Program Description
Event Details
This event is part of the Inaugural AAPI Heritage Festival at Scarsdale Public Library. #scarsdaleAAPIfest
Join us for a lively hour in conversation with these six amazing authors of middle grade and young adult literature!
When you register, please take care to type your email address correctly as all correspondence regarding this event will come through your email.
This event will be recorded.
Sheela Chari is the author of the THE UNEXPLAINABLE DISAPPEARANCE OF MARS PATEL series, based on the Peabody Award-winning mystery podcast. Her other work include the forthcoming novel, KARTHIK DELIVERS (2022), FINDING MIGHTY, a Junior Library Guild Selection and Children's Choice Award Finalist; and VANISHED, an APALA Children’s Literature Honor Book, Edgar finalist for best juvenile mystery, and Al’s Book Club Pick on the Today Show. Sheela has degrees from Stanford University, Boston University, and New York University, where she received an MFA in Fiction. She is a faculty member at Vermont College of the Arts and teaches fiction at Mercy College. She lives with her family in New York.
Sayantani DasGupta is the New York Times bestselling author of the critically acclaimed, Bengali folktale and string theory-inspired Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond books, the first of which—The Serpent’s Secret—was a Bank Street Best Book of the Year, a Booklist Best Middle Grade Novel of the 21st Century, and an EB White Read Aloud Honor Book. Sayantani is a pediatrician by training, but now teaches at Columbia University. When she’s not writing or reading, Sayantani spends time watching cooking shows with her trilingual children and protecting her black Labrador retriever Khushi from the many things that scare him, including plastic bags. She is a team member of We Need Diverse Books, and can be found online at sayantanidasgupta.com and on Twitter at @sayantani16.
Henry Lien is an author from Taiwan, now living in Hollywood, CA. He is a graduate of St. Paul’s School, Brown University, UCLA School of Law, and Clarion West Writers Workshop. He is the author of the award-winning and critically-acclaimed Peasprout Chen middle grade fantasy series. Henry also teaches writing in the UCLA Extension Writers Program. He previously worked as an attorney and fine art dealer. He is a four-time Nebula/Norton Award finalist and won the UCLA Extension Department of the Arts Instructor of the Year award. Hobbies include writing theme songs for his novels and losing Nebula/Norton Awards.
Photographer credit: Joshua Chow
Diana Ma: “I’m a Chinese American author who writes YA and MG books that feature kickass Asian American heroes. Growing up as a Chinese American girl, these were the kind of characters I hungered to find in books. I believe that it’s important for all kids to recognize themselves as the heroes of the books they read and that diverse books help us create a better world. I have two wonderful kids of my own and want them to grow up with books that represent them. I was a 2019 We Need Diverse Books mentee with Swati Avashti, and I have an BA in Creative Writing from the University of Washington and an MA in English with a Creative Writing focus from the University of Illinois, Chicago. I’m represented by Christa Heschke and Daniele Hunter of McIntosh and Otis. I live in a suburb of Seattle and teach composition, creative writing, literature, and humanities at North Seattle College.”
LEHUA PARKER writes speculative fiction for kids and adults that often explores the intersections of Hawaii’s past, present, and future. Her published works include the Niuhi Shark Saga trilogy, Lauele Universe Stories, Lauele Chicken Skin Stories, and Lauele Fractured Folktales, as well as plays, poetry, short stories, and essays. One Boy, No Water, Niuhi Shark Saga #1, was a 2017 Hawaii Children’s Choice Nene Award Nominee. As an author, editor, and educator trained in literary criticism and advocate of indigenous cultural narratives, Lehua is a frequent presenter at conferences, symposiums, and schools. Her hands-on workshops and presentations for kids and adults are offered through the Lehua Writing Academy. She is currently the Personal Voices Editor for Dialogue Magazine and the Lit Coordinator for PEAU (Pasifika Enriching Arts of Utah). Originally from Hawaii and a Kamehameha Schools graduate, Lehua now lives in exile in the Rocky Mountains. During the snowy winters, she dreams of the beach.
Cindy Pon is the author of Silver Phoenix (Greenwillow), which was named one of the Top Ten Fantasy and Science Fiction Books for Youth by the American Library Association’s Booklist and one of 2009′s best Fantasy, Science Fiction and Horror by VOYA; Serpentine and Sacrifice (Month9Books), which were both Junior Library Guild selections and received starred reviews from School Library Journal and Kirkus, respectively; and WANT (Simon Pulse), also a Junior Library Guild selection, is a near-future thriller set in Taipei. RUSE, the sequel, released in March 2019. She is the cofounder of Diversity in YA with Malinda Lo. Cindy is also a Chinese brush-painting student of nearly two decades. Learn more about her books and art at http://cindypon.com.