immigration – The Lerner Blog

Dreams to Ashes: An Interview with Author Livia Blackburne and Illustrator Nicole Xu

Dreams to Ashes: The 1871 Los Angeles Chinatown Massacre is a powerful nonfiction picture book full of both heartbreak and hope. In the late 1800s LA was more small town than city, with a total population under six thousand. Newspapers routinely published anti-Chinese rhetoric, and when a conflict broke out between two mutual aid societies, […]Read more

Author Interviews

Just Another Story: An Interview with Author and Illustrator Ernesto Saade

Thousands migrate every year in search of a better life. Just Another Story: a Graphic Migration Account goes beyond headlines or statistics to provide a powerful individual account of this journey. When Carlos was nineteen, his mother decided to leave her life in El Salvador. Refusing to let her go without him, Carlos joined her […]Read more

Author Interviews

Mami King: An Interview with Illustrator Kristin Sorra

Ma Mon Luk left China and everything he knew behind to seek his fortune in the Philippines. Desperate to earn a living—and the approval of the parents of the woman he loved—he created a chicken noddle soup he called mami—”ma” for his name and “mi” for noodles. Peddling it as a street vendor, he earned […]Read more

Books About Immigration

We've gathered an array of immigration-centric fiction and nonfiction, from real-world experiences of teen refugees and Dreamers, reflections on identities rooted in two distinctly different cultures, and a heart-warming picture book about welcoming a refugee family. These books reveal incredible courage and fortitude. Read more

World Refugee Day: Books that Highlight Refugee Rights & Experiences

June 20 is World Refugee Day, observed to acknowledge the right of anyone, anywhere, to seek safety. Below, discover nonfiction books that recount true stories of refugees around the world and discuss refugee rights, along with fiction picks that reflect refugee experiences. Learn more about World Refugee Day here.Read more

Author Interviews

Gold Mountain: An Interview with Author Betty G. Yee

Debut author Betty G. Yee tells a suspenseful, immersive depiction of a pivotal point in US history in Gold Mountain. In the 1860s, Tam Ling Fan needs money to help her father. Disguised as a boy, she travels from China to America to take a dangerous job as a laborer on the Transcontinental Railroad. Read on […]Read more

Author Interviews

A Hot Mess: An Interview with Author Jeff Fleischer

Over the next several years, the world can expect to see some drastic changes thanks to the climate crisis. A Hot Mess: How the Climate Crisis Is Changing Our World by journalist Jeff Fleischer takes an informed, approachable look at how our world will likely change as a result of our actions, including suggestions on […]Read more

Author Interviews

From the Tops of the Trees: An Interview with Author Kao Kalia Yang

Even in the most difficult circumstances there is joy and love. From the Tops of the Trees is a powerful true story of a young girl who has never known life outside the Ban Vinai Refugee Camp. For Kalia and her cousins, life isn’t always easy, but they still find ways to play, racing with […]Read more

Interview with The American Dream? author Shing Yin Khor

by Ashley Kuehl, Executive Editor of Trade YA Nonfiction Shing Yin Khor is the author and illustrator of the new graphic memoir The American Dream: A Journey on Route 66 Discovering Dinosaur Statues, Muffler Men, and the Perfect Breakfast Burrito.Read more

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