AAPI Heritage Month
2021
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month is an occasion to remember the patriotism of AAPIs who have served our nation.
May was chosen as the observance month to commemorate the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants to the United States on May 10, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the transcontinental railroad completion on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks of that nation-unifying railway were Chinese immigrants.
The theme of this year's celebration is "Stop AAPI Hate - Solidarity, Community, and Celebration." A fitting theme with the recent rise in violence against Asian Americans. A message to be kind and accepting of differences and similaries. We are all human. We have all served our country and are part of the United States of America.
Spotlight Author - Linda Sue Park
She actively works and promotes the We Need Diverse Books movement. Her latest award is as a 2021 finalist for the Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature.. The NSK honors living writers or author/illustrators with significant achievement in children's or young adult literature.
The best place to find out all about Linda Sue Park is her website - https://lindasuepark.com. I love her homage to all the libraries that have been a part of her life!
Picture Books
The Goose Egg
Round is a Mooncake
Uncle Peter's Amazing...
Dim Sum...
The Name Jar
Zen Shorts
Upper Elementary Books
The Thing About Luck
A Single Shard
Inside Out & Back Again
Barbed Wire Baseball
Dragonwings
Kira-Kira
Middle Grade Novels
Aru Shah
Front Desk
Count Me In
Paper Wishes
Amina's Voice
Amal Unbound
Young Adult Books
Frankly in Love
This Time Will be Different
Internment
When Dimple met Rishi
The Downstairs Girl
The Star-Touched Queen
Parachutes
They’re called parachutes: teenagers dropped off to live in private homes and study in the United States while their wealthy parents remain in Asia. Claire Wang never thought she’d be one of them, until her parents pluck her from her privileged life in Shanghai and enroll her at a high school in California.
Suddenly she finds herself living in a stranger’s house, with no one to tell her what to do for the first time in her life. She soon embraces her newfound freedom, especially when the hottest and most eligible parachute, Jay, asks her out.
Dani De La Cruz, Claire’s new host sister, couldn’t be less thrilled that her mom rented out a room to Claire. An academic and debate team star, Dani is determined to earn her way into Yale, even if it means competing with privileged kids who are buying their way to the top. But Dani’s game plan veers unexpectedly off course when her debate coach starts working with her privately.
As they steer their own distinct paths, Dani and Claire keep crashing into one another, setting a course that will change their lives forever.
When We Were Infinite
Then Beth witnesses a private act of violence in Jason’s home, and the whole group is shaken. Beth and her friends make a pact to do whatever it takes to protect Jason, no matter the sacrifice. But when even their fierce loyalty isn’t enough to stop Jason from making a life-altering choice, Beth must decide how far she’s willing to go for him—and how much of herself she’s willing to give up.
Lupe Wong Won't Dance
Lupe needs an A in all her classes in order to meet her favorite pitcher, Fu Li Hernandez, who's Chinacan/Mexinese just like her. So when the horror that is square dancing rears its head in gym? Obviously she's not gonna let that slide.
Permanent Record
Leanna Smart’s life so far has been nothing but success. Age eight: Disney Mouseketeer; Age fifteen: first #1 single on the US pop chart; Age seventeen, *tenth* #1 single; and now, at Age nineteen…life is a queasy blur of private planes, weird hotel rooms, and strangers asking for selfies on the street.
When Leanna and Pab randomly meet at 4:00 a.m. in the middle of a snowstorm in Brooklyn, they both know they can’t be together forever. So, they keep things on the down-low and off Instagram for as long as they can. But it takes about three seconds before the world finds out…
Loveboat Taipai
A Pho Love Song
If Linh Mai had to describe herself, she’d say she was a firecracker. Stable when unlit, but full of potential for joy and fire. She loves art and dreams pursuing a career in it. The only problem? Her parents rely on her in ways they’re not willing to admit, including working practically full-time at her family’s pho restaurant.
For years, the Mais and the Nguyens have been at odds, having owned competing, neighboring pho restaurants. Bao and Linh, who’ve avoided each other for most of their lives, both suspect that the feud stems from feelings much deeper than friendly competition.
But then a chance encounter brings Linh and Bao in the same vicinity despite their best efforts and sparks fly, leading them both to wonder what took so long for them to connect. But then, of course, they immediately remember.
Can Linh and Bao find love in the midst of feuding families and complicated histories?
Graphic Novels
American Born Chinese
The Best We Could Do
They Call Us Enemy
Teaching Books Resources
Educational Websites with AAPI Resources
Works Cited
“Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.” DoDEA, Department of Defense United States of America, www.dodea.edu/dodeaCelebrates/Asian-American-Pacific-Islander-Heritage-Month.cfm.
“Book Summaries.” Library / Destiny Library Catalog, Follett Solutions, 2021, swdestinyssl.judsonisd.org/.
Park, Linda Sue. Linda Sue Park, Winding Oak LLC, 2021, lindasuepark.com/.