Please welcome Katrina Moore as my guest author today! We are both in the New in 19 debut picture book group. One Hug is her debut picture book, and she also has Grandpa Grumps coming out in
April of 2020!
We are giving away a signed and inscribed copy of One Hug! To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter at the bottom!
————–
When Mia asked me to put together a guest post highlighting Chinese American Picture Books, I started to compile a list of my favorite ones. I realized that not only do I love these books because they show main characters whose lives reflect mine, but they are also filled with delicious food! I started thinking about my favorite memories, and most of them involve (or revolve around) food, as well. So the books I’ve chosen to highlight are ones that I’ve connected deeply with, both because of the characters, and because of the food!
Chinese American Picture Books To Fill Your Heart and Belly
One Hug, written by me and illustrated by Julia Woolf, includes close up spots of a little girl making dumplings with her grandma. I grew up eating dumplings as much as, if not more, than pancakes on weekend mornings. So it was really special to see the illustrator capture this moment between granddaughter and grandma so tenderly. But this book, as the title implies, is about much more than food and family. At its heart—it’s about one hug connecting us in ways that sometimes words cannot. [picture book, ages 0-4]
Dumpling Dreams: How Joyce Chen Brought the Dumpling from Beijing to Cambridge by Carrie Clickard and Katy Wu is an upbeat, fun, rhyming read aloud that shares the story of little Joyce Chen and how she persevered, faced adversity, and became famous for her dumplings. I love how accessible this book is for a young reader. It does not shy away from the tough moments in Joyce’s life like escaping communism and immigrating to a new country, but presents it honestly, yet with an upbeat tone. There’s a delicious dumpling recipe in the back of this book, too! [picture book, 4-8]
Soup Day by Melissa Iwai
This book does not specifically feature a Chinese-American main character, but it could be! That’s sort of what I love about this book. There is an Asian-American main character. She’s making soup with her mom and it’s clearly a special moment between the two. I love how this is deceptively simple, highlighting an everyday moment that is anything but ordinary. There is so much love present, and it’s depicted beautifully through the text and textured, warm illustrations. And growing up eating my grandma’s brothy, delicious soups—this book brings me home. [board book, 2-5]
A Big Mooncake for Little Star by Grace Lin won the Caldecott Honor. And it’s well deserved! I love this book for many reasons. First of all, Grace Lin is a master storyteller and artist. Her art in this book presents a fresh style, and it’s beautiful. How I would have loved this book as a little girl…to see a character that looked like me, having fun and being mischievous! This whimsical book tells an original and fun origin story of the phases of the moon. It’s brilliant and scrumptious! [picture book, 4-8]
Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao by Kat Zhang and Charlene Chua is a fun and sweet story about not giving up, and striving for perfection! Amy Wu has grit and will stop at nothing to make the perfect bao on Bao Making Day with her family. When her bao turns out too small, too full, or full of leaks, she perseveres. There’s an adorable cat and a lovable family that surround Amy in this delicious story that also shows that mistakes can be quite scrumptious, too. The recipe at the end is an added treat. When my family goes to dim sum, bao is always one of my favorites. I’ve never made it myself. But I definitely want to after reading this book! [picture book, 4-8]
One Hug Signed and Inscribed GIVEAWAY!
We are giving away a signed and inscribed copy of One Hug! To enter, please fill out the Rafflecopter below.
Katrina Moore writes and teaches in New Jersey. Her mission is to create books that children will hug for ages. Her debut picture book, ONE HUG, is forthcoming from Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins Dec. 10, 2019. Her second picture book, GRANDPA GRUMPS, will publish April 7, 2020 from Little Bee Books. More to-be-announced books are on the way! When she is not teaching elementary kids or writing, she is cooking without a recipe, painting outside the lines, or snuggling up with her puppies, one husband, two kids, and of course, many cozy books. Connect with her on twitter @kmoorebooks or at her website or blog.
To examine any book more closely at Amazon, please click on image of book.
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
40+ Asian American Book Lists for Kids
I have 40+ Asian American book lists here including these:
Recognizing Children’s Books for AAPI Heritage Month (a huge list)
AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) Children’s Book Authors
Celebrating Asian Americans for Women’s History Month
#OwnVoices Half Filipino Character Face Off
Chinese New Year Picture Books INSTEAD of Tiki Tiki Tembo
Asian New Year Picture Books and Crafts
Asian Drumming Crafts, Recipes, and Books
Vietnamese Folk Tales for Kids
Lao and Hmong Children’s Books
Wonderful Children’s Books About Thailand
Wonderful Children’s Books on Myanmar (Burma)
Hawaiian Folk Tales & Children’s Books
9 Asian Cinderella Picture Books Including the Original
Funny Asian Fractured Fairy Tales
Seven Amazing Folk Tales from India
Books for Kids and Teens to Learn About Indian Culture
Filipino American Children’s Books
14 Asian American Picture Books About Food
Martial Arts Match Up: Books with Martial Art
Janet Wong on Lunar Year Traditions with Book List!
Funny Asian Fractured Fairy Tales
3 Amazing Wordless Picture Books
I love these wordless picture books by Asian and Asian American authors/illustrators so much that I made videos of them on my Instagram.
My Favorite Asian American Books for Kids
12 Books to Explore China for Chinese New Year
My books:
BEST #OWNVOICES CHILDREN’S BOOKS: My Favorite Diversity Books for Kids Ages 1-12 is a book that I created to highlight books written by authors who share the same marginalized identity as the characters in their books.
What a hard question! My grandson had the book Dim Sum for Everyone! so I guess that would be one. I know I have read books by Grace Lin and several others many years ago that may have revolved around food, but titles escape me.
I don’t have a favorite book to list on this topic! I’ll need to ask my nieces and nephews who are in Chinese immersion schools, who could probably reel off a list of them. These books look great; I’m trying to add to my library and remove books that were read to me when I was young that perpetuated stereotypes that might not have been hateful but were certainly shallow.
“What are your favorite Asian American books featuring food?” I haven’t read it yet, but “Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao” looks great, with the incredible cover art!
I can’t think of any right now but my son has some cookbooks that we’ve cooked a recipe out of.
no fav
My favorite is A Big Mooncake for Little Star!!
Amazing collection. I’m a big Grace Lin fan.
cookbooks
I do not have Fav. I do love MORE MORE MORE SAID THE BABY
Too Many Mangoes by Tammy Paikai
Any kid that spent time in Hawai’i could probably relate to this book!
Such an adorable book. Thanks for the chance.
Dim Sum for Everyone! by Grace Lin.
The Kitchen God’s Wife by Amy Tan I’m a big fan of hers.
The only one I can think of is the American Girl Doll, Ivy.
“The Fortune Cookie Chronicles”!
I love the Fortune Cookie Chronicles.
May I cheat and say it is the book we have right now showing how to make sushi? Thank you
One Hug is my favorite Asian American picture book on food.
My favorite is Easy Family Recipes from a Chinese-American Childhood by Ken Hom. My Chinese-American mom had me hunting for authentic recipes that she remembered as a kid and when I found that cookbook and followed the recipes, it brought back memories!
My grandchildren would absolutely like to read the cool and interesting Jo Jo Eats Dim Sum by James Kye, always.
I have grandchildren that would definitely like to read the amazing and delightful Halmoni and the Picnic by Sook Nyul Choi, all of the time.
My nieces and nephews would really enjoy reading the marvelous and colorful Hot, Hot Roti for Daja-Ji by F. Zia, illustrated by Ken Min, for a great time.
The wonderful and nice Dim Sum for Everyone by Grace Lin, my grandchildren would always like to read, for lots of fun.
I have nieces and nephews that would enjoy reading the fabulous and fun Round is a Moon Cake by Roseanne Thong, illustrated by Grace Lin, many times.
My many children would just love to read the awesome and neat Henry’s First-Moon Birthday by Lenore Look, for a fun time.