Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month Collection
May is Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Explore fiction and nonfiction books that celebrate the Asian American & Pacific Islander experiences, people, authors, traditions, and culture. And discover activities, games, lesson plans and more aligned to each book.
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Written by Allen Say
Yuriko does not like that other children are making fun of her name. A girl who used to love art...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Minh Le
When a young boy visits his grandfather, their lack of a common language leads to confusion,...
Pre-K - 2nd
Written by Brenda Williams
During the Moon Festival, a boy bargains for the things his family needs to celebrate.
K - K
Written by Kao Kalia Yang
Drawn from author Kao Kalia Yang's childhood experiences as a Hmong refugee, this moving picture...
K - 4th
Written by Marcia Vaughan
A Chinese-American child describes the excitement, preparation, and festivities of the Chinese New Year.
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Andrea Wang
Driving through Ohio in an old Pontiac, a young girl's parents stop suddenly when they spot...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Lenore Look
Jenny is the only family member who isn’t happy that Uncle Peter is getting married. She...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Allen Say
May and her family live in San Francisco and she eats Japanese food at home and American food with...
Pre-K - 4th
Written by David Jacobson, Sally Ito, and Michiko Tsuboi
In early-1900s Japan, Misuzu Kaneko grows from precocious bookworm to instantly-beloved...
1st - 5th
Written by Walter Lorraine
Striking watercolors capture the beauty of a man’s journey as he emigrates from Japan to the...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Laurence Yep
A boldly written, fictionalized account of the bombing of Hiroshima, seen through the eyes of 12-year-old Sachi. "Required reading in every classroom in this country."—The Washington Post
6th - 9th
Written by Song Nan Zhang
According to legend, there was a young woman named Mulan whose aged and frail father was...
Pre-K - 4th
Written by Debbi Michiko Florence
For once, Jasmine wishes SHE could do something before Sophie (her big sister)―something special,...
1st - 4th
Written by Rebecca Pettiford
In Lantern Festival, early readers will learn about this Asian festival and the ways people...
K - 4th
Written by Chieri Uegaki
A joyful story of a little girl whose spirit leads her to march and dance to her own drumbeat.
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Arlene Mosel
A happy, funny woman liked to make rice dumplings. One day, one of her dumpling rolled off the...
Pre-K - K
Written by Michael Anthony Steele
Duel Masters, the top-selling trading card game in Japan, hits American shores with fast-paced and...
2nd - 5th
Written by Cynthia Kadohata
Katie Takeshima's sister, Lynn, has a wonderful way of looking at the world. Everything is...
5th - 9th
Written by JP Romney
Koda Okita is a high school student in modern-day Japan who suffers from narcolepsy and has to wear...
10th - 12th
Written by Lauren Tarshis
History's most exciting and terrifying events come to life in these stories of amazing kids and how they survived.
4th - 6th
Written by Eleanor Coerr
The star of her school’s running team, Sadako is lively and athletic…until the dizzy spells...
3rd - 5th
Written by DK
From prehistoric cave paintings to postmodern art, The Art Book explores more than 100 different...
9th - 12th
Written by Katrina Goldsaito
Yoshio, who lives in the busy, noisy city of Toyko, is searching for the most beautiful sound of all.
K - 3rd
Written by Ken Mochizuki
For a young Japanese-American boy sent to an internment camp during World War II, baseball becomes a way to escape his unhappy surroundings.
K - 6th
Written by Kazuo Iwamura
Acclaimed author-illustrator Eric Carle and Japanese artist Kazuo Iwamura have created a unique...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Kate Waters and Madeline Slovenz-Low
Ernie Wan prepares to celebrate the Chinese New Year.
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Laurence Yep
The story of Moon Shadow who grows up in China having never known his father. When Moon Shadow is 9...
3rd - 7th
Written by Demi
This story reimagines Hans Christian Anderson’s tale about an emperor who loved clothes. This...
3rd - 6th
Written by Dawn Casey
And they're off! Thirteen creatures in China have come to the river to join in the Emperor's race....
1st - 4th
Written by Arlene Mosel
An illustrated Chinese folk tale describes how the Chinese came to give all their children short names
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Gene Yang
Jin Wang starts at a new school where he’s the only Chinese-American student. When a boy from...
7th - 10th
Written by Betty Bao Lord
A Chinese girl immigrates to New York in 1947 and assimilates into a strange culture of tough kids, stickball, and the Brooklyn Dodgers. "Poignant but outrageously humorous."—SLJ
5th - 6th
Written by Jeanne M. Lee
Mu Lan is at her loom when she hears the Emperor's call to arms. She rides off to war in her...
Pre-K - 5th
Written by R.J. Bailey
In Meals in China, young readers will learn about the foods and cultural practices that make up...
K - 4th
Written by Ji-li Jiang
Feather, a wounded crane nursed back to health by a silent and lonely girl named Lotus, helps to save Lotus and the people of her village from floodwaters
1st - 4th
Written by Lisa Bullard
Chelsea's family is celebrating Chinese New Year! Chelsea gets to stay up late. She watches...
K - 3rd
Written by Natasha Yim
It's Chinese New Year, and Goldy Luck’s mother wants her to take a plate of turnip cakes to the...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Thanhha Lai
Based on the author’s experiences fleeing Vietnam after the fall of Saigon, this story is told...
3rd - 7th
Written by R.J. Bailey
In Meals in Vietnam, young readers will learn about the foods and cultural practices that make up...
K - 4th
Written by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw
Elliot lives in America, and Kailash lives in India. These two pen pals realize that their lives...
Pre-K - 2nd
Written by Karen Backstein
A retelling of a fable from India about six blind men who learn what an elephant is by feeling it....
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Veera Hiranandani
Shy twelve-year-old Nisha, forced to flee her home with her Hindu family during the 1947 partition...
3rd - 7th
Written by Shenaaz Nanji
This anthology includes eight traditional tales from all over the Indian subcontinent. Bright...
1st - 5th
Written by Chloe Perkins
Discover what it’s like to grow up in India in this fascinating, nonfiction Level 2...
K - 2nd
Written by R.J. Bailey
In Meals in India, young readers will learn about the foods and cultural practices that make up...
K - 3rd
Written by Diane Bailey
In this kids' biography, discover the inspiring life story of Mohandas Gandhi, whose teachings of...
3rd - 7th
Written by Chitra Soundar
In this retelling of the flood myth, young Pattan's amazing pumpkin grows big enough to save the plants and animals when the rains come.
K - 3rd
Written by Catherine Chambers
This contemporary fable of how the African and Indian elephant first found their homelands also shows children that it is important to be loved and cherished for one’s own unique characteristics.
Pre-K - 2nd
Written by Rukhsana Khan
The Basant kite festival is here, and the sky is full of colorful kites all fighting to be the last...
1st - 5th
Written by Malala Yousafzai and Patricia McCormick
On October 9th, 2012 young Malala Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban while riding a bus home from...
8th - 11th
Written by Rukhsana Khan
Rubina is new to America, having recently arrived from Pakistan. When Rubina is invited to her...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Sandra Markle
A rare look the endangered life of snow leopards in Pakistan. A mother leopard helps her newborn...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Theresa Heine
A heartwarming story set in Nepal of two resourceful sisters who bring the safety of solar-powered...
K - 3rd
Written by Bao Phi
Twins Hue and Hoa are excited for the May Day parade! While waiting at the park for the parade to...
Pre-K - 2nd
Written by Naomi C. Rose
Tashi loves listening to Popola, her grandfather, sing Tibetan chants to the click, click of his...
1st - 4th
Written by Hope Lim
A young boy, recently arrived from Korea, finds a glorious plum tree in his new backyard. It...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Yangsook Choi
Being the new kid in school is hard enough, but what happens when nobody can pronounce your name?...
Pre-K - 2nd
Written by Lily Toy Hong
In this retelling of a Chinese folk tale, old Mr. Haktak digs up a curious brass pot in his garden,...
Pre-K - 3rd
Written by Ying Chang Compestine
When a boy goes to the market to buy food and comes home with an old wok instead, his parents...
