Diane Gonzales Bertrand began writing novels when she was in fifth grade at Little Flower School in San Antonio, Texas. She continued writing humorous plays for her drama class, poetry for her relatives, and skits for Girl Scout camp. After she graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 1979, she began teaching English at the middle school and high school levels. She started writing for publication after she earned her graduate degree in English-Communication Arts from Our Lady of the Lake University in 1992.
Her focus has been on “family reading,” books appropriate for families to read and enjoy together. All of her books are published by Arte Publico Press in Houston, Texas. Other novels include Sweet Fifteen, Lessons of the Game, Alicia’s Treasure, and Trino’s Choice, a novel for middle school readers that earned several book awards. Her picture book, Family, Familia, was voted best bi-lingual picture book by 2000 National Latino Literary Hall of Fame. Her book, Uncle Chente’s Picnic earned the 2001 Reading with Energy Hispanic Children’s Book Award. Her new books are The Last Doll and Trino’s Time.
Ms. Bertrand still lives in San Antonio with her husband, Nick, and their two teenage children. She is Writer-in-Residence at St. Mary’s University, where she teaches creative writing and English composition.