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Qing Zhuang

Turn Your Support of Asian Americans into Action

The Soaring ‘20s PB Group supports the talents of Asian American authors and illustrators. We are proud and enriched by the perspectives each of the following individuals bring to our Soaring ‘20s PB group and to our greater kidlit community. 

In the wake of increased violence and discrimination against Asian Americans, we encourage you to take action. To show your support of Asian American kidlit authors and illustrators, please make a commitment to elevate their voices by:

  1. Purchasing their books.

  2. Requesting that your local library purchase their books.  

  3. Reviewing their books online.

  4. Sharing their books with young readers in your classroom, library, bookstore and home. 

We have some incredible suggestions for books you can highlight. Below is a list of the amazing work by Soaring ‘20s Asian American authors and illustrators. You’ll find links to buy their books on our Bookshop.org site.

We’ve also compiled links to recommended book lists, educational resources and donor information, so be sure to read to the end of the post.

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Vicky Fang

Layla and the Bots (series) written by Vicky Fang (Scholastic 2020 and 2021), Invent-a-Pet written by Vicky Fang (Sterling 2020), I Can Code (series) written by Vicky Fang (Sourcebooks 2020), and Friendbots written and illustrated by Vicky Fang (HarperAlley 2021)

fangmous.com

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Liza Ferneyhough

Nana, Nenek, and Nina written and illustrated by Liza Ferneyhough (Dial Books for Young Readers, coming 2022)

stellarbaby.com

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Margaret Chiu Greanias

Maximillian Villainous written by Margaret Chiu Greanias (Running Press Kids 2018) and Amah Faraway (Bloomsbury Kids, coming January 2022)

margaretgreanias.com

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Darshana Khiani

How to Wear a Sari written by Darshana Khiani (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books/Versify 2021)

darshanakhiani.com

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Isabella Kung

No Fuzzball! written and illustrated by Isabella Kung (Orchard Books 2020), 1 2 3 Cats: A Cat Counting Book and ABC Cats: An Alpha-Cat Book, illustrated by Isabella Kung (Candlewick Press 2021)

isabellakung.com

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Rajani LaRocca

Red, White and Whole written by Rajani LaRocca (Quill Tree Books 2021), Seven Golden Rings written by Rajani LaRocca (Lee & Low Books 2020), Midsummer’s Mayhem written by Rajani LaRooca (Yellow Jacket/Little Bee Books 2019), Much Ado About Baseball, written by Rajani LaRocca (Yellow Jacket/Little Bee Books, summer 2021), Bracelets for Bina’s Brothers, written by Rajani LaRocca (Charlesbridge, spring 2021), Where Three Oceans Meet, written by Rajani LaRocca (Abrams, fall 2021), My Little Golden Book About Kamala Harris, written by Rajani LaRocca (Golden Books, fall 2021), The Secret Code Inside of You, written by Rajani LaRocca (Little Bee Books, fall 2021)

rajanilarocca.com

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Hope Lim

I Am A Bird written by Hope Lim (Candlewick 2021) and My Tree written by Hope Lim (Neal Porter Books 2021)

hopelim.com

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Christina Soontornvat

The Ramble Shamble Children written by Christina Soontornvat (Nancy Paulsen Books 2021), Simon at the Art Museum written by Christina Soontornvat (Atheneum/Simon & Schuster 2020), A Wish in the Dark written by Christina Soontornvat (Candlewick 2020), All Thirteen written by Christina Soontornvat (Candlewick 2020), The Blunders written by Christina Soontornvat (Candlewick 2020), Diary of an Ice Princess (series) written by Christina Soontornvat (Scholastic 2019 and 2020), The Changelings (series) written by Christina Soontornvat (Sourcebooks Jabberwocky 2016 and 2017)

soontornvat.com

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Saira Mir

Muslim Girls Rise: Inspirational Champions of Our Time written by Saira Mir (Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers 2019)

sairamir.com

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M.O. Yuksel

In My Mosque written by M. O. Yuksel (Harper Collins 2021)

moyuksel.com

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Qing Zhuang

How Long Is Forever? illustrated by Qing Zhuang (Charlesbridge 2020)

qingthings.com

We also invite you to explore the resources below.

Book Lists

Educational Resources

Organizations/Donation Information

(many thanks to Monica on Twitter for most of these)

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A Recipe for Sharing HOW LONG IS FOREVER?

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How Long Is Forever? & The Whole Book Approach

By Kelly Carey

How Long Is Forever? is celebrating its book birthday today and I’m thrilled to make my author debut alongside debut illustrator Qing Zhuang.

In How Long is Forever?, Mason is waiting for the first blueberry pie of the season and it’s taking forever. At least that’s what Mason thinks, until Grandpa asks him to prove it and sends Mason searching the family farm to find the meaning of forever. 

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You could pick up a copy of the book, read, enjoy, and hopefully re-read. But I thought I’d give you a recipe for sharing the book that will create a more rounded experience. I’m using the Whole Book Approach developed by Megan Dowd Lambert and presented in her book Reading Picture Books with Children: How to Shake Up Storytime and Get Kids Talking about What They See (Charlesbridge, 2015). Lambert explains that the Whole Book Approach is a “means of reading with children, as opposed to reading to them, as it invites children to make meaning of text, art, and design.”

Let’s apply this method to How Long Is Forever? and get the most out of sharing it with children.

Pre-Reading

Looking only at the cover, ask children what they can know about the story just from the cover. Will this story take place in outer space? On a coral reef in the ocean? Or on a farm with rolling hills? When they tell you a farm, ask them how they know!

Then ask if the children already know two characters in the story just from the cover. How do those characters feel? Are they happy, sad or mad? How do they know?

Finally, invite children to think about the title and share a time when they had to “wait forever” for something. Ask, “What is something that takes forever?” Maybe it was a sibling’s dance recital? How long it took to drive to a vacation? How long it took for mom to finish errands so they could go home and eat lunch!

When they read How Long Is Forever? they’ll find out what Mason thinks is taking forever!

During Reading 

Show children the barn cat on the back cover of the book.

Tell them that the cat wanders through the whole story. When they spot the cat, invite the children to use their hands to make cat ears on their heads to let you know they see the cat. This is a fun way to make every page a game for children.  

After Reading

When you’ve finished reading the book, ask children what Mason thought was taking forever at the beginning of the book and what he decides is forever at the end of the book. It’s a great idea to invite children to flip through the book and let the pictures help them remember.

Now invite children to talk about what is forever in their life. Start small. What color will they love forever? Do they have a favorite food they think they will love forever? How about a place or a person? Share your forever things too!

You can use the following activity pages to have fun thinking about what the Barn Cat will love forever and for children to share what they will love forever. For even more activity pages click here.

Click to expand

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When you are done reading, you can offer one of the blueberry themed crafts below or make your own blueberry dessert. You’ll find recipes at www.kcareywrites.

Whether you just want to snuggle in and read How Long Is Forever? or experience it using the Whole Book Approach, Qing and I hope it is a book you will love and share forever.


Blueberry Pie Crafts:

Slice of Pie:

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Supplies:
Piece of Pie coloring page
blue paint
pencil with eraser or Q-tip (or blue construction paper dots and a glue stick if you prefer not to use paint)
small paper plate 

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  1. Print Piece of Pie coloring page.

  2. Put a small amount of blue paint on the paper plate (or a few paper dots and give each child a glue stick).

  3. Use the Q-tip like a stamp. Dip it in the paint and make “blueberry” dots on your piece of pie (or paste blue dots on the pie).

Blueberry Pie:

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Supplies:
paper plate or brown construction paper cut into a circle shape
strips of manila-colored construction paper
blue paint or blue tissue paper or small blue construction-paper dots
glue sticks

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  1. Glue manila strips onto the brown circle to mimic the lattice of a pie crust.

  2. Fill the pie in with blueberries by using your fingers and blue paint or by gluing rolled bundles of blue tissue paper or gluing blue construction paper dots.

  3. An adult can assist in cutting excess strips (pie dough) off the pie.

Optional: Print a blueberry recipe to glue on the back. Recipes can be found at www.kcareywrites.com. Children can also draw a picture of three things they will love forever on the back of their pie.

Book Details

HOW LONG IS FOREVER?

by Kelly Carey

Illus. by Qing Zhuang

Pub Date: April 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5808-9578-1
Publisher: Charlesbridge

To order a signed copy, visit
The Silver Unicorn Bookstore.

Kelly Carey, the debut author of HOW LONG IS FOREVER?, is an award-winning writer from New England. Her fiction stories have appeared in Clubhouse Jr., Highlights for Children, and Girls’ World. She is the 2008, 2009, and 2015 recipient of the Higher Goals Award from the Evangelical Press Association. When not writing in her pajamas, Kelly is happiest hiking a New Hampshire mountain or hitting the beach on Martha’s Vineyard. She is the proud co-founder of 24 Carrot Writing (www.24carrotwriting.com).

Follow author Kelly Carey:
Website: www.kcareywrites.com
Twitter: @KCareyWrites
Facebook: www.facebook.com/KCareyWrites

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Qing Zhuang was born in a coastal province in China, where her mother lovingly nicknamed her “Strange Sea Creature.” She moved to the United States and grew up in New York City, where she still resides. Qing specializes in watercolor illustrations but loves to experiment artistically all the time. She puts all her heart and a little humor in everything she does. Her first book is HOW LONG IS FOREVER?

Follow illustrator Qing Zhuang:
Website: www.qingthings.com
Instagram: @Qingthings

Read Across America Giveaway Winners!

Announcing 5 Winners in the Soaring ‘20s Read Across America Giveaway!

Thank you to everyone who participated in our recent book and Skype visit giveaway. We’re thrilled to announce five lucky winners who will each receive a picture book and a classroom Skype visit! Winners are being contacted via email.

If you didn’t win this time, stay tuned because our next giveaway with EVEN MORE BOOKS will take place in early May!

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LINDA MITCHELL won a copy of Muslim Girls Rise: Inspirational Champions of Our Time (Salaam Reads)

Plus a classroom Skype visit with author Saira Mir

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ERIN VARLEY won a copy of The Voice that Won the Vote: How One Woman’s Words Made History (Sleeping Bear Press)

Plus a classroom Skype visit with author Elisa Boxer

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DEE KNABB won a copy of Wood, Wire, Wings: Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane (Calkins Creek)

Plus a classroom Skype visit with author Kirsten W. Larson

 

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JENNIFER FISK won a copy of How Long Is Forever? (Charlesbridge)

Plus a classroom Skype visit with author Kelly Carey (pictured above left)

 

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AMANDA O’NEAL won a copy of Clyde Goes to School (Penguin Workshop)

Plus a classroom Skype visit with author Keith Marantz AND illustrator Larissa Marantz

Thank you so much to all who entered, and don’t forget to check back in May for our next giveaway and more chances to win!

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