Tag Archives: Asian/Asian American

Book Lists by Topic, Educator Resources

NEW RESOURCE: AAPI Book List

Cover of AAPI Book List showing a young Chinese American girl on her uncle's shoulders with a storefront behind them

High-quality Asian American and Pacific Islander Books (AAPI) help build and affirm a child’s identity and culture. Lee & Low Books is proud to be a 100% Asian American-owned company, and we commit to publishing books by AAPI creators that illuminate America’s history of Asian American discrimination alongside books that celebrate AAPI contributions.

Our new AAPI Book List is digitally interactive, printable, and features some of our most popular award-winning AAPI titles for grades Pre-K through 12.

We’ve highlighted a few of our favorite titles from the list below. You can find all of the titles in our newly designed list here.

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Book Lists by Topic, Diversity, Educator Resources, Holidays and Celebrations

Books for AAPI Heritage Month

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As we enter Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we want to honor and celebrate AAPI creators and stories both new and old. Read books by AAPI authors and illustrators, uplift AAPI voices, and support AAPI activists and organizers all year round. Check out the book pages on our website to download teacher’s guides!

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Activities and Events, Educator Resources

Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of Lakas and the Manilatown Fish

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Today marks the 20th anniversary of picture book Lakas and the Manilatown Fish / Si Lakas at ang Isdang Manilatown from the all Filipino-American creative team of author Anthony D. Robles , illustrator Carl Angel, and designer Lucile Tenazas. Set in San Francisco’s historic Filipino community, this first-ever bilingual English-Tagalog story is a fanciful romp through a dreamscape of the imagination of young Lakas, exploring his neighborhood as he chases a magical fish from a fish store to the bay.

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Guest Blogger Post, Interviews with Authors and Illustrators

Honoring My Grandfather: Recognizing and Preserving My Asian American Heritage: A Guest Post by Emeline Lee

In this guest post, author Emeline Lee pays tribute to her engineer and storyteller grandfather in her debut picture book. Bonnie’s Rocket will be published October 18 and is available for pre-order now.

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Activities and Events

Explore Chinatown in Your City!

Our latest picture book release, Ten Blocks to the Big Wok by Ying-Hwa Hu, takes readers on an exciting tour of Chinatown. As Mia and Uncle Eddie walk to the Big Wok restaurant, their journey is filled with all sorts of sights that embody Chinese culture, while also teaching the reader how to count in Chinese!

Did you know that there are a TON of Chinatowns around the world, including the United States? Each of these cultural epicenters bring joy and community to those who live in them and to those who visit them! Today, we’re going to be sharing a few of the places you can visit in Chinatowns all across the United States—just like Mia!

Yi (one)…er (two)…san(three)…let’s go!

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Diversity, Educator Resources, Guest Blogger Post

Journey to the East: Teaching East Asia through Children’s Literature

In this guest post, Natasha Thomas, senior at Princeton University, discusses the importance of studying East Asia past and present. Thomas proposes creating a diverse collection that shows the multiple ethnic groups and tensions that contributed to the development of such influential cultures and helps American students understand this region with a rich, complicated history rather than the monolith it’s often portrayed as.

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Diversity, Diversity Baseline Survey, Diversity, Race, and Representation

Where Is the Diversity in Publishing? The 2019 Diversity Baseline Survey Results

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The Diversity Baseline Survey (DBS 2.0) was created by Lee & Low Books with co-authors Laura M. Jiménez, PhD, Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development and Betsy Beckert, graduate student in the Language and Literacy Department of Wheelock College of Education & Human Development

Lee & Low Books released the first Diversity Baseline Survey (DBS 1.0) in 2015. Before the DBS, people suspected publishing had a diversity problem, but without hard numbers, the extent of that problem was anyone’s guess. Our goal was to survey publishing houses and review journals regarding the racial, gender, sexual orientation, and ability makeup of their employees; establish concrete statistics about the diversity of the publishing workforce; and then build on this information by reissuing the survey every four years. Through these long-term efforts, we would be able to track what progress our industry shows over time in improving representation and inclusion. Continue reading →

Book News, Diversity, Diversity, Race, and Representation, Educator Resources, General, Interviews with Authors and Illustrators

Interview: Uma Krishnaswami on Citizenship, Culture, and Community

Today is the release day of Step Up to the Plate, Maria Singh, a middle grade historical novel about nine-year-old Maria Singh who longs to play softball. To celebrate, we interviewed author Uma Krishnaswami to find out more about her writing process and her inspiration behind Step Up to the Plate, Maria Singh.

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Book Lists by Topic, Diversity, Diversity, Race, and Representation, Educator Resources, General

10 Books for Children About Kindness

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Due to the current political climate, kindness and empathy are more important than ever. We know, however, that books can change a reader’s perspective and open a reader’s mind to a different world, a different culture, and a different way of life. In celebration of empathy and kindness, we’ve collected a list of recommended books that encourage kindness, giving, and open-mindedness.

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