Celebrate Lunar New Year with Asian Pacific American Poetry

Happy Lunar New Year! 
Let's celebrate by seeking out poetry for young people by Asian and Asian Pacific American writers! Here's a beginning list; please let me know of any great titles I may have missed. 

Asian Pacific American Poetry for Young People
Asian and Asian American poetry for young people is not just haiku (and haiku is wonderful to share with young people), but there are many lovely, ancient and contemporary works to share with children. Here is a sampling of poetry for young people by Asian and Asian Pacific American poets.

• Chang, Victoria. 2020. Love, Love. New York: Sterling. 
• Chau, Alina. 2021. In the Spirit of a Dream. New York: Orchard.
• Ho, Minfong. 1996. Maples in the Mist: Poems for Children from the Tang Dynasty. New York: Lothrop, Lee, & Shepard.
• Issa, Kobayashi. 2007. Today and Today. New York: Scholastic.
• Izuki, Steven. 1994. Believers in America: Poems about Americans of Asian and Pacific Islander Descent. Chicago, IL: Children’s Press.
• Jiang, Emily. 2014. Summoning the Phoenix: Poems and Prose About Chinese Musical Instruments. Ill. by April Chu. New York: Shen's Books/Lee & Low.
• Lai, Thanhha. 2011. Inside Out and Back Again. New York: HarperCollins.
• Lin, Grace and McKneally, Ranida T. 2007. Our Seasons. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge.
• Lin, Grace and McKneally, Ranida T. 2016. Our Food: A Healthy Serving of Science and Poems. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge.
• Mak, Kam. 2001. My Chinatown: One Year in Poems. New York: HarperCollins.
• Nagai, Mariko. 2014. Dust of Eden. Chicago: Whitman. 
• Nagai, Mariko. 2019. Under the Broken Sky. New York: Macmillan. 
• Park, Linda Sue. 2007. Tap Dancing on the Roof: Sijo Poems. New York : Clarion.
• Park, Linda Sue. 2021. The One Thing You’d Save. Ill. by Robert Sae-Heng. Boston: HMH/Clarion.
• Russell, Ching Yeung. 2019. House Without Walls. Yellow Jacket.
• Sze, Gillian. 2021. My Love for You is Always. Ill. by Michelle Lee. New York: Philomel.
• Sze, Gillian. 2021. The Night is Deep and Wide. Ill. by Sue Todd. Custer, WA: Orca.
• Wong, Janet S. 1994. Good Luck Gold and Other Poems. New York: McElderry.
• Wong, Janet S. 1996/2008. A Suitcase of Seaweed, and Other Poems. New York: McElderry.
• Wong, Janet S. 1999. Behind the Wheel: Poems about Driving. New York: McElderry.
• Wong, Janet S. 1999. The Rainbow Hand: Poems about Mothers and Children. New York: McElderry.
• Wong, Janet S. 2000. Night Garden: Poems from the World of Dreams. New York: McElderry.
• Wong, Janet S. 2003. Knock on Wood: Poems about Superstitions. New York: McElderry.
• Wong, Janet S. 2003. Minn and Jake. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux.
• Wong, Janet S. 2007. Twist: Yoga Poems. New York: McElderry.
• Wong, Janet. 2008. Minn and Jake’s Almost Terrible Summer. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux. 
• Wong, Janet. 2011. Once Upon A Tiger; New Beginnings for Endangered Animals. OnceUponaTiger.com.
• Wong, Janet. 2012. Declaration of Interdependence: Poems for an Election Year. PoetrySuitcase.
• Wong, Janet. 2019. A Suitcase of Seaweed and MORE. Princeton, NJ: Pomelo Books.
• Wong, Joyce Lee. 2006. Seeing Emily. New York: Abrams.
• Yep, Laurence, ed. 1993. American Dragons: Twenty-five Asian American Voices. New York: HarperCollins.
• Yoon, JooHee. 2015. Beastly Verse. New York: Enchanted Lion Books.
• Yu, Chin. 2005. Little Green; Growing Up During the Chinese Cultural Revolution. New York: Simon & Schuster.

PLUS: These poetry books feature Asian and Asian Pacific American characters and content, but the authors are not from these cultures themselves. 

• Cheng, Andrea. 2005. Shanghai Messenger. New York: Lee & Low.
• Demi, comp. 1994. In the Eyes of the Cat: Japanese Poetry for All Seasons. Translated by Tze-Si Huang. New York: Henry Holt.
• Donwerth-Chikamatsu, Annie. 2016. Somewhere Among. Simon & Schuster.
• Gollub, Matthew. 1998. Cool Melons Turn to Frogs: The Life and Poems of Issa. New York: Lee & Low Books.
• Jacobson, David; Ito, Sally and Tsuboi, Michiko. 2016. Are You an Echo? The Lost Poetry of Misuzu Kaneko. Ill. by Toshikado Hajiri. Chin Music.
• Ling, Nancy Tupper. 2015. Double Happiness. San Francisco: Chronicle.
• Thompson, Holly. 2011. Orchards. New York: Random House.
• Thompson, Holly. 2013. The Language Inside. New York: Delacorte.
• Thompson, Holly. 2016. Falling into the Dragon's Mouth. New York: Holt.

Author and artist Grace Lin shares directions for making your own paper art of an ox for the Year of the Ox in her awesome newsletter here.

And finally, my favorite Asian Pacific American poet, Janet Wong, wrote a brand new poem, "Steady" to celebrate the new year of the ox and is allowing me to share it here. Enjoy!

Now, head on over to Nix the Comfort Zone where Molly is gathering all our Poetry Friday posts!