May = Asian Pacific American heritage month

It's that time of year again, when both the USA and Canada commemorate the cultures and contributions of their Asian citizenry. Hooray!

We have 5 new Asian themed stories to share with you this season. We've reprinted children's books authored by Ying Chang Compestine and have redesigned them with new bilingual translations in simplified Chinese.

1) Boy Dumplings: A Tasty Chinese Tale
- illustrated by James Yamasaki

Set in old Beijing, this fun-filled romp follows the travails of a hungry ghost. Perchance he stumbles upon a boy who looks good enough to eat! However, the clever child convinces the ghost to delay his easy meal and instead make the more delicious (but more complicated) recipe of "boy dumplings."

2) then there are 4 stories in our series Amazing Chinese Inventions
- illustrated by YongSheng Xuan

The three Kang brothers, Ting, Pan, and Kùai, always seem to get themselves in a pickle. But using their wits and resources, they produce some of the world's greatest creations!

"Xuan’s colourful illustrations with their thick, bold outlines are eye-catching"
- CM magazine

a) The Story of Chopsticks 

The youngest child, Kùai never got enough to eat. Maybe he can he grab food right off the over, when it is too hot for others to touch...but how? Soon the entire Kang family is eating with sticks. But should the boys bring them to a big wedding banquet?

b) The Story of Noodles

It's time for Mama Kang to win the annual cooking contest. But when she leaves her three sons to oversee making her dumpling wrappers, look out!

Boiled strips of dough end up everywhere! Hmmm, but they do taste good. With no time to waste, the Kangs submit a new dish to the judges.

What will everyone think about their entry of... noodles?


c) The Story of Kites

Protecting the rice during the harvest is a full-time job! Whew!  Shooing hungry birds from their fields never stops. Ting, Pan, and Kùai wonder if there is a better way.

Perhaps they can figure out a way to fly in the sky and beat these birds at their own game. They do have some materials handy.

Ouch! Flying themselves may be out of the question. But maybe they can launch something else!

d) The Story of Paper 

These Kang boys need to pay more attention at school! So their teacher writes messages on their hands to show their parents. How embarassing!

If only their teacher could write on something else.

The brothers brainstorm and come up with an idea that may result in what becomes an indispensable school supply!

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Enjoy these tall tales and another month of celebrating Asian themes and adventures!

Happy Year of the Sheep

February 19th is the start of the Chinese New Year...and we're ready to celebrate The Year of the Sheep!

We've created original adventures in our annual series Tales from the Chinese Zodiac for a decade. Now the latest yarn centers on Sydney - this lamb redefines (in very positive ways) what it means to be sheepish!

Already we have shared this energetic story with dozens of schools, libraries, and cultural associations...and have seen kids go baaa-baaa-bonkers with enthusiasm :)

Artist Alina Chau illustrated a brand new world for Sydney and our readers to explore - full of color, humor, and the beauty of nature. Well known for her expert use of watercolors, Alina imbues her illustrations with intimate and impressionistic detail. Plus Alina will present the March 1st storytime at Books, Inc. in Burlingame, CA.

Meanwhile author Oliver Chin is reading at many other locales. See our events calendar for a venue near you.

In addition, we are translating Tales from the Chinese Zodiac into Chinese, due to regular requests from teachers and parents from Chinese immersion classes. Now you can download free PDFs that have either the simplified and traditional Chinese translations for The Year of the Sheep and prior Tales.

May 2015 be full of health, wealth, and prosperity for you, your family, and your community.

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

The real Guardians of the Galaxy

Sure, Marvel's surprise summer blockbuster featured a unique cast of good guys. But that film's stars surely can't hold a candle to the real heroes of history, found all around our world, and believed in by millions of people for thousands of years.

On every continent, in every country, families have found inspiration in legendary champions. Elemental gods such as the Norse Thor. Skilled deities such as the Greek Artemis. Mythic avengers such as the Monkey King. Supreme defenders such as the Aztec's Quetzalcoatl.

Discover them and more in Good Dream, Bad Dream, created by Juan Calle and his team at Liberum Donum studios in Bogota, Colombia, and co-written by Serena Valentino. Our first Spanish bilingual book, it was successfully funded on Kickstarter by hundreds of fans who were excited by the fantastic artwork and multicultural themes.

In this universal tale, a boy named Julio is afraid of having nightmares. His Papa comes to the rescue, by telling his son that people have always relied on superheroes to make their dreams good. Next come panaromic examples from around the globe of powerful protectors facing off against equally infamous foes.

Illustrated in a dynamic comic book style, Good Dream underscores the common experiences we share, both as individuals and as cultures and as a species. Human nature is rooted in the primal need to belong but also to stand out and for principles that are bigger than any one of us and ultimately can unite us all.

May is Asian Pacific American Heritage month... but still needs more diverse children's books

As you may know, the month of May commemorates the contributions and cultures of Asian Pacific Americans.

So it is notable that recently American publishers have recognized (again) that 90% of their children's books don't include diverse faces and themes.

A March New York Times article "Where are the People of Color in Children's Books?" rekindled the debate. The ensuing media coverage prompted New York publishers to form "task forces" to address the issue, get photographed doing so, and create Twitter hashtags - that's sort of like an interagency SWAT meeting without the guns or vans or deadlines. More concretely, School Library Journal dedicated their May issue to the topic of diversity.

There is nothing new under the sun, but the problem is real.

Capitalism is the wheel that drives industry. Superheroes, wizards, vampires, and female archers sell books. Publisher may wonder if Asians, Latinos, and Blacks buy enough books that feature characters like themselves. But it seems like publishing is even lagging behind TV and movies (which can't brag about their track records either) in including minority (soon to be the majority) actors. Even when you factor out the ubiquitous presence of Samuel Jackson, the boob tube is doing a better job than book publishing.

We founded Immedium in 2005 to address this very issue.

One-third of our stories (a dozen and counting) have been multicultural.  We've introduced Asian American characters in Tales from the Chinese Zodiac, Julie Black Belt, and Sora and the Cloud, who appeal to readers universally. This fall, we'll produce our first Spanish bilingual adventure with Liberum Donum, artists from Bogota, Columbia.

This week School Library Journal cited Sora & the Cloud in their culturally diverse book lis:

"An adventurous young boy takes flight on a friendly cloud in this delightful whirlwind of a daydream. The story is artfully structured, with reality turning to fantasy as Sora (a name that means “sky” in Japanese) climbs a tree and hops aboard a cloud for a whimsical journey above the city. His fanciful vision gently gives way to reality again when he drifts to sleep on the cloud and dreams of pleasures grounded in everyday life, like splashing in puddles and digging in sand at the beach. Sora’s airborne fantasy is charmingly depicted with a dreamlike palette of pastel colors. The San Francisco setting in combination with the bilingual text deftly shows the child’s Japanese American identity."
Therefore we celebrate the symbolism of May with you. We hope to continue sharing your journey of cultural exploration and appreciation.