Get to Know Asian American Children’s Authors: Kashmira Sheth, Author of Tiger in My Soup

The next author in the Asian American Children’s Authors series is award-winning and multi-faceted author Kashmira Sheth.

1) Which of your characters do you most identify with and why?

Kashmira Sheth: Amitha, thank you for inviting me to participate in your blog!

I identify with Seema Trivedi from Blue Jasmine. Since that was my first novel, like many other first novels, it is semi-autobiographical. Even though Seema is younger (She is 12; I was 17), her emotional journey in the United States is very much based on my personal experience. Like Seema, I had a happy, but fragmented childhood, and I missed the people I left behind. I also identify with the older sister in Tiger in My Soup. Like her, I loved reading and paid no attention to anything else that was going around me.

2) If you could give your Asian American kid readers one piece of advice, what would it be?

KS: Read as much as you can. It may be difficult to find books that reflect your experience of being Asian American but all stories hold deeper truths from which you can learn. Also, listen to the stories your parents and grandparents tell you. Those stories will keep you connected to your past.

3) Were you a reader growing up? Why or why not?

KS: Absolutely, I was a reader. Before I became an independent reader I listened to stories. I come from a family of storytellers and listening to stories from my parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts was a big part of my childhood. I read books in my mother tongue of Gujarati. I was also exposed to English, Sanskrit and Hindi literature. Looking back, I believe that my interest in reading was strongly influenced by the fact that many in my family also enjoyed reading.

About the author: 

Kashmira Sheth writes picture books, middle grade novels, and young adult fiction. Her eight books have received many awards and honors, such as the Asian/Pacific American Librarian Association Honor Award, the International Reading Association’s Notable Book for a Global Society and the American Library Association’s Best Books for Young Adults. Kashmira was born and raised in India and comes from a family of storytellers. She studied science in college but her enjoyment of reading and sharing stories nudged her into writing. Her latest picture book, Tiger in My Soup, is about the sibling relationship, power of imagination and love of reading. Her next picture book will come out in April of 2015. Visit her at: http://www.kashmirasheth.com

#BlueJasmine #picturebooks #KashmiraSheth #TigerinMySoup #blogseries #AsianAmericanAuthorSeries

Quick Recap #2: Asian American Children’s Author Blog Series

The summer is almost over, it’s time for another recap post!

Here’s who I’ve had on the blog so far:

(For Weeks 1-5 click here)

Week 6: Mitali Perkins, editor of Open Mic and author of Bamboo People

Week 7: Livia Blackburne, author of Midnight Thief

Week 8: Varsha Bajaj, author of Abby Spencer Goes to Bollywood

Week 9: Uma Krishnaswami, author of The Problem with Being Slightly Heroic

Week 10: Fonda Lee, author of Zeroboxer

There are 5 more great authors coming up next month!

#FondaLee #AbbySpencerGoestoBollywood #VarshaBajaj #UmaKrishnaswami #TheProblemwithBeingSlightlyHeroic #Zeroboxer #midnightthief #openmic #blogseries #liviablackburne #AsianAmericanAuthorSeries #recap #bamboopeople #mitaliperkins

Get to Know Asian American Children’s Authors: Fonda Lee, Author of Zeroboxer

Our next author is Fonda Lee, author of the upcoming book, Zeroboxer. I am so intrigued by that title! (Adding it to my to-read list right now.)

 1) Which of your characters do you most identify with and why?

Fonda Lee: My novel, ZEROBOXER, takes place in a future in which Mars has been settled with the aid of genetic engineering, and tensions between Earth and its more prosperous colony are running high. My main character is a young prizefighter named Carr, who competes in the futuristic zero-gravity combat sport of zeroboxing, and ends up becoming a celebrity figure in the interplanetary conflict.

Carr’s strategist and love interest is a woman named Risha. Of all the characters I’ve written, I identify most strongly with Risha because she reminds me of myself when I was younger. Risha is half-Martian; she was born on Mars but raised on Earth, so while she considers herself Terran, she is also always aware of how she stands out as being Martian—not unlike the experience a lot of Asian Americans and other minorities go through. Risha is an ambitious workaholic with a keen head for business strategy, who masks her inner insecurities behind a cloak of over-preparedness—which is only a minor exaggeration of what I was like when I was working 60 to 80 hours a week as a twenty-two-year old management consultant. She also likes food and combat sports.

2) Were you a reader growing up? Why or why not?

FL: I was a voracious reader. Fantasy and science fiction have been my narrative drugs of choice for a long time. I loved Lloyd Alexander’s Prydain Chronicles, John Christopher’s Tripods Trilogy, Susan Cooper’s The Dark Is Rising, and Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle In Time, to name just a few.

My brain has always wanted to work and live in narrative. It loves nothing more than to follow a story, whether it be through books, film, comics, or television. There is something infinitely appealing about organizing our collective experiences, thoughts, fears, and hopes in the form of stories. We’ve been doing it since we were cavemen. I’m grateful that my parents encouraged my love of reading at a young age. I spent countless hours in libraries and bookstores.

3) If you could give your Asian American kid readers one piece of advice, what would it be?

FL: Read a lot, and read both broadly and deeply. Read fiction and non-fiction. Read different genres. This is especially important if you want to be a writer. Scan widely for what you like and when you gravitate toward something, dive deep to really understand it. I shake my head when I hear people say things like, “oh, I don’t read fiction” or “I don’t read YA” or “I don’t read comics.” There is something worthwhile, enlightening, or enjoyable about almost everything that is well done, and if you can appreciate it, it will open your mind to being a better reader and a better writer.

Asian American kids, in particular, I feel, are sometimes steered by well-meaning parents and peers toward the hard, technical fields. There’s a stereotype, often well reinforced, of the Asian quant jock who plays violin and goes on to medical school to become a brain surgeon. Every society has its naturally left-brained scientists, engineers, and doctors, as well as its writers, athletes, and fashion designers. There is, I think, a particular importance that practical-minded Asian American families sometimes place on the former at the expense of the latter. Take it from me: I did the practical finance degree and business career. I don’t regret it, but I wish I’d accepted earlier what my true calling was, even if making a living at it was still a ways away. Be true to yourself.

Thank you, Fonda!

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About the author:

Fonda Lee is an author and recovering corporate strategist who was born and raised in Calgary, Canada (land of hockey, rodeo, and oil reserves) and now lives with her family in Portland, Oregon (land of rain, hipsters, and Powell’s Books). When she is not writing she can be found training in kung fu or searching out tasty breakfasts. Her debut upper YA science fiction novel, ZEROBOXER, will be published by Flux in April 2015. You can find Fonda at www.fondalee.com and on Twitter @fondajlee.

#FondaLee #PrydainChronicles #susancooper #JohnChristopher #wrinkleintime #SciFi #darkisrising #TripodsTrilogy #YA #blogseries #AsianAmericanAuthorSeries #lloydalexander #madeleinelengle