Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind

Soon I'll be wrapping up my series of interviews with the winners of the first Philippine National Children's Books Awards and will be reviewing books again. I've bought or received some beautiful, impressive books from Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and India, and I'm excited to discuss them here. I've also got some really great books from the U.S. with Asian and/or Asian American content. What have you been reading lately? Any book recommendations for Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind? :o) And oh! Have you seen The New York Times ' list of Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2010 ? Shadow (Chronicle Books) is on the list - it's the work of Korean illustrator Suzy Lee . (Is Suzy Lee still living in Singapore?) Big Red Lollipop (Viking), written by Pakistani Canadian author Rukhsana Khan and illustrated by Sophie Blackall, is also on the list. Woot woot!!

Seriously. They are. Yesterday, I attended the book launch of Foldabots Toy Book 3 (K-Zone/Summit Media). Foldabots is a series of cut-out cardboard robots by children's book author/illustrator Jomike Tejido . Apart from the three toy books, the Foldabots can be seen monthly in K-Zone Magazine . The launch was a smashing success! There were lots of kids at the event and they were able to assemble Foldabots and be part of a game/contest. Assembling Foldabots is serious business. Here are more pictures from the launch. I loved all the kids! Ze line to get Jomike to sign a copy of Foldabots Toy Book 3 : There are few things better than kids geeking out over your books/products, respecting and admiring you, and thinking you are cool. =D Congratulations, Jomike! Linky, linky: Click here to read my interview with Jomike. Click here to visit Jomike's blog.

Citation for Araw sa Palengke [ A Day at the Market ], written by May Tobias-Papa and illustrated by Isabel Roxas ( Adarna House , 2008), from the Philippine National Children's Book Awards 2010 : "Listen well," her mother tells her. "Hold on to me tightly, ha? So you won't get lost. And don't point at things that you want me to buy for you." And so the story begins with a promise: "Yes, Nanay, I promise." Early one morning, a little girl accompanies her mother to the market. They take readers with them. The market is hot and noisy, smelly and muddy, but it's also fascinating and colorful, because it's seen from a point of view that's only about three feet tall. When they arrive home, and our little girl unpacks the bayong (bag) to find a surprise wrapped in newspaper at the bottom, it's her joy we feel in the little dance that she does. Araw sa Palengke is a true marriage of text and visual image. The story by May Tobias-Pa...

I found out about this festival in Qatar from Asia Writes . (Click on the images to enlarge them and to find out more about the festival.) I sooooooooooooooooooooo want to go. Who's going? :o)

I've got another special author interview for you today! Meet Becky Bravo, one of the nine winners of the first Philippine National Children's Book Awards . Here is the official Philippine National Children's Book Award citation for Becky's book, Just Add Dirt (illustrated by Jason Moss and published by Adarna House in 2009): One morning, Miguel wakes up to find little mung bean seedlings growing out of his ears. "That's what you get for not taking a bath," his mother says quite nonchalantly. Miguel promises to take a bath, but he keeps putting it off so that he can play with his friends. Meanwhile, more and more plants start growing all over his body - a veritable vegetable garden! Miguel starts to panic, but his mother remains cool and calm. Becky Bravo has written very interesting characters and a funny, immensely entertaining story. Jason Moss' colorful, vivid, and detailed illustrations add even more humor to the book. Just Add Dirt will have c...

is on children's literature from India and the Indian diaspora! =D

I kinda fell in love with Tagu-Taguan by Jomike Tejido ( Tahanan Books , 2009). It's a counting book in Filipino, and I thought it was so refreshing that it counted backwards from 10 to 1, then reinforced the "lesson" of counting by counting again from 1 to 10. I also thought that the use of creepy crawlies for the counting was sure to be a hit with the young 'uns. Young 'uns love their creepy crawlies! =D Jomike Tejido is an architect, artist, and illustrator. This year he won two Philippine National Children's Book Awards for writing and illustrating Tagu-Taguan and for illustrating Lub-Dub, Lub-Dub . ( Lub-Dub, Lub-Dub is a picture book biography of Filipino pediatrician Fe del Mundo. It was written by Russell Molina and published by Bookmark in 2008). Here I have a special interview with Mr. Tejido. He's revealed a lot of what goes on behind his work (his inspirations and rituals, etc.) and I hope you enjoy reading all about it! Hi, Jomike! Con...