TCCL News & Events

There are few places where culture, ethnicity and diversity are as celebrated and embraced as in children’s literature. Children and teens can learn about diverse cultures and traditions, and sometimes more about their own family histories, through reading.

But every once in awhile, an opportunity comes along to expand upon what they have learned and experience culture firsthand. Tulsa City-County Library’s Asian-American Festival is just such an opportunity.

The seventh annual Asian-American Festival is set for June 6, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., at the Martin Regional Library, 2601 S. Garnett Road. The festival is an excellent way to explore and celebrate the vibrant cultures of China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and other Asian countries. It also is a celebration of the unique and rich cultures of all Americans of Asian descent. The festival features traditional music, dance, food, arts and crafts, martial arts, henna, manga and origami demonstrations to get families involved.

Asian-American culture is widely celebrated in children’s literature. From picture books for young children to nonfiction books depicting the culture and history of Asia, there are a vast number of stories to be explored.

Marianne Stambaugh, Martin Regional Library children’s librarian, shares children’s literature in library storytimes. She believes multicultural literature is an excellent way for children to better experience and understand the world around them.

“Reading about people of other cultures helps readers overcome stereotypical images and see that even though our lives are very different, we share common experiences,” said Stambaugh. “Also, when children see themselves in the books they read, it validates their own experiences, especially when they are not part of the cultural majority.”

The Asian-American Festival acts as a perfect springboard for a discussion of many excellent children’s books about Asian-American culture.

Suki’s Kimono by Chieri Uegaki is a colorful story about a young girl determined to wear the traditional kimono given to her by her grandmother on the first day of school. She receives many eye rolls from her older sisters and odd looks from other students, but Suki feels beautiful in her kimono and is educating everyone about its significance by the end of the day. Another exceptional picture book about Japanese-American culture is Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say. This Caldecott Medal-winning book is a personal examination of the author’s memories of his grandfather’s life in both America and Japan.

Chinese-American culture and traditions are celebrated in a wide array of children’s fiction and nonfiction. Apple Pie 4th of July by Janet Wong is a wonderful picture book about the significance of the Fourth of July to a young Chinese-American girl. At the Beach and In the Leaves by Huy Voun Lee use the story of a young boy learning to write in Chinese to reveal the connections between Chinese characters and nature. Coolies by Yin is a picture book for older readers that masterfully depicts the experiences of early Chinese-American immigrants.

A major feature in many Asian-American themed children’s books is the importance of names. In The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi a Korean girl fears that her name, Unhei, will be too difficult for her new American classmates to pronounce. She allows every member of the class to pick out an American name for her, but in the end one of her new friends helps her realize the beauty of her given name. Helen Recorvits’ picture book My Name Is Yoon explores a similar situation. Yoon loves the way her name, which means “shining wisdom,” looks written in Korean characters but hates how it appears in English. She begins to try out new names for herself in English, picking them based on things that she likes. For instance, Cupcake, Bird and Cat are all names she temporarily experiments with. Names and the meaning behind them play a special role in the cultural identity of both Unhei and Yoon.

Learning the significance and history of cultural traditions can give children enormous self-confidence and security in their identities. This is the case for Meena, the young protagonist, in The Happiest Tree: A Yoga Story by Uma Krishnaswami. Meena is embarrassed by what she perceives to be her clumsy nature. She has a part in a school play and wants to try her best to overcome her clumsiness in time. In order to do this, she practices yoga with her aunt. Hindi words and expressions are used throughout the text and add significantly to the impact of the story. Meena’s practice of yoga helps her overcome her fears and she is able to shine in the school play.

Other notable books dealing with Asian-American culture include: Babies Can’t Eat Kimchee! by Nancy Patz and Susan L. Roth; Blue Jasmine by Kashmira Sheth; Mama’s Saris by Pooja Makhijani; Peiling and the Chicken-Fried Christmas by Pauline Chen; The Year of the Dog: A Novel by Grace Lin; How My Parents Learned to Eat by InaFriedman;and Ten Mice for Tet by Pegi Deitz Shea and Cynthia Weill.

These books, as well as many others about Asian-American culture, are available for checkout through the Tulsa City-County Library. Also, you can check out these books from the Reading Roadshow mobile library at the Asian-American Festival. For more information about the Asian-American Festival, visit www.tulsalibrary.org or call 596-7977.