Sumo Joe is the debut picture book by Mia Wenjen and illustrator Nat Iwata.
The Boston Authors Club hosted its first event after the Covid shut down on April 25 at the Blue Bunny bookstore. Over 35 people turned out for a stellar panel discussion on Children’s Book Writing. One woman flew in all the way from Toronto!! I was thrilled to be on the panel along with Nancy…
I had such a wonderful time presenting Sumo Joe to 225 kindergarteners and first graders at Sowams and Nayatt Elementary Schools in Barrington, Rhode Island. The Barrington public school librarians created an Asian & Pacific Islander (APICBA) Community Book Award 2022 program to introduce all the students at the elementary schools to the five picture…
Jambo Books is an award-winning children’s books subscription box that delivers 2-3 books each month featuring a child of color as the star. I am so thrilled that Sumo Joe is included in their January 2022 box which is geared for children ages 3-4. Yamile Saied Mendez’s picture book, Where Are You From?, is also…
It was such an honor to be part of The Collaborative hosted by educators Dr. Sheka Houston and Tammy Taylor in celebration of National Family Literacy Night. I was joined by author Rudy Ruiz. I loved learning about Rudy Ruiz’s newest book, The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez: A Novel. You can watch it…
Sometimes you just gotta ask! (Me asking): Please consider SUMO JOE picture book Hello Japanese American National Museum store manager, My name is Mia Wenjen and I’m the author of a rhyming picture book SUMO JOE. I am half Japanese American and wrote it to show that sumo is not a sport of fat…
Thank you so much to Matthew Winner for having us on The Children’s Book Podcast: Mia Wenjen and Nat Iwata share SUMO JOE on The Children’s Book Podcast. “SUMO JOE is a story told in rhyme about a boy and his friends upholding a centuries-old tradition considered through a modern lens. It’s the first picture…
I had so fun giving a virtual author visit to a 4th grade elementary school in Texas. This is my free SUMO JOE author visit in which I tell the origin story of my debut picture book and detail the process of how a picture book gets made from idea to revision to illustration to…