About Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month
May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month – a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. A rather broad term, Asian/Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island).
Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month originated with Congress by Representative Frank Horton and Senator Danial Inouye in 1977. On October 5, 1978, President Jimmy Carter established Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week and in 1990, Congress extended the observance to a month. May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843 and to mark the anniversary of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869 as the majority of the workers were Chinese immigrants.
Eyes that Kiss in the Corners
by Joanna Ho
In this moving book, a young Asian girl talks about what makes her eyes special and how they connect her to the other members of her family. Her eyes "kiss in the corners and glow like warm tea." At bedtime, her mother's eyes "tell me I'm a miracle." Though her Amah (grandma) can't see the same way she used to, her eyes are filled with stories.
Drawn Together
by Minh Le
When a young Vietnamese American boy arrives at his grandfather's house, the two struggle to make a connection. The boy doesn't speak Vietnamese, and his grandfather doesn't speak English, so how can they communicate?
Elaborate illustrations show the pair experiencing both boredom and frustration as the morning goes on. Can they find a way to tell each other stories that go beyond words?
You Can Do It, Yasmin!
by Saadia Faruqi
The Yasmin series is perfect for children who want to read chapter books but still prefer lots of illustrations and short chapters. This volume combines several shorter Yasmin books and shows her learning new things like soccer (even when she's afraid she might get hurt) and gardening (which requires her to use her problem-solving skills.)
From navigating new friendships to figuring out a tricky school assignment, Yasmin shows kids what can happen when we stretch ourselves and try new things.
American Panda
by Gloria Chao
American Panda follows seventeen year old Taiwanese-American, Mei. Mei is a germaphobe, forced into a premed program by her very traditional parents. She is afraid to reveal that she instead would rather own a dance studio. Especially after her brother Xing is disowned for choosing a spouse his parents disapprove of.
American Born Chinese
by Gene Luen Yang
Jin Wang starts at a new school where he’s the only Chinese-American student. When a boy from Taiwan joins his class, Jin doesn’t want to be associated with an FOB like him. Jin just wants to be an all-American boy, because he’s in love with an all-American girl. Danny is an all-American boy: great at basketball, popular with the girls. But his obnoxious Chinese cousin Chin-Kee’s annual visit is such a disaster that it ruins Danny’s reputation at school, leaving him with no choice but to transfer somewhere he can start all over again. The Monkey King has lived for thousands of years and mastered the arts of kung fu and the heavenly disciplines. He’s ready to join the ranks of the immortal gods in heaven. But there’s no place in heaven for a monkey. Each of these characters cannot help himself alone, but how can they possibly help each other? They’re going to have to find a way―if they want to fix the disasters their lives have become.
Ayesha Dean The Istanbul Intrigue
by Melati Lum
Ayesha and her friends Sara and Jess jump at the chance of accompanying Ayesha’s uncle on a trip from Australia to Istanbul. But when Ayesha discovers a mysterious note as a result of visiting an old bookshop, their relaxing holiday starts to get a whole lot more complicated! Ayesha finds herself trying to uncover a hundred-year-old Ibn Arabi mystery, while trying to avoid creepy villains, and still making sure that she gets to eat the best doner kebab Istanbul has to offer. It’s all in a day’s sleuthing when you’re Ayesha Dean. Lucky she can count on her best friends to always have her back!
