Books : Children's Books : People & Places : Multicultural Stories : Asian Canadian

Astonishing in their lush realism and symbolic depth, the color images in this book by award-winning artist Zhong-Yang Huang draw readers into the mysterious Forbidden City. This fictionalized memoir of Cixi, a former Imperial concubine who ruled behind the throne for nearly half a century, includes intimate details about daily court life and presents a sympathetic look at how this strong woman thrived in a male-dominated world.

On October 5, 1982, Laurie Skreslet became the 131st person to reach the peak of Mount Everest. His lifelong dream of scaling the world's tallest mountain had become a reality, but it was an achievement that came with a heavy price. Laurie and his expedition faced hidden crevasses, blinding snowstorms, horrible altitude sickness and deadly avalanches that claimed the lives of team members throughout the ascent. In this exciting true-life adventure, Laurie shares intimate details from the climb itself, including the terrifying moment when he almost plunged to an icy death. A true hero, Laurie proves that with a bit of courage, a little faith and a lot of teamwork, an ordinary person can accomplish extraordinary things.

When Emma sets out to make a cookie family with her Grandma, the happy afternoon suddenly turns sad. The cookies are meant to look like her family, but hers is the only one with licorice hair and eyes. She doesn’t look like the others; does that mean she doesn’t belong?

In gentle text, Deborah Hodge tells the story of one small girl’s adoption: the hopes and prayers of her Canadian parents, their trip to the other side of the world, their meeting with the new baby, and the very long ride home to the new family waiting for Emma

Thousands of baby girls from China have been adopted by North American families. Although this lovely book tells the story of one such little girl, it is about much more than the logistics of adoption. It is about the many ways in which we can come together to form a family.

When Ian's parents separate, he moves with his mother to the city, a thousand miles away from the prairie wheat farm he calls home. With no friends and a bleak moonscape of a backyard to play in, Ian has only an old shoe box of objects from his past life to keep him company. But after he peeks through the fence to the lush garden next door, Ian is inspired to start digging his own little plot. And when he meets Mr. Mah, the old man who owns the garden, Ian is surprised to learn they have a lot in common. Also displaced from the original home he misses, Mr. Mah keeps his own box of memories of his past in China. And as they share stories about their distant homes, Ian finds more than just a new friend - he finally discovers in himself the courage to accept change.

During World War II near Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Jed comes to better understand and take pride in his British and native Tsimshian ancestry through caring for an injured eagle at a military fort and losing his Japanese Canadian best friend to an internment camp.

With Samson's butterfly kite flat on the ground and her own kite soaring, Sharon thought of shouting, "Okay, Samson Wong, you big-mouth. Let's see you fly your wonderful kite. Big wings will do it every time, right?"

But now that she had her chance to get even with Samson, Sharon didn't feel like fighting. She was happy just watching her kite pull into the clouds. For the first time in her life, Sharon had something Chinese that she was proud of and she was enjoying herself!

Teach Me to Fly, Skyfighter! and Other Stories offers four closely-observed accounts of growing up in contemporary Vancouver's Chinatown, highlighting the joys and frustrations of growing up in two cultures simultaneously.

Based on the award-winning novel Obasan, Naomi's Road describes an often-forgotten episode in Canadian history. It tells the story of Naomi Nakane -- a little girl with "black hair and lovely Japanese eyes and a face like a valentine" -- and her Japanese-Canadian family during the 1940s, when Canada was at war with Japan.
Naomi, her older brother Stephen, and their aunt are sent to an internment camp deep in the interior of British Columbia and then to a farm in Alberta. Through her eyes we see the effects of war as Naomi grows up in a world of hardship and prejudice. Yet throughout, she retains her essential hope and dignity.
"The book sings. It is a lyrical and intensely moving account." -- The Toronto Globe and Mail
"This is an important, painful story told with grace and sensitivity and lacking the easy sentimentality that would have dulled its polish. Great stuff." -- The Toronto Sun

Jason is an outsider. A recent immigrant from China, he lives in a close-minded town with his mother and younger brother. Falling in with the wrong crowd, trying to fit in, Jason takes chances and ends up in trouble with the police. Holding on to his friendship with a Native boy, also an outsider, Jason finds he needs to fight to belong and to find a new home.

Grace Dong-Mei is adopted and taken to Canada. Watching the Tianenmen Square massacre on television prompts her to explore her Chinese ancestry and she begins to unlock the truth about what really happened to her almost 20 years before.

After a storm engulfs his village, a Vietnamese boy has glimmers of a new calling in this spare middle-grade novel written with authenticity and grace.

Every day, Tinh heads out to sea with his father to catch fish for their family and the market. While he sometimes misses flying kites with other children on the beach, Tinh is proud to work alongside Ba. Then a fierce storm strikes, and Ba entrusts Tinh to secure the family vessel, but the boy panics and runs away. It will take courage and faith to salvage the bamboo boat, win back Ba’s confidence, and return to sea. This graceful tale narrates a young Vietnamese boy’s literal and spiritual coming-of-age.

Alberta Children's/Young Adult Book of the Year Nominee, 2008

CCBC's Best Books for Kids & Teens, 2008

Three girls sent away by a father who wishes for them a more prosperous life.

Once there lived three Japanese sisters:

The eldest sister's name was Aki, which means autumn. She was named this because she was as graceful as the gold and red colored leaves that swirl gently to earth in the autumn breeze.

The middle sister's name was Fuyu, which means winter. She was named this because her skin was as fair as the whitest winter's snow.

The youngest sister's name was Haruko, which means spring. She was named this because her silky, black hair smelled of the sweetest spring blossoms.

The gently eloquent tale follows the progress of three so-called "picture brides" who come to Canada in the early twentieth century, three girls sent away by a father who wishes for them a more prosperous life than he can provide in their hometown of Sendai. Reluctant as they are to leave home, the sisters are nonetheless obedient to their father_s wishes. Each takes with her one item that will remind her of their home. One brings a kimono, another a violin, but the youngest, Haruko, brings three seeds of the sakura tree.

The sisters arrive on the shores of British Columbia, where their husbands await. Each joins the husband to whom she has been promised, and each has her own way of remembering the family and country she has left behind.

Haruko plants the sakura seeds, each of which grows into a cherry tree. One spring, the blossoms swirl away in the wind, and are carried to the doorsteps of the two other sisters. The blossoms remind the sisters of Haruko and their Japanese home. Following the blossoms, they find Haruko's home and the three are reunited under the sakura trees to remember their lives together.

This is a book about the meaning of family and home and an exploration of Japanese culture in Canada.

Eight unforgettable stories tell of the triumph of the human spirit despite the bitterness of daily toils. Elegant paintings brilliantly complement each magical story. ". . . Ng's cool, brooding full-page paintings have an intense presence that enhances the stories' exotic flavor . . . A book not to miss."--Booklist, starred review. Booklist Editor's Choice. 1990 Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies.

One day Sayuri and her little brother Keiji explore the dark root cellar and are transported from Ganola AB to Middle World, a woodland full of figures from Japanese folklore.

Ten original ghost stories by Paul Yee dramatize the history of Chinese immigration to North America, from poor villagers who first came searching for gold in the late 1850s to new arrivals from Hong Kong. Told in the style of traditional Chinese folktales, they are illustrated with moody, abstract drawings by Harvey Chan.

In the title story, two friends seek gold, but the precious metal brings riches to one man and a curse to the other. In "Seawall Sightings," young lovers kept apart by immigration laws have a tragic reunion. In "Reunited," a spoiled teenage boy leaves Hong Kong for North America, only to find that his new life is not the glamorous one he had been expecting.

The stories describe the struggles, dreams, and resilience of people making new lives for themselves in a strange land, while retaining strong links to China and the past. In keeping with authentic Chinese ghost stories, wherever they go, the immigrants are followed by the curse of a friend, the ghost of a faithful spouse, or the spirit of a dead parent.