The Beat of the Dragon Boat

Author: Christina Matula

Illustrator: Nicole Wang

Audience: Lower Elementary

Justification: Reviewed by Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal

Classification: By a biracial, second generation immigrant author and an Asian American illustrator about the Dragon Boat Festival, its history, its modern practice, and traditional foods of the festival.

Cover image © Sleeping Bear Press. Source: official publisher webpage. Used under fair use.

The Greatest River

Author: Namita Moolani Mehra

Illustrator: Khoa Le

Audience: Lower Elementary

Justification: Reviewed by Horn Book Magazine, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal

Classification: By an Indian author with a diverse cultural background and experience and a Vietnamese illustrator about an Indian family with a sickly mother who travel the Ganga (Ganges) river to bathe in its healing waters.

Cover image © HarperCollins. Source: official publisher webpage. Used under fair use.

Home, Home

Author: Sibu T.P.

Illustrator: Sibu T.P.

Audience: Lower Elementary

Justification: Reviewed by Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal

Classification: By second generation immigrant about an immigrant boy whose family travel to India where he feels out of place but his family’s tradition of drink chaiya allows him to find some comfort in the unfamiliar.

Cover image © Penguin Random House. Source: official publisher webpage. Used under fair use.

Mustafa's Mithai

Author: Sana Rafi

Illustrator: Nabi H. Ali

Audience: Lower Elementary

Justification: Reviewed by Kirkus Reviews, and School Library Journal

Classification: By a Pakistani American author and a Tamil-American illustrator about a boy enjoying all the delicious sweets found in South Asia

Cover image © Penguin Random House. Source: official publisher webpage. Used under fair use.

Picking Tea with Baba

Author: Xu Bin

Illustrator: Yu Yin

Translator: Shan Chen

Audience: Lower Elementary

Justification: Reviewed by Booklist, Horn Book Magazine, and Kirkus Reviews

Classification: By a Chinese author and a Chinese illustrator about a boy and his brother in China working with their family in their tea garden.

Cover image © Penguin Random House. Source: official publisher webpage. Used under fair use.