BookDragon Children/Picture Books

Cicada by Shaun Tan [in Shelf Awareness]

12 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Australian, Australian Asian, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Middle Grade Readers, Repost, Young Adult Readers

In 2011, author/artist/filmmaker Shaun Tan won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award and received an Oscar for the animated adaptation of his book The Lost Thing. What initially brought him to international acclaim was the publication of The Arrival in 2006 (2007 in the U.S.). A...

We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices: Words and Images of Hope edited by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson [in Shelf Awareness]

29 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Black/African American, Children/Picture Books, Hapa/Mixed-race, Middle Grade Readers, Native American/First Nations/Indigenous Peoples, Nonfiction, Pan-Asian Pacific American, Poetry, Repost, Young Adult Readers

Inspired by their 7-year-old great-niece's distress over the 2016 elections, Just Us Books’ co-founders Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson created We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices as a contemporary antidote for fear. Recalling their dangerous experiences growing up in the 1950s and...

Under the Same Sky by Britta Teckentrup [in Shelf Awareness]

22 Nov, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific, Repost

Britta Teckentrup presents a wide, expansive world in Under the Same Sky. All the many species – lions, penguins, wolves, domestic cats – are connected by "the same love," "the same games," and "the same songs." Even forest bears and tropic flamingos "face the same storms"...

Time for Bed, Miyuki by Roxane Marie Galliez, illustrated by Seng Soun Ratanavanh [in Shelf Awareness]

28 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, European, Fiction, Japanese, Repost

"As the sun slowly hides to watch the moon rise," the nightingale, the ants, the toad all anticipate the approaching "hour of rest." Only Miyuki is still "busy playing and trying to push back time." Resisting her grandfather's gentle reminders, Miyuki insists, "I still have...

Undocumented: A Worker’s Fight by Duncan Tonatiuh [in Booklist]

19 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Graphic Title/Manga/Manwha, Latin American, Latina/o/x, Mexican, Mexican American, Repost

*STARRED REVIEW Surviving a life-threatening journey from Mexico to a “strange city” in the U.S., Juan joins his uncle and three cousins. He owes his low-wage, 12-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week restaurant job to a boss who insists he’s “doing [Juan] a favor because [he] had no papers.” Although he’s...

Thank You, Omu! by Oge Mora [in Shelf Awareness]

06 Sep, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Black/African American, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Repost

From an open window of a top-floor apartment on "the corner of First Street and Long Street" comes a most delicious smell. Omu (pronounced AH-moo) is preparing "a thick red stew in a big fat pot for a nice evening meal." Certain that "[t]onight's dinner...

A Big Mooncake for Little Star by Grace Lin [in Shelf Awareness]

24 Aug, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Chinese American, Fiction, Repost

*STARRED REVIEW Little Star and her Mama are such good bakers that Mama must remind Little Star once more to curb her appetite: "Can you remember not to touch this Big Mooncake until I tell you to?" Little Star's immediate agreement lasts through teeth brushing, face...

When the Cousins Came by Katie Yamasaki [in Shelf Awareness]

20 Jul, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Hapa/Mixed-race, Japanese American, Repost

"The night before the cousins came, [Lila] couldn't sleep," anticipating the fun she'd have with fellow "big kids" Rosie and Takeo. As soon as they arrive, Lila notices differences: unlike her own "two flat braids," Rosie has "two puffy balls on top of her head"...

Saturday Is Swimming Day by Hyewon Yum [in Shelf Awareness]

15 Jun, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Korean American, Repost

The stomachache ploy can't get a little girl out of her Saturday morning swim lesson. Armed with her "strawberry bathing suit" and "too-small swim cap," she arrives at the pool, where swim teacher Mary offers little comfort. On the "slippery and cold" pool deck overrun...

I Love My Purse by Belle DeMont, illustrated by Sonja Wimmer

14 Jun, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Canadian, Children/Picture Books, European, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific

One morning, Charlies pulls out the bright red purse from his grandmother and decides today is the day he's going to wear it out of his room and into the world. But before he's even down the stairs, his father has already warned Charlie that...

Julián Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love [in Shelf Awareness]

02 May, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Black/African American, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Repost

Riding the subway after a visit to the pool with his grandmother, young Julián notices three glamorous fellow passengers he's convinced are mermaids. And, of course, "Julián LOVES mermaids." Inspired by the company, the rest of Julián's train ride morphs into a dazzling underwater daydream...

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal [in Shelf Awareness]

20 Apr, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Latina/o/x, Repost, South American

For Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela, her oversized moniker is "'so long ...

What a Wonderful Word by Nicola Edwards, illustrated by Luisa Uribe

26 Mar, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction

Earlier this year, the National Book Foundation announced the addition of a fifth National Book Award: the National Book Award for Translated Literature. The news made me positively giddy: such specific recognition feels long overdue because I'm convinced translators do some of the hardest literary...

The Better Tree Fort by Jessica Scott Kerrin, illustrated by Qin Leng [in Shelf Awareness]

20 Mar, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Canadian, Canadian Asian Pacific American, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific, Repost

*STARRED REVIEW In Russell's new backyard stands a giant maple tree with "great big limbs and a trunk so wide, even Russell's dad could not wrap his arms around it." When Russell deems it ideal for a new fort, his dad initially hesitates: "'I don't know...

Trampoline Boy by Nan Forler, illustrated by Marion Arbona [in Shelf Awareness]

19 Mar, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Canadian, Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Nonethnic-specific, Repost

"Twirly-whirly,/ loop-dee-loop" takes Trampoline Boy up "into the blue, blue sky." Each "BOING" enables him to see something new, from his own backyard to far beyond the clouds. In the morning, after school, and "until the sky turn[s] pink," Trampoline Boy finds contentment in the...

Sakura’s Cherry Blossoms by Robert Paul Weston, illustrated by Misa Saburi [in Shelf Awareness]

23 Feb, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Fiction, Japanese, Japanese American, Repost

With a name that means "cherry blossom," Sakura's favorite time of the year is understandably spring, when her namesake blooms. Her grandmother gently nurtures her floral appreciation: "Together they sat/ in the shade of pink petals/...

The Secret Kingdom: Nek Chand, a Changing India, and a Hidden World of Art by Barb Rosenstock, illustrated by Claire A. Nivola [in Shelf Awareness]

29 Jan, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Indian, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction, Pakistani, Repost, South Asian

As a boy, Nek Chand "played and planted, laughed and listened ...

Write to Me: Letters from Japanese American Children to the Librarian They Left Behind by Cynthia Grady, illustrated by Amiko Hirao

23 Jan, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Children/Picture Books, Japanese American, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction

Beyond the barrage of soul-depleting headlines is this much-needed reminder of utter goodness, when one brave woman affected the lives of dozens of young children. And books – that very best antidote for all '-isms'  – were, of course involved. Among the 120,000 Americans of Japanese descent who...

Charlie Takes His Shot: How Charlie Sifford Broke the Color Barrier in Golf by Nancy Churnin, illustrated by John Joven [in Shelf Awarenss]

12 Jan, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Biography, Black/African American, Children/Picture Books, Nonfiction, Repost

African American legends like Serena Williams and Michael Jordan are household names, but not long ago, professional sports were strictly segregated. Jackie Robinson broke Major League Baseball's color barrier in 1947; the National Basketball Association allowed Earl Lloyd to play in 1950; Brown v. Board of...

Malala’s Magic Pencil by Malala Yousafzai, illustrated by Kerascoët

28 Dec, by Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in British Asian, Children/Picture Books, European, Memoir, Nonfiction, Pakistani, South Asian, Translation

As the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize – in 2014 at age 17 – Malala Yousafzai is an internationally recognized icon for girls' education and empowerment. Her story here speaks to the youngest readers, instilling potential and hope, rather than highlighting the fear and...