BARBED WIRE BETWEEN US at the Japanese American National Museum

It was a dream come true to participate in the 2026 Nikkei Book Festival in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. It was my mother’s favorite museum, and I think she is smiling down on me.

I joined Stan and Julie Sakai (Chibi Usagi), Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Yas Imamura (Love in the Library), Jolene Gutiérrez, Chris Sasaki, and John Tonai (Unbreakable), Korey Watari and Mike Wu (Kimi the Ballerina), and Derek Mio (The Terror actor and reader of Baseball Saved Us) in this amazing lineup of creatives!

Besides author and illustrator storytimes, signings, and meet-and-greets, there were arts and crafts for all ages, and a special pop-up bookstore from the JANM Store.

This is my segment:

10:15 AM – 11:15 AM

Maggie Tokuda Hall, Yas Imamura, and Mia Wenjen—Love in the Library and Barbed Wire Between Us
- Love in the Library follows Tama and George as they fall in love in the Minidoka concentration camp and take solace in the camp library’s books that burst with color and light, love and fairness.
- In Barbed Wire Between Us, a single poem connects the lives of a Japanese American girl during World War II and a Latina girl in the present, revealing how loss, resilience, and hope repeat in new forms.

Thank you again to the Japanese American National Museum for inviting me! I can cross off a long-dreamed-of bucket list item!

Free downloadable Teacher’s Guide:

Barbed Wire Between Us Teacher’s Guide

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My books:

Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me

Barbed Wire Between Us by Mia Wenjen, illustrated by Violeta Encarnación

⭐ Starred review from Kirkus
⭐ Starred review from Publishers Weekly
⭐ Starred review from School Library Journal
Kirkus: The Most Anticipated Children’s Books of Spring 2026

Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me

Fortune Cookies for Everyone! (Smithsonian): The Surprising Story of the Tasty Treat We Love to Eat

California Eureka Non-Fiction Gold Award
Junior Library Guild Gold Selection
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People Winner (from National Council for the Social Studies and Children’s Book Council)

The Traveling Taco: The Amazing and Surprising Journey of Many of Your Favorite Foods

California Eureka Non-Fiction Silver Award
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People Winner (from National Council for the Social Studies and Children’s Book Council)
Reading Rockets’ Summer Reading Guide 2025

Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me

We Sing from the Heart: How the Slants® Took Their Fight for Free Speech to the Supreme Court

ALSC Notable Children’s Book
2025 Carter G. Woodson Book Award Middle Level Honoree
Orbis Pictus Recommended Book for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children
2024 Julia Ward Howe Prize for Children’s Literature Winner
California Eureka Non-Fiction Award Honor Book
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People Winner (from National Council for the Social Studies and Children’s Book Council)
Bank Street Best Children’s Books of the Year 2025
Recommended Reading for the Social Justice Literature Award 2025 (International Literacy Association)
Pennsylvania Mountain Laurel Book Award Nominee 2026-27
Junior Library Guild Gold Selection