carlos matias

2025 ezra jack keats writer honor!!! this one is dedicated to little los from 103rd street—you kept writing, held onto that dream of becoming a published author, and made it happen. and you’re pretty okay at it too. but that didn’t happen without a wonderful team of people. to the dream team: mabel—this book lit-er-ally wouldn’t exist without you. gracey, your illustrations brought this story to life in ways i couldn’t have imagined. hannah, my agent, thank you for believing in me, listening to all my wild ideas, and reminding me we’re just getting started. to everyone who copped the book, came to my readings, or shared a kind word—thank you. to the schools, museums, and bookstores that opened their doors and arms to me and my story—your support means everything. congrats to the other winners! it’s an honor to see my book next to such incredible work. special s/o to antwan who’s not just an inspiration, but one of my favorite writers and a great friend. and to the ejk committee—thank you for celebrating stories that show kids they belong. what you do matters, and i’m beyond grateful to be part of it. huge thanks to the amazing team at harpercollins and katherine tegen books for championing this book from day one. @ejkfoundation @usmdegrum @southernmisscbf @harpercollins @katherinetegenbooks #TheSnowyDay #EJKAward #EzraJackKeats

A HUGE thank you to everyone who came out last week, listened to me read my story, and ate all the empanadas at the launch event. Your support means the world to me. 🙏❤️ Special shoutout to all the amazing kids, parents, teachers, and booksellers who made last week unforgettable. What an incredible journey it’s been so far. I’ll be hitting up a few more places this month and next. So stay tuned! Swipe through for some of my favorite moments. 1 - launch event at @booksaremagicbk (sold out of books and empanadas) 2 - @ny1 Interview 3- the book and the inspiration in the background 4- signing stock at booksofwonder 5 - reading to my lil homies. shoutout to ps189 for buying books for the entire school and to @dominicanwriters for the connect 6 - my first book ever signed at @littlecitybooks after story time. 7 - my hearts 9 - i wear all my jewelry to my book signings 10 - updated schedule with new dates

i received the incredible news that ‘emergency quarters’ has been awarded a kirkus star! 🌟 only 10% of the books they review receive this honor, so i’m beyond grateful for this recognition. this was not on my bingo card for 2024, but here we are! three months until launch day, three years since my editor mabel reached out asking if i wanted to write a picture book, and 2.5 years since i met my agent hannah and she corrected me, ‘you’re not lucky, you’re talented.’ huge thanks to everyone who’s been a part of this journey, has been sharing my stuff and pre-ordering my book. 🙏🏽 preorder at the link in bio. #kirkusreviews #kirkusstar #emergencyquarters

late to post this but had to share. @tripadvisor featured me as the nyc voice for latinx month (!!) i got to highlight some of my favorite places across the city, from queens to uptown. thank you @ximenanbqk !!!

thanks to everyone at the @msbookfestival . so grateful for the chance to sit on the ezra jack keats panel, share space with my fellow honorees, and soak up wisdom from @jasonreynolds83 @writeinbk and @nifmuhammad . thank you to everyone who made that weekend unforgettable. grateful for every step.

📚✨ On the latest episode of Book It, Carlos Matias joins Isabel Ortiz in the Breaking Books studio to talk about his debut children’s book Emergency Quarters! They dive into NYC influence, 90s nostalgia, financial literacy for kids—and yes, the tragic disappearance of the pay phone 😆📞 📺Watch the full episode of Book It now—link in bio! #ChildrensBook #NYC #CUNY #BookIt #Illustration

a few weeks late, but still just as excited. so honored to have received a 2025 ezra jack keats writer honor for emergency quarters. huge thanks to @usmdegrum and @ejkfoundation for such an amazing trip. and thank you hattiesburg, mississippi, for the warmth, the welcome, and the unforgettable four days.
 even if the rest of me flew home on southwest, a piece of me is still in hattiesburg. and huge shoutout to the other honorees and winners!! it was so inspiring to meet everyone. please make sure to check them out. @bowru @xfang_studio @bremacbooks @antwan.eady @beinginthemaking 1 - i was really up there giving thanks and shoutouts like i was at the grammys. 2 - very shiny ejk seal! 3 - something nice to take back to the hood with me 4 - my book is in a case at the school, yall! 5 - the honorees and winners 6 - signed a bunch of books 7 - trying to sound smart at a panel

@graceyyz and i spoke to npr about ‘emergency quarters,’ our creative process and how 90’s sitcoms influenced the illustrations. link in bio. #picturebooks #harpercollins #emergencyquarters

los loves the kids. so me and my picture book are going to be visiting bookstores and schools near you. come through and bring the little homies with you. links and info on individual events coming soon! and more dates to come. @littlecitybooks @booksaremagicbk @booksandbooks @mofad @dominicanwriters “emergency quarters” is a heart warming story set in corona, queens about a kid who tries his best to avoid spending his precious coins on tempting local treats in case of an “emergency.” the book was inspired by my finalist short story in the new york times metropolitan diary, “best of the year. #emergencyquarters #dominicanwriters #booksaremagicbk #booksandbookscoralgables #littlecitybookshoboken #mofad #picturebook #childrensbooks

i still can’t believe i’m seeing my childhood neighborhood and experiences in the pages of a book. this is for the younger versions of ourselves. unaware of the amazing places we’d go, the incredible people we’d meet, and the great things we’d accomplish. this one is for corona. it’s queens forever. preorder emergency quarters now at the link in bio. 🎥: @cruzxctrl 🎨: @graceyyz

shot my author video for “emergency quarters” in my old corona, queens neighborhood. if this gets 100 likes i’ll drop the video friday @ midnight like a drake album. 📹 shot & edited by @cruzxctrl 💇🏽‍♀️💄hair & makeup by @kingpin_kel

im hyped to announce that emergency quarters has been chosen as a jr library guild gold standard selection. it’s amazing to see the feedback and love the book has been receiving and it hasn’t even dropped yet. thanks to @jrlibraryguild for this award. thanks to everyone for the preorders. ❤️ #emergencyquarters #childrensbooks #picturebooks #jlgselection