May is Asian Heritage Month and is a time to celebrate the arts and cultures of Asia.  Poetic forms arise out of a cultural group’s language and can sometimes work well in another language like English with some modification and changes.  Poetic forms can also be used as a means of expression of one’s cultural identity or sensibility.  Over the weekend at a conference I attended, I had a chance to listen to poet Sheniz Janmohamed talk about the ghazal, a poetic form originating in Arabic, and later made famous by Persian poets Rumi and Hafiz.  For Janmohamed, learning about the ghazal form and its traditions lead eventually to her own ghazal writing in English. The ghazal was a way to connect her with her South Asian heritage and to deepen her knowledge and awareness of the rich potentials of the form as it could be explored in English.  The result of her work is her book Bleeding Light, TSAR publications, 2010.  Of course, you don’t have to be South Asian to write a ghazal; it is a form like any other and artists are always interested in experimenting with forms!   However, because I am myself a poet of Asian background, I appreciate those artists who plumb the depths of their cultural traditions and find new hybridized ways of expressing themselves through traditional forms, particularly non-western ones.

An example of a poet playing with traditional Japanese forms — haiku and senryu — is Richard Stevenson, who has compiled a book of poems called Casting Out Nines: Haiku and Senryu for Teens (Ekstasis Editions, 2011.)  This is a collection of flip, irreverent high-school haiku — which reminded me of a long ago incident in my high school days when an English teacher allowed students to submit creative writing for their papers and was stymied by my friend who submitted a haiku (or maybe it was two!) for his paper.  Leave it to a teenager to exploit a literary form to his own ends!

Anyway, that aside, Poetry Friday this week is hosted by Katja at Write. Sketch. Repeat.

The winners of the 2011 Growing Up Asian in America art and essay contest have been announced!

The largest program in the USA to celebrate Asian heritage, Growing Up Asian in America is a signature program of the Asian Pacific Fund and provides a unique forum for youth in grade K to 12 to celebrate being both Asian and American and to express this through creative writing and art. The program is also an important community re source, helping people better understand the experiences of young Asian Americans and learn more about life in a place as diverse as the San Francisco Bay Area.

Each year more than 1,000 Bay Area students compete for prizes totaling $27,000. A new theme is selected each year and for 2011 is “Lost and Found”. Organizers note:

Our hunch was that children and youth of all ages experience loss and discovery throughout their young lives and might not find opportunities to reflect on those changes.

Local Bay Area libraries are hosting exhibits that display the winning entries and honorable mentions of the Bay Area students from now until February, 2012. There you can see Hyejin Ahn’s winning art, “Never Be Lost Again,” a film strip image of war and goodbyes.  Grace Wang’s essay that suggests to her good friend who is adopted that maybe her [birth] mother might have accidentally lost her.  How Payal Ahuja felt lost when she first came to America at age eight; she missed her family and friends in India. Then she found that her library in Mountain View was “a constant source of joy.” Through our 2011 program we learn that loss and discovery are an important part of our experience, especially for those who have traveled thousands of miles to become American.

The exhibit schedule can be found here and is a must see for adults and children! You will be amazed at the insight, creativity, wisdom and talent of these students! One of my favorite winning entries in the art category is pictured above. The image is by Aniketh Umesh, winner in the K-5 art category, and is titled “Lost Out: On Good Times With Grandpa In India; Found: Land Of Opportunity In The United States”.

I feel bit of a Johnny-Come-Lately introducing this wonderful young adult graphic novel called American Born Chinese by Gene Yang.   PaperTigers has already done a lot with this ground-breaking Asian American graphic novel; for example, you can see Yang’s work featured in the PT gallery.  But the book really only came to my attention through this blog called An Introduction to Comics by Paul Moffett.

When my son was younger, he sometimes requested a comic book for me to read to him at bedtime.   He developed an appetite for the form quite early.  Now, he reads to himself at night and he prefers graphic novels or comics.  I picked up American Born Chinese, more or less, hoping that he would read it on my recommendation.  But then, I got hooked!  And then my husband got hooked, too.   What I found compelling about Yang’s novel was its incorporation and intertwining of the Judeo-Christian story with the mythical one of the Monkey King.  While the Monkey King struggles with his identity as a monkey, so too, does the boy Jin Wang struggle with his identity as Chinese American.  Although at first these stories seem unconnected, they join up at the end in an unusually satisfying way.  Monkey King’s advice to Jin Wang?  — “You know, Jin, I would have saved myself from five hundred years’ imprisonment beneath a mountain of rock had I only realized how good it is to be a monkey.”

May is Asian Heritage Month or Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, and if there’s ONE book you might consider reading for it, I would recommend American Born Chinese.  It’s destined to become an Asian American classic.  Soon after my husband and I were finished with the book, I saw my son casually pick it up, peruse its pages, and carry it off to his bedroom for his own night-time reading.

(Click on event name for more information)

Get Caught Reading Month~ USA

National Share-a-Story Month~ United Kingdom

Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month~ USA

Asian Heritage Month~ Canada

BOOKtopia Children’s Literature Festival~ ongoing until May 7, West Vancouver, BC, Canada

Buenos Aires Book Fair~ ongoing until May 10, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Drawing from a Story: Illustrations by Selected Caldecott Medal Winners~ ongoing until May 23, Chadds Ford, PA, USA

Once Upon a Time . . . Children’s Book Illustrators, Then and Now~ ongoing until May 27, Oakland, CA, USA

Mitali Perkins’ 2010 Fire Escape Short Fiction and Poetry Contest~ entries accepted until Jun 1, USA and Canada

Into the Wood: Antonio Frasconi’s Art for Children~ ongoing until Jun 13, Ameherst, MA, USA

Skipping Stones Magazine’s Youth Honor Award Program – Multicultural Awareness and Nature Appreciation~ entries accepted until Jun 25

The National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature Exhibit: Why Grow Up? Etienne Delessert~ ongoing until Jun 26, Abilene, TX, USA

Monsters and Miracles: A Journey through Jewish Picture Books~ ongoing until  Aug 1, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Everyday Adventures Growing Up: Art from Picture Books~ ongoing until Nov 28, Chicago, IL, USA

BOOKFEST – The Vancouver Island Children’s Book Festival~ May 1, Nanaimo, BC, Canada

“Second to the Right, and Straight on Till Morning:” Navigating the Narrative Realm(s) of Children’s Texts~ May 1, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Old Passions – New Technologies: Children’s and Young Adult Literature
in a Web 2.0 World~ May 1, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Expo 2010~ May 1 – Oct 31, Shanghai, China

SCBWI Presents: Shaping a Picture Book/Shaping Character~ May 6, Paris, France

Asian Festival of Children’s Content~ May 6 – 9, Singapore

Bermuda International Literary Festival~ May 6 – 9, Hamilton
Bermuda

SCBWI Hawaii Illustrators’ Exhibit: The Art of Picture Books~ May 6 – Jun 16, Honolulu, HI, USA

One Hen Inc.’s First Anniversary Celebrations: It Takes a Village~ May 7, Wellesley, MA, USA

National Centre for Research in Children’s Literature Conference~ May 8, London, United Kingdom

Mt. San Antonio College’s Children’s Literature Day~ May 8, Walnut, CA, USA

SCBWI Presents: Children’s Books and our Phil-Chinese Heritage~ May 8, Philippines

Children’s Book Week~ May 10 – 16, USA

New Zealand Post Book Awards Festival~ May 10 – 19, New Zealand

Forest of Reading, Festival of Trees~ May 12 – 13, Toronto, ON, Canada

Auckland Writers and Readers Festival~ May 12 – 16, Auckland, New Zealand

Seoul International Book Fair~ May 12 – 16, Seoul, Korea

Follow the Yellow Brick Road to Fresno! Oz the Books! A Conference~ May 14 – 16, Fresno, CA, USA

2nd Conference on Children’s Literature and Translation~ May 15, Taichung City, Taiwan

Children’s Books Ireland Conference: Nurturing the Seed: Prospects and Possibilities for Children’s Books~ May 15 – 16, Dublin, Ireland

Sydney Writers’ Festival~ May 15 – 23, Sydney, Australia

Mountain Echoes – A Literary Festival~ May 17 – 20, Thimphu, Bhutan

New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards Winners Announced ~ May 19, New Zealand

WriteAway Conference: READ, PLAY, THINK, CREATE: generating delight in learning~ May 21, London, United Kingdom

National Black Book Festival~ May 21 – 23, Houston, TX, USA

Bisto Children’s Book of the Year Awards Presentations~ May 23, Dublin, Ireland

Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Week~ May 23 – Jun 1, Sweden

Library and Information Week~ May 24 – 30, Australia

The Foundation for Children’s Books New England Voices Series~ May 25, Boston, MA, USA

International Latino Book Awards~ May 25, USA

BookExpo America~ May 25 – 27, New York, NY, USA

National Simultaneous Storytime~ May 26, Australia

Book Blogger Convention~ May 28, New York City, NY, USA

World Book Fair~ May 28 – Jun 6, Singapore

World Village Festival~ May 29 – 30, Helsinki, Finland

The Guardian Hay Festival~ May 29 – Jun 6, United Kingdom

SCBWI Presents: THE BIG PICTURE: Exploring the Art and Business of Children’s Book Illustration~ May 30, Tokyo, Japan

Today is the official launch of Asian Heritage Month in Canada and a special celebration will be held at the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa. Parliamentarians, government officials, community leaders and the general public are invited to share in an evening celebration hosted by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, that will include welcoming remarks, several cultural performances and a reception.

For more information on Asian Heritage Month events being held throughout Canada click here.

Asian Heritage Month is also celebrated in May in the USA where it is known as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. On May 1st,  the Smithsonian Museum, located in Washington, DC, is hosting their free kickoff celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.  Held in conjunction with the exhibition The Art of Gaman: Arts and Crafts from the Japanese American Internment Camps, 1942-1946 the day will include many events, a highlight of which will be tales from storyteller Anne Shimojima. Anne always receives rave reviews for the way she delights youth and adult audiences of all sizes with her graceful and spirited tellings of folktales from her Asian heritage!

If you’re looking for some great reads to take you through the month, take a look at this year’s winners and honor books of the Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature. These awards, given by the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association promote Asian/Pacific American culture and heritage based on literary and artistic merit. Bear these books in mind for any time of the year!

For a full calendar of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month events happening across the USA click here.

Celebrations are in full-swing for Asian Heritage Month which is celebrated in both Canada and the USA during the month of May. This is a time to honor the legacy of generations of Asian Canadians and Asian Americans who have enriched their country’s history and are instrumental in its future success. It is a time to participate in festivities that celebrate the many achievements and contributions of Asians who, throughout history, have done so much to make Canada and the USA the culturally diverse, compassionate and prosperous nations we know today.

As part of their celebrations for Asian American Heritage Month, the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association announced the winner and honor books in the 2009 Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature. These awards promote Asian/Pacific American culture and heritage based on literary and artistic merit, and our congratulations go out to Wabi Sabi, written by Mark Reibstein and illustrated by Ed Young, which won the picture book award. Back in 2008, PaperTiger bloggers Marj and Aline were thrilled to see the proofs for Wabi Sabi at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair and Marj posted a great review of Wabi Sabi here.

Winners have also been announced in the Growing Up Asian in America Art and Essay contest, which is open to students in grades K – 12 who reside in the San Francisco Bay Area. This year’s theme was “Change- If you could change one thing to make the world a better place, what would that be?”. I was especially drawn to Claire Dworsky’s essay entitled Change Your Assumptions, in which she wrote:

To me, growing up Asian is the same as any kid most of the time. I go to school, gymnastics, soccer, play with my dog, play outside – normal stuff.

But sometimes other people say things that make me feel sad or different. They make fun of my eyes and call me Chinese. They yell, “Hey Chinois!” They ask questions that aren’t really questions, like “Are you really adopted?” I say “Yes I was adopted from Kayakhstan, a country between Russia and China. I can show you on a map if you want.” But they’re really using these questions to make fun of me. And it’s even worse. When Asian girls pick on me by saying “Oh, you have blue eyes you think you are all that.” Racism is hurtful, no matter who says it.

Claire concludes her essay with a powerful statement that all of us, young and old, should take to heart: “When you know how it feels to be discriminated against you should use that feeling to imagine how others feel, and change yourself so you can help others.” The winning entries of the Growing Up Asian in America contest will be on exhibit at several locations throughout the Bay Area until February 2010. Click here to see the schedule.

(Click on event name for more information)

Asian Heritage Month~ Canada and USA

Get Caught Reading Month~ USA

National Share a Story Month~ United Kingdom

Carter G. Woodson Book Award Winners Announced~ USA

Over Rainbows and Down Rabbit Holes: The Art of Children’s Books~ ongoing until June 15, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

34th Buenos Aires International Book Fair~ ongoing until May 10, Buenos Aires, Argentina

4th Nami Island International Book Festival~ May 1 – June 30, Korea

9th Children’s Book Council of Australia National Conference and Expo~ May 2 – 4, Melbourne, Australia

53rd International Reading Association Annual Convention~ May 4 – 8, Atlanta, GA, USA

Children’s Book Week~ May 12 – 18, USA

Seoul International Book Fair~ May 14 – 18, Seoul, Korea

Library and Information Week~ May 19 – 25, Australia

Sydney Writers’ Festival~ May 19 – 25, Sydney, Australia

New Zealand Post Book Awards for Children and Young Adults – Award Ceremony~ May 21, Wellington, New Zealand

National Simultaneous Storytime~ May 21, Australia

63rd Canadian Library Association Annual Conference and Trade Show~ May 21 – 24, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Canadian Library Association Book Awards Ceremony~ May 22, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Book Expo America~ May 26 – June 1, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Ceremony~ May 28, Stockholm, Sweden

10th Annual International Latino Book Awards Ceremony~ May 29, Los Angeles, CA, USA

23rd World Book Fair 2008~ May 30 – June 8, Singapore