Cannady:

How did you childhood shape who you became as an adult?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well of course that's so key in all of us. In my case, my parents were
very pro-education and reading, and they were very, very, very into
pursuing, you know, excellence in academics. And you know, my father
told me \-- one time I got a C, and my father sat me down \-- and this
is the biggest lesson I've learned in my life. And he sat me done very
seriously and said, "Never come back into this house with a C. You
either come with an A or an F, but never a C, never mediocre. You are
either the best of the best, or the best of the worst. But never
mediocre." And that's been like a constant in my life. And it was a
great lesson. And they were always surrounded, like I told you, with \--
by professors, by things that were, you know, to enrich the mind and the
soul. And I've always \[unintelligible\] for my kids as well.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well obviously what your father told you was very profound because you
are considered the best of the best. Now we've talked about María, the
children's author. Let's talk about María Celeste, the journalist and
television celebrity. You've been picked in a celebrity poll at \-- in
"People en Espanol" as the most popular, incredible television
personality. You obviously have worked very hard, but how do you handle
the challenges that come with being a celebrity?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, you know what, I've always thinked that \[unintelligible\] was
true. There's a lot of very talented people that end up going nowhere,
and a lot of people that don't have that much talent that accomplish
fantastic things. And I think the people that are successful \-- and in
my case, I can vouch for myself \-- one of the keys is to have your feet
on the ground, never to let your head get too big, because when then
happens, you start making the wrong decisions. You start making
decisions based on your ego, and the ego is very unstable, as we well
know.

And you can be a great racecar driver and know \-- and not be successful
because you depend on a team of the mechanics that take of the car, et
cetera, et cetera. And I've always been a team player. And I've always
done from A to Z in my show to make sure that the show goes well. And in
my career, the same way. So I think having a head on your shoulders and
not letting your ego rule, and always knowing that this is a passing
thing \-- fame is a passing thing. And you have to always live like
tomorrow you can be without everything that you have. And when you have
all those elements very clear in your mind, you will proceed in a way
that you make decisions with principles and with things that are right
for your career and not with the immediate ego.

Sheryl Cannady:

"Newsweek" in 2006 elected you as one of the top 20 women \-- top 20
women poised to be the next generation of leaders in their field. What
specific advice would you give, A, aspiring journalists, and B, aspiring
writers.

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, a starting writer, I will first say, write down everything that
comes to your mind. Because us writers \-- we have incredible ideas that
\-- we're always in our minds, inventing, writing, and imagining things,
and very few times do we sit down and we actually put them in black and
white. And when we really decide to do it then all those great ideas
that we had previously had, you know, basically disappear into thin air.
So I think writing them down helps you for when you really have to
write. And second, it gives you the skills and the practice to keep
writing, which is how you become a better writer, with practice.

And as far as the journalist goes, there's a lot of young people
studying communications and wanting to go in this field, and there's so
very few opportunities that the key is to do what I did. I didn't get to
where I wanted right off the bat; I had to start from way at the bottom.
And that has two advantages. First of all, you learn everything, so when
you get to the top, nobody can tell you otherwise, because you know the
business in every way, form, or fashion, and you actually contribute to
different aspects of the production of whatever you're doing.

And second of all, it doesn't matter where you start \-- in this
industry in particular, the tradition, the usual thing, is to hire from
within. So you can start doing an internship in a station \-- and you
don't know how many people that are big producers and executives in \--
the networks we have that started as actually interns. And that was for
\-- something funny happened to me. One time I was in Disney World, and
I was \-- in Universal Studios, sorry \-- one time I was in Universal
Studios and I ran into this kid that wanted to be a caricaturist, and he
was there basically, literally, sweeping the floors, and he told me,
"Well, I'm here because I couldn't get a job in what I wanted, but I
know that here I will run into the people that are in the business." And
he actually did. We did a story about him on the show. And it was
incredible because he put to the test and confirmed what I'm telling you
now.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well you obviously could write a book on how to succeed in many areas of
life. What's next for you?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, I definitely want to keep writing; that's my passion. And whenever
I retire, I will write, even if it's for myself, because writing is
something that gives you an incredible satisfaction. And what's next?
Well I have a lot projects in my career, and I always like to keep
reinventing myself. I think that is a key element when you are in this
kind of business because people get bored very easily. And I like to do
it not just for that reason, for marketing and strategic purposes, but
also because doing different things helps me find out things about
myself.

You know, when you have different challenges, like writing a children's
book without knowing how to do it, and it comes out well, then you feel
an incredible satisfaction that you took the chance. And you also learn
\-- like one time I was invited to participate in a soap opera as a
guest actress, and I'm not an actress. And I said yes, and I did it
because it's a fantastic opportunity. It could have bombed, but I did
it. And I loved going to that little world, and understanding how it
works. And then, you know, I stepped right back into mine, and it was
fine. But it's also something good for your viewers because they see
different facets, and they see different, you know, things that you can
do. So I think that's very important. I always say that Madonna has been
very clever in her career because she's like a chameleon, she always
does different things, and comes up with different options that makes
you keep tuned to her and wanting to find out more about her life.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well like mother like daughter \[mistook Madonna for my daughter\]. Can
you give us a preview of what fans can expect to hear from you at the
festival on Sept. 29?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well they can expect me to answer all the questions that they may have
about the book or about my career, future plans, anything they want to
ask. I've always been very open with the people that support my career.
And you know, I'm literally an open book. I like to share my life and my
projects with my viewers, and in this case, my readers, because I
believe that they give me the opportunity to go into their homes every
day, and they buy my books, and they show interest in my life \-- I owe
it to them. I think that \-- I kind of, as a viewer myself, and a reader
myself, and fan of many Hollywood stars myself, I resent when they
expect you to buy their books and their music and go to their movies,
and then when you, in turn, want to find out more about themselves \--
about them, sorry, they kind of block you and tell you that they don't
want to talk about their private life or what goes on in their minds.
And I think that's a very hypocritical attitude, and I'm the opposite of
that. And I think that has been a positive thing in my career.

Sheryl Cannady:

Why was it important for you to participate in the National Book
Festival? Was it to \--

María Celeste Arrarás:

It is an incredible honor because first of all, from the obvious point
of view, it's a fantastic, you know, trampoline for the launching of
this book. Second of all, because there's so many established
prestigious authors there, that to me \-- for me to be in their company
is an incredible honor. And also because it gives me the opportunity to
be with the fan base and the readers of the different genres and to get
to know more about them just like they expect to know more about me.

Sheryl Cannady:

What do you think is the most important story you've every covered?

María Celeste Arrarás:

You know, there have been so many important stories that I think that to
point out one would belittle so many others. But I have to tell you that
my experience has been that the most amazing stories and the most
amazing interviews are not usually the ones that are in the headlines or
the cover of magazines or in the, you know, opening the news shows. They
usually are the ones that are hidden. And the people that give the best
interviews are the ones that are not famous because usually famous
people are very \-- are coached of how to answer, and they're very
guarded. And you know, people out there are so much more sincere and
honest, and I always appreciate that. And you always get a lot more out
of those interviews than the big coups \[d'etat\], you know, that people
think are \-- and people are waiting for.

I do \-- I do remember one that had an incredible impact in my career,
which was the fall of the Soviet Union, because at the time I was just
starting in my career and I was lucky enough to be there in the middle
of glasnost and perestroika, to start covering that incredible
transition out of the \-- out of Moscow. And I was there for like a
whole month. And when I came back, you know, that documentary I did
about what was going on got a lot of attention and got a bunch of
awards. And that really was a big, big push for my career. And I got a
lot of attention because of that. And it \-- I started in the right
track.

Sheryl Cannady:

Do you have any closing remarks for us today?

María Celeste Arrarás:

Well, I'm very grateful that there's interest in this book, *"*The Magic
Cane*"*. To me, it's not a \-- it's not a project to, you know, to get
fame or money, or anything. It's a project that I want to really
communicate with the readers in a different level from what I do in
television, in a more magical, imaginary way, and also, to revive the
classic, the magical fables that I grew up, which \-- unfortunately
nowadays they're not that common. So I really wanted to rescue that
genre and share it with kids of this generation.

Sheryl Cannady:

Well thank you so much for being with us today.

María Celeste Arrarás:

Thank you.

Sheryl Cannady:

We are looking forward to your appearance at the National Book Festival
on Saturday, Sept. 29, on the National Mall from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The
event is free and open to the public. For more details and a list of
participating authors, visit loc.gov/bookfest. Thank you for listening.

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