What is the Asian/Pacific American Award?
The Asian/Pacific American Award
The goal of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature is to honor and recognize individual work about Asian/Pacific Americans and their heritage, based on literary and artistic merit.
The award is selected and presented by APALA, the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association. The Award includes adult categories (fiction and nonfiction) as well as Youth, Children, and Picture Books categories.
Picture Books Winners
2022 Picture Book winner
Watercress by ISBN: 9780823446247Driving through Ohio in an old Pontiac, a young girl's parents stop suddenly when they spot watercress growing wild in a ditch by the side of the road. Grabbing an old paper bag and some rusty scissors, the whole family wades into the muck to collect as much of the muddy, snail covered watercress as they can. At first, she's embarrassed. Why can't her family get food from the grocery store? But when her mother shares a story of her family's time in China, the girl learns to appreciate the fresh food they foraged.
2021 Picture Book winner
Paper Son: the Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist by ISBN: 9781524771874An inspiring picture-book biography of animator Tyrus Wong, the Chinese American immigrant responsible for bringing Disney's Bambi to life. Before he became an artist named Tyrus Wong, he was a boy named Wong Geng Yeo. He traveled across a vast ocean from China to America with only a suitcase and a few papers. Not papers for drawing--which he loved to do--but immigration papers to start a new life.
Children's Literature Winners
2022 Children's Literature winner
Amina's Song by ISBN: 9781534459885In the companion novel to the beloved and award-winning Amina's Voice, Amina once again uses her voice to bridge the places, people, and communities she loves--this time across continents. It's the last few days of an amazing trip to Pakistan, and Amina finds it hard to leave the sights, the shops, and, most of all, her family.
2021 Children's Literature winner
When You Trap a Tiger by ISBN: 9781524715717Would you make a deal with a magical tiger? This uplifting story brings Korean folklore to life as a girl goes on a quest to unlock the power of stories and save her grandmother. Some stories refuse to stay bottled up...
Asian/Pacific American: Youth Literature Winners (YA)
2022 Youth Literature Winner
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by ISBN: 9780525555254Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu can't remember exactly when the feeling took root--that desire to look, to move closer, to touch. Whenever it started growing, it definitely bloomed the moment she and Kathleen Miller walked under the flashing neon sign of a lesbian bar called the Telegraph Club. Suddenly everything seemed possible. But America in 1954 is not a safe place for two girls to fall in love, especially not in Chinatown.
2021 Youth Literature Winner
This Light Between Us: a Novel of World War II by ISBN: 9781250192387Andrew Fukuda In 1935, ten - year - old Alex Maki, from Bainbridge Island, Washington, is disgusted when he's forced to become pen pals with Charlie Lévy of Paris, France--a girl. He thought she was a boy. In spite of Alex's reluctance, their letters continue to fly across the Atlantic, along with the shared hopes and dreams of friendship. Until the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the growing Nazi persecution of Jews force both young people to confront the darkest aspects of human nature.
