Mari combined her passion for teaching Spanish, writing about real life events and social justice into "Felicitas y Gonzalo Méndez: Para todos los ninos."

After 18 years in the classroom, Mari Vicente just retired as a Spanish teacher. Her work experience also includes journalism and social work. Felicitas y Gonzalo Méndez: Para todos los niños is her first novel. A graduate of the University of Puerto Rico's Journalism School, Mari now lives in western Massachusetts with her husband, Nick and is a member of the writing collaborative, The Writing Sisters. She plans to continue writing about the many Latinas who’ve done great things in the world, but whose stories remain untold.