Rosemary Wells

Mmm, Yoko’s mom has packed her favorite for lunch today—sushi! But her classmates don’t think it looks quite so yummy. “Ick!” says one of the Franks. “It’s seaweed!” They’re not even impressed by her red bean ice cream dessert. Of course, Mrs. Jenkins has a plan that might solve Yoko’s problem. But will it work with the other children in class? Now in paperback for the first time, this tender story from Rosemary Wells demonstrates the author’s uncanny understanding of the pleasures and pains of an ordinary school day.

Yoko

Debbi Michiko Florence

Elizabet Vukovic

The first book in a new chapter book series featuring a spunky Japanese-American heroine! Eight-year-old Jasmine Toguchi is a flamingo fan, tree climber, and top-notch mess-maker! She’s also tired of her big sister, Sophie, always getting to do things first. For once, Jasmine wishes SHE could do something before Sophie—something special, something different. The New Year approaches, and as the Toguchi family gathers in Los Angeles to celebrate, Jasmine is jealous that her sister gets to help roll mochi balls by hand with the women. Her mom says that Jasmine is still too young to join in, so she hatches a plan to help the men pound the mochi rice instead. Surely her sister has never done THAT before. But pounding mochi is traditionally reserved for boys. And the mochi hammer is heavier than it looks. Can Jasmine build her case and her mochi-making muscles in time for New Year’s Day?

Jasmine Toguchi, Mochi Queen

Kyo Maclear

Julie Morstad

Japanese Americans

prejudice and racism

4 Starred Reviews * An Indie Next List Pick “Playful, bold, and, much like its subject, full of grace.” –Jillian Tamaki, Caldecott Honor winner for This One Summer “It Began with a Page tells [Gyo Fujikawa’s] story beautifully, in picture-book form.” –The New YorkerFrom beloved team Kyo Maclear and Julie Morstad (creators of Julia, Child and Bloom: A Story of Fashion Designer Elsa Schiaparelli) comes an elegant picture book biography that portrays the most moving moments in the life of Gyo Fujikawa, a groundbreaking Japanese American hero in the fight for racial diversity in picture books.Equal parts picture book biography, inspiring story, and a look at racial diversity in America, It Began with a Page is a gem for any book lover, librarian, or child who dares to dream big.Growing up in California, Gyo Fujikawa always knew that she wanted to be an artist. She was raised among strong women, including her mother and teachers, who encouraged her to fight for what she believed in. During World War II, Gyo’s family was forced to abandon everything and was taken to an internment camp in Arkansas.Far away from home, Gyo worked as an illustrator in New York while her innocent family was imprisoned. Seeing the diversity around her and feeling pangs from her own childhood, Gyo became determined to show all types of children in the pages of her books. There had to be a world where they saw themselves represented. Gyo’s book Babies was initially rejected by her publisher, but after she insisted, they finally relented, and Babies went on to sell almost two million copies. Gyo’s books paved the way for publishers, teachers, and readers to see what we can be when we welcome others into our world.The book includes extensive backmatter, including a note from the creators, a timeline, archival photos, and further information on Gyo Fujikawa.A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2019A Kirkus Best of 2019 Picture BookA 2020 ALSC Notable Children’s BookA 2020 Orbis Pictus Recommended Title awarded annually by NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English)Featured in the 2019 Original Art Show at the Society of Illustrators

It Began with a Page: How Gyo Fujikawa Drew the Way

Cynthia Kadohata

death, grief, and bereavement

kira-kira (kee ra kee ra): glittering; shining 

Glittering. That’s how Katie Takeshima’s sister Lynn makes everything seem. The sky is kira-kira because its color is deep but see-through at the same time. The sea is kira-kira for the same reason. And so are people s eyes. When Katie and her family move from a Japanese community in Iowa to the Deep South of Georgia it’s Lynn who explains to her why people stop on the street to stare. And it’s Lynn who with her special way of viewing the world teaches Katie to look beyond tomorrow. But when Lynn becomes desperately ill and the whole family begins to fall apart it is up to Katie to find a way to remind them all that there is always something glittering – kira-kira – in the future.

Kira-Kira

Andrea D'Aquino

Ruth Asawa (1926-2013) was an influential and award-winning sculptor, a beloved figure in the Bay Area art world, and a devoted activist who advocated tirelessly for arts education. This lushly illustrated book by collage artist Andrea D’Aquino brings Asawa’s creative journey to life, detailing the influence of her childhood in a farming family, and her education at Black Mountain College where she pursued an experimental course of education with leading avant-garde artists and thinkers such as Anni and Josef Albers, Buckminster Fuller, Merce Cunningham, and Robert Rauschenberg. Delightful and substantial, this engaging title for young art lovers includes a page of teaching tools for parents and educators.

A Life Made by Hand

Yoko is so excited for the first day of school. She’s just learned to write her name. But when Mrs. Jenkins asks Yoko to show everyone, Olive and Sylvia make fun of her Japanese writing. “Yoko can’t write. She’s only scribbling!” The teasing continues as Yoko shares her favorite book at show and tell, and reads it back to front.

That evening, Yoko declares that she can’t go back to school. “How can I when my reading and writing are a failure?” she asks. Luckily a little wisdom from her Mama, a little cooperation from Mrs. Jenkins, and a lot of enthusiasm from her classmates teach Yoko the most important lesson of the year: that friendship can bridge cultural differences.

Not only does Yoko learn to read and write in English and graduate Kindergarten with her classmates, but everyone’s name appears in two languages on their diplomaeven Olive’s and Sylvia’s!

Yoko Writes Her Name

Allen Say

The author-artist of Tree of Cranes provides a moving, beautifully illustrated study of his family’s own cross-cultural experience, in personal reminiscences of his grandfather’s life in America and Japan that convey a love for both countries.

Grandfather's Journey

Yoshiko Uchida

Joanna Yardley

In 1942 America, seven-year-old Emi and her Japanese-American family are forced to leave their home, a situation that becomes even more devastating when she loses a precious gold bracelet, a gift from her best friend.

The Bracelet

Matt Forsyth

Mayumi Shimose Poe

Pearl Harbor

survival stories

history

In 1941, thirteen-year-old Alice’s days are filled with swimming in the Hawaiian sea, going to school, and helping watch her younger siblings. But on December 7, everything changes when she experiences an act of war, the bombing of Pearl Harbor. As the United States enters World War II, Alice’s father is sent to a Japanese internment camp, leaving Alice and the rest of her family struggling to adjust to life without him. Featuring nonfiction support material, a glossary, and reader response questions, this Girls Survive story takes readers to one of history’s most important moments.

Alice on the Island: A Pearl Harbor Survival Story

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book * A 2020 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults SelectionFor fans of Jenny Han, Morgan Matson, and Sandhya Menon, critically acclaimed author Misa Sugiura delivers a richly crafted contemporary YA novel about family, community, and the importance of writing your own history.The author of the Asian Pacific American Award-winning It’s Not Like It’s a Secret is back with another smartly drawn coming-of-age novel that weaves riveting family drama, surprising humor, and delightful romance into a story that will draw you in from the very first page.Katsuyamas never quit–but seventeen-year-old CJ doesn’t even know where to start. She’s never lived up to her mom’s type A ambition, and she’s perfectly happy just helping her aunt, Hannah, at their family’s flower shop.She doesn’t buy into Hannah’s romantic ideas about flowers and their hidden meanings, but when it comes to arranging the perfect bouquet, CJ discovers a knack she never knew she had. A skill she might even be proud of. Then her mom decides to sell the shop–to the family who swindled CJ’s grandparents when thousands of Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps during WWII. Soon a rift threatens to splinter CJ’s family, friends, and their entire Northern California community; and for the first time, CJ has found something she wants to fight for.–Stacey Lee, award-winning author of Outrun the Moon and The Secret of a Heart Note

This Time Will Be Different

Ann Malaspina

Merrilee Liddiard

It’s 1942. Sam’s class is knitting socks for soldiers and Sam is a terrible knitter. Keiko is a good knitter, but some kids at school don’t want anything to do with her because the Japanese have bombed Pearl Harbor and her family is Japanese American. When Keiko’s family is forced to move to a camp for Japanese Americans, can Sam find a way to demonstrate his friendship?– “Journal”

A Scarf for Keiko

Katie Yamasaki

For two boys in a Japanese American family, everything changed when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States went to war.   With the family forced to leave their home and go to an internment camp, Jimmy loses his appetite. Older brother Taro takes matters into his own hands and, night after night, sneaks out of the camp and catches fresh fish for Jimmy to help make him strong again. This affecting tale of courage and love is an adaptation of the author’s true family story, and includes a letter to readers with more information about the historical background and inspiration.

Fish for Jimmy: Inspired by One Family's Experience in a Japanese American Internment Camp

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year! A multicultural family story that celebrates kindness and differences Lila is excited for her cousins Takeo and Rosie to visit. They’re going to ride bikes, paint, and camp together! But when the cousins arrive, everything’s wrong: Rosie and Takeo are better painters than Lila, have skateboards instead of bikes, and don’t want to camp outside. Lila is terribly disappointed until the cousins make her a surprise: a big banner for their “best cousin” Lila! Inspired by the author’s own large, diverse family,  When the Cousins Came is a sensitive story about insecurity, hosting, and friendship. Katie Yamasaki’s tale, paired with bright mixed-media art, reminds children that negative thoughts and anxiety over exclusion don’t always translate to reality, and that even when plans go wrong you can still have a good time together.

When the Cousins Came

Fans of Lisa Greenwald and Wendy Mass are sure to fall head-over-heels for this funny, sweet story of crushes, competition, and the confusing reality of middle school.Heartbreak is for suckers.When Jenna Sakai gets dumped over winter break, it confirms what she learned from her parents’ messy divorce: Relationships are risky and only lead to disappointment. So even though she still has to see her ex-boyfriend Elliott at newspaper club, Jenna is going to be totally heartless this semester – no boys, just books.But keeping her cool isn’t always easy. Jenna’s chief competition for a big journalism scholarship is none other than Elliott. Her best friend Keiko always seems busy with her own boyfriend. And cute-but-incredibly-annoying Rin Watanabe keeps stealing her booth at the diner she’s been hiding at every day after school. Rin is every bit as stubborn and detached as Jenna. And the more Jenna gets to know him, the more intriguing a mystery he seems. Soon Jenna is starting to realize that being a loner is kind of, well, lonely. And letting people in might just be a risk worth taking.

Just Be Cool, Jenna Sakai

Cat lovers can’t miss this purr-fectly enchanting, sparkly chapter book series about Kitty, the girl who magically turns into a cat! Kitty has always thought she was allergic to cats, but during a midnight sneezing fit at a sleepover, she learns that the truth is far more magical–Kitty is able to turn into a cat! She eagerly takes her place as the Guardian of the local cats’ Cat Council, using her human knowledge to help them solve their feline problems. It’s the start of a new school year, and Kitty volunteers to partner with a kindergarten buddy, Lila. Kitty soon realizes that Lila is shy and is having trouble making friends in her class. Meanwhile, the local cats are worried–they haven’t seen the new kitten Scout in a few days. Kitty realizes that Scout is Lila’s cat, and Scout had been locked in the house for safety after following Lila to school. Lila and Scout miss each other throughout the day–can Kitty find a way to help her two new friends? Read all the books in the Kitty’s Magic series!Misty the Scared KittenShadow the Lonely CatRuby the Runaway KittenStar the Little Farm CatFrost and Snowdrop the Stray KittensSooty the Birthday CatScout the School CatBobby the Show-Off Cat

Scout the School Cat

Michelle Schusterman

The Kudo Kids are back in this fun filled, fast-paced middle-grade mystery from two-time Olympic bronze medalists Maia and Alex Shibutani, perfect for fans of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library.  Andy and Mika are about to take a bite out of the Big Apple. When the Kudo Kids travel to New York City for the first time, they’re ready to hit the ground running and see the sights. But the siblings quickly realize that they’re excited for very different reasons–Mika wants to take photos of iconic landmarks and visit a famous camera store, while Andy can’t wait to try out an escape room that one of his friends told him about. Both of their plans get shaken up when they learn that Aunt Kei is in desperate need of assistance as she prepares for an important fashion presentation. Not wanting to pass up an opportunity to explore, Andy and Mika enthusiastically volunteer to help run errands with their cousin, Jenny. When a very special dress, the centerpiece of Aunt Kei’s collection, goes missing, they find themselves on a chase around the city to find it in another unforgettable mystery that will leave readers guessing until the very end.

The Mystery in Manhattan

Cat lovers can’t miss this purr-fectly enchanting, sparkly chapter book series about Kitty, the girl who magically turns into a cat! Kitty has always thought she was allergic to cats, but during a midnight sneezing fit at a sleepover, she learns that the truth is far more magical–Kitty is able to turn into a cat! She eagerly takes her place as the Guardian of the local cats’ Cat Council, using her human knowledge to help them solve their feline problems. Kitty and the local cats decide to have a friendly competition–racing, tree climbing, fence jumping, and more. But the cats don’t want to invite Bobby, a new cat in town known for showing off and bragging. That doesn’t seem right to Kitty though, and when she gets to know Bobby, she realizes Bobby is hiding that fact that he is a stray. Will Kitty be able to find him a home before the competition? Read all the books in the Kitty’s Magic series!Misty the Scared KittenShadow the Lonely CatRuby the Runaway KittenStar the Little Farm CatFrost and Snowdrop the Stray KittensSooty the Birthday CatScout the School CatBobby the Show-Off Cat

Bobby the Show-Off Cat

From two-time Olympic bronze medalists Maia and Alex Shibutani comes a fun-filled, fast-paced middle-grade mystery set at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Andy and Mika are going to Tokyo! The Kudo Kids have never been to Japan before, so they can’t believe they get to attend the Summer Olympics there. The siblings plan to eat tons of delicious Japanese food, watch every event they can, and win a super-popular new game called OlympiFan. Developed by a mysterious former medalist, OlympiFan brings players together from all over the world to search Tokyo for virtual medals and clues to the creator’s identity. Andy loves puzzles, and he’s determined to crack this one, especially since the winning team will get to be beta testers for the Masked Medalist’s future games! Mika wants to find as many clues as she can, but she also has a secret goal of her own–one that could get her into big trouble. But when someone sabotages the game, the Kudo Kids have an even bigger mystery to solve than the Masked Medalist’s identity. If they want to capture the gold, Mika and Andy have to figure out who’s trying to stop their team before someone beats them to the grand prize!

The Mystery of the Masked Medalist

A trio of young superheroes try to thwart a spy in this second book in the action-packed, comics-inspired adventure series that’s Hidden Figures meets Wonder Woman! After defeating The Hisser–and discovering their power as a team–Infinity Trinity is ready for its next adventure. When Akiko, Mae, and Josie learn that a spy has been betraying secrets to the Japanese military, they join Room Twelve in San Francisco for important work with other code-cracking experts. But soon there is personal code to crack: Akiko spots her mom walking with the suspected spy through San Francisco, which had been her family’s home until Executive Order No. 9066 sent Akiko and all Japanese Americans on the West Coast into internment camps. Teaming up with brilliant members of The League of Secret Heroes–like real-life World War II code-crackers Genevieve Grotjan and Elizebeth Friedman–Akiko, Mae, and Josie search for answers as they battle the evil clown Side-Splitter, who’s bent on destroying not only the city, but the Infinity Trinity, too. As clues begin to pile up that her mother has become entangled with Side-Splitter’s sinister plot, can Akiko solve the most important puzzle of all?

Mask

Kate Messner

I Survived meets The Puppy Place in this thrilling adventure novel as Ranger – a time-traveling golden retriever – races to the rescue on the day of the Pearl Harbor attack.Ranger travels back to 1941 Hawaii, where World War II is on everyone’s minds. That includes Ben Hansen, a young sailor stationed at Pearl Harbor, and twins Paul and Grace Yamada who are making their weekly market trip when Japanese bombs begin to fall from the sky. As the surprise attack puts all of Ranger’s new friends in danger, his search-and-rescue training kicks in to high gear. Can he help them survive against all odds?

Attack on Pearl Harbor

Melanie Demmer

A new foster pet, someBUNNY special, has arrived at the Takano house, and eight-year-old Kaita is over the moon! But Roo isn’t lick-your-face friendly like the dogs Kaita’s used to fostering, and she soon wonders if she’ll ever be able to break the ice and find the skittish mini lop a forever home. The chapter book is a charmingly illustrated lesson in patience, narrated by Kaita herself.

Roo the Rabbit

What do you do with a gentle Great Dane who’s the size of a cow but acts like he’s no bigger than a mini dachshund? If you’re eight-year-old Kaita Takano and her animal-fostering family, you shower the dog with love and do everything you can to find him a forever home. Sweet-natured illustrations and Kaita’s first-person narration pair up for plenty of chapter book fun.

Kingston the Great Dane

Japanese culture

performing arts

clubs

making friends

Generation Misfits by Akemi Dawn Bowman is a heartwarming, fish-out-of-water own voices story about an eleven-year-old Japanese-American girl who finds her true friends–through the power of J-Pop!Millie is attending a real school for the first time, and she dreams of finally having friends and a little bit of freedom. She finds her chance when she joins an imitation band of her favorite J-Pop group, where she’s thrilled to meet a group of misfits who quickly become a tightknit group of friends that are like family. But Millie soon realizes that one of them is dealing with problems bigger than what notes to hit when it comes time for their performance. Can Millie help her friend, even when their problem feels too big to say out loud?

Generation Misfits

World War II

Ten-year-old Manami did not realize how peaceful her family’s life on Bainbridge Island was until the day it all changed. It’s 1942, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and Manami and her family are Japanese American, which means that the government says they must leave their home by the sea and join other Japanese Americans at a prison camp in the desert. Manami is sad to go, but even worse is that they are going to have to give her and her grandfather’s dog, Yujiin, to a neighbor to take care of. Manami decides to sneak Yujiin under her coat and gets as far as the mainland before she is caught and forced to abandon Yujiin. She and her grandfather are devastated, but Manami clings to the hope that somehow Yujiin will find his way to the camp and make her family whole again. It isn’t until she finds a way to let go of her guilt that Manami can reclaim the piece of herself that she left behind and accept all that has happened to her family.

Paper Wishes

Julia Kuo

farm life and ranch life

grandparent-grandchild relationships

luck

The winner of the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, from Newbery Medalist Cynthia Kadohata. There is bad luck, good luck, and making your own luck–which is exactly what Summer must do to save her family. Summer knows that kouun means “good luck” in Japanese, and this year her family has none of it. Just when she thinks nothing else can possibly go wrong, an emergency whisks her parents away to Japan–right before harvest season. Summer and her little brother, Jaz, are left in the care of their grandparents, who come out of retirement in order to harvest wheat and help pay the bills. The thing about Obaachan and Jiichan is that they are old-fashioned and demanding, and between helping Obaachan cook for the workers, covering for her when her back pain worsens, and worrying about her lonely little brother, Summer just barely has time to notice the attentions of their boss’s cute son. But notice she does, and what begins as a welcome distraction from the hard work soon turns into a mess of its own. Having thoroughly disappointed her grandmother, Summer figures the bad luck must be finished–but then it gets worse. And when that happens, Summer has to figure out how to change it herself, even if it means further displeasing Obaachan. Because it might be the only way to save her family. Cynthia Kadohata’s ode to the breadbasket of America has received six starred reviews and was selected as a National Book Award Finalist.

The Thing about Luck

Cynthia Grady

Amiko Hirao

“Dear Miss Breed . . .”

A touching story about Japanese American children who corresponded with their beloved librarian while they were imprisoned in World War II internment camps.

When Executive Order 9066 is enacted after the attack at Pearl Harbor, children’s librarian Clara Breed’s young Japanese American patrons are to be sent to prison camp. Before they are moved, Breed asks the children to write her letters and gives them books to take with them. Through the three years of their internment, the children correspond with Miss Breed, sharing their stories, providing feedback on books, and creating a record of their experiences. Using excerpts from children’s letters held at the Japanese American National Museum, author Cynthia Grady presents a difficult subject with honesty and hope.

Write to Me: Letters from Japanese American Children to the Librarian They Left Behind

George Takei

Justin Eisinger

Steven Scott

Harmony Becker

evacuation and relocation

New York Times Bestseller!A stunning graphic memoir recounting actor/author/activist George Takei’s childhood imprisoned within American concentration camps during World War II. Experience the forces that shaped an American icon – and America itself – in this gripping tale of courage, country, loyalty, and love. George Takei has captured hearts and minds worldwide with his captivating stage presence and outspoken commitment to equal rights. But long before he braved new frontiers in Star Trek, he woke up as a four-year-old boy to find his own birth country at war with his father’s – and their entire family forced from their home into an uncertain future.In 1942, at the order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, every person of Japanese descent on the west coast was rounded up and shipped to one of ten relocation centers, hundreds or thousands of miles from home, where they would be held for years under armed guard.They Called Us Enemy is Takei’s firsthand account of those years behind barbed wire, the joys and terrors of growing up under legalized racism, his mother’s hard choices, his father’s faith in democracy, and the way those experiences planted the seeds for his astonishing future.What does it mean to be American? Who gets to decide? When the world is against you, what can one person do? To answer these questions, George Takei joins co-writers Justin Eisinger &amp;amp; Steven Scott and artist Harmony Becker for the journey of a lifetime.

They Called Us Enemy

The second heartfelt story of friendship and sisterhood in this charming new chapter book series, starring a Japanese-American girl! It’s a big weekend for Jasmine Toguchi! She’s excited to celebrate Girl’s Day—a Japanese holiday honoring women and girls—with her sister, mother, and best friend, Linnie. On Friday after school, Linnie comes over to plan their outfits for the Girl’s Day celebrations. And Jasmine’s neighbor, Mrs. Reese, lets them search through her old clothes for the perfect accessories. But the clothes are in her dark garage, which is kind of scary. And Linnie decides to go home early, which is kind of weird. And Jasmine’s big sister, Sophie, doesn’t seem to want to join in the Girl’s Day fun this year, which is kind of confusing. WHAT is going on? As her big weekend plans start to unravel, Jasmine must use her sleuthing skills to spot the clues around her—and within herself. Then maybe, just maybe, she can put everything back in order before Girl’s Day is over!

Super Sleuth

Marissa Moss

Yuko Shimizu

Traces the childhood dream of Japanese-American baseball pioneer Kenichi Zenimura of playing professionally and his family’s struggles in a World War II internment camp where he introduces baseball to raise hope.

Barbed Wire Baseball

Kim Smith

When The Karate Kid appeared in theaters in 1984, its heartwarming story of an unlikely friendship between a bullied boy and his karate teacher won over audiences and inspired children across America to take up martial arts. Now this beloved film is reimagined as a Pop Classics picture book, with Kim Smith’s bright and kid-friendly illustrations capturing all of the story’s iconic moments. Young Daniel moves to a new town and becomes the target of bullies from the local karate dojo Cobra Kai. Hoping to win the upcoming karate tournament, Daniel begs his neighbor Mr. Miyagi to help him train. Mr. Miyagi reluctantly agrees. But he becomes more than just Daniel’s sensei by teaching him lessons about patience, balance, and hard work along the way. This timeless story about finding inner strength will enchant children, their parents, and anyone who has ever had that one special teacher.

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