Sumo Joe is the debut picture book by Mia Wenjen and illustrator Nat Iwata.
I am thrilled to be part of an internal NBC event that included Julie Chu, Abby Marks, and Abby Chin. This was spearheaded by Caroline Delfin (Executive Assistant To The Chairman, NBC Sports Group at NBCUniversal Media, LLC) and Liz Eng (Senior Director, Content Integration at NBC Sports Group) who are part of NBCUniversal APA…
The #OwnVoices hashtag movement started in 2015 on Twitter to give readers a chance to share books about diverse groups that were written by authors that belong in the same group. For instance, a book with a Black child as the subject would be written by a Black author. from Chicago Parent 25 #OwnVoices Books…
The Tokyo Olympics are postponed for one year but we can still learn about Japanese culture. Did you know that sumo was being considered as an exhibition sport for the Tokyo Olympics? Sumo wasn’t chosen because only a few countries with a sizeable Japanese ex-pat population had sumo. Karate was chosen instead. But I think…
Thank you to Alexis and Tiffany for hosting me and Nat Iwata on their YouTube Channel, Legit Kid Lit! Legit Kid Lit a video series highlighting kidlit creators sharing stories and being silly. We had so much fun talking about Sumo Joe that it ended up as a two-part series: It was fun to learn…
Diversify your reading routine to learn a little more about – and introduce your kids to – the AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islanders) mores, traditions and cultures. From biographies to cultural traditions to eliminating stereotypes, you can stock your shelves or check with your local library for these great books for kids of all ages….
Thank you to Ariel Gordon Bernstein for the heads up that Sumo Joe was included in Bank Street College’s The Best Children’s Books of the Year! I never would have thought to check. I have recently been submitting manuscripts to literary agents and am in recovery for rejection. Ditto for editors that I have submitted…
Thank you to everyone who requested me for a Skype author visit on World Read Aloud Day. One of the teachers also needed activities to go with Sumo Joe so I found some activities and wanted to post it for next year. Pink Stripey Socks, a fabulous kids’ craft blogger, has two great sumo activities…