Asian Voices in Children’s Literature

Writing Contest Winners

Sponsored by Sambasivan & Parikh and Free Spirit Publishing, the Asian Voices in Children’s Literature Writing Contest aims to elevate authentic, culturally relevant children’s stories written by and about people of Asian heritage. Every entry is considered for publication, and three cash prizes will be awarded.

Contest Page

Current Winners

1st Place

Deepa’s Gajra by Maitreyee Pandit

I watch Sumee’s fingers dance.

“Lay,” Sumee whispers.

“Wrap.”

“Tie.”

“Repeat. Lay-wrap-tie-repeat.”

I stand still, engrossed in Sumee’s chanting.

Sumee offers her abolis. I reach in.

“Lay-wrap-trap-repeat-ray-tie-lap-lepeat-lay-pie-rie-repeat…arrrghh,” I say.

Deepa’s Gajra is a story about finding connection through mindfulness. When Deepa arrives at her cousin’s village in India, she feels frustrated and out of place. However, after meeting Sumee, Deepa is introduced to the mesmerizing and meditative art of making a flower garland, or gajra. Now, she must harness this skill to weave together her two worlds and find a sense of belonging.

Maitreyee Pandit is an engineer-turned-bilingual children’s author and a mom of two young kids. She is an active member of SCBWI and the 12x12 community. Most of her stories are based on her personal experiences, intertwining her Indian heritage and American life. She tries to keep her writing fun and universally relatable, but she is very passionate about ensuring that South Asian children see their own culture and traditions reflected and adapted on the page.

2nd Place

Zain’s Spicy Situation by Naz Alibhai

BAM!

Ears POP!

Nose DRIP!

Tongue on FIRE!

GULP! Sweet mango lassi saved the day…and Zain’s tongue.

This humorous, heartfelt picture book celebrates culture and diversity through the love of food. With just three days left before his Nani arrives, Zain is running out of time to master how to eat her spicy cooking. But each time he takes a bite, Zain can’t take the heat. Just when Zain prepares to face another fiery failure, his Nani surprises him with flavors made just for him.

Naz Alibhai was born and raised in Toronto, Canada, with an East Indian-East African heritage, and she now lives in Los Angeles, California. After starting her own cake business in Dubai, she began teaching kids the art of cake decorating, and she continued decorating after moving to California. She has even won many cake competitions! Having found that she loved teaching, she pursued that passion, and she now teaches elementary school children, who inspire her to write children’s stories. She is in the process of completing the UC San Diego Children’s Book Illustration Certificate Program, working to become an author-illustrator. She hopes to entertain young children with her stories one day. She is a member of SCBWI and the 12x12 Challenge and was chosen as a PB Rising Stars ’24 Mentee.

3rd Place

Mariko’s Bonsai Treasure by Sara Yamasaki

Scrunch, crunch, crunch.

Mariko notices the bonsai branches drooping. “Is the snow too heavy for you?” Mariko asks.

She reaches for a pine broom.

Whisk-whisk.

The limbs spring up. Sunlight shimmers off bits of snow like stars.

Mariko’s Bonsai Treasure is about a Japanese American girl who learns daiji-ni, the art of cherishing everything like a treasure. Through the seasons of family life, Mariko watches her grandmother cradle a spider, helps her mother save rainwater, and helps her father tie fallen pine needles into brooms. Mariko begins to see that nothing is too small to matter. By winter, she notices the bonsai drooping under heavy snow and reaches for a pine broom. Then daiji-ni becomes her own.

Sara Yamasaki grew up surrounded by trees, a vegetable garden, and her mother’s bonsai—one that became their Christmas tree throughout her childhood and inspired this story. She teaches writing from elementary through graduate levels and founded the Moving Words Writing Clinic. Her poetry, essays, short stories, and articles have appeared in Calyx, The Kyoto Journal, Crab Creek Review, and elsewhere. She is a 2024 PB Rising Stars Mentorship recipient and a 2015 Hedgebrook Writing Residency recipient. Sara has two grown children and, when not writing and teaching, enjoys ikebana, tai chi, and hiking with her husband, Tom Ikeda, founder of Densho: The Japanese American Legacy Project.