I am a spoiled children’s book author and illustrator. After the exciting reaction to A Boy Named Isamu, Viking asked if there was another Mid Century artist I wanted to make into a book. I asked, “Anyone?”. “Yes”, they said and I sheepishly asked if we could do a book about the heroes of Mid Century Design, Charles and Ray Eames. They said, “Of course you can!” and now Charles and Ray: Designers at Play will be available May ’24.

Much to our surprise, there are not many books about Charles and Ray Eames. This is a story about how they were a perfect team and if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again. Charles and Ray Eames are an exciting follow up to Isamu Noguchi because their fun and playful energy is a nice contrast to the quieter tone of A Boy Named Isamu.

In a pleasant surprise, the Junior Library Guild named Charles and Ray, Designers at Play a Gold Standard Selection which means it’s a book to look for this year!

It will be exciting to see it in the wild and I hope you will be excited too. To preorder please visit here.

Great news from the Asian Pacific American Librarian Association. A Boy Named Isamu is the 2022 Honor Title for Asian/Pacific American Literature at the ALA Youth Media Awards. The Youth Media awards is the Academy Awards for children’s book so it’s exciting to be talked about let alone become a winner or honor medalist. This my second Youth Media Awards medal.

When Stop! Bot! won the 2020 Geisel Award, it came out of the blue. A Boy Named Isamu received more attention when released so it was a roller coaster experience keeping emotions in check. 5 reviewers gave it a starred review and the Noguchi Museum was an early supporter. It was a good day at the Yang household when hearing news from the Youth Media Awards.

I’m fortunate to work with Editor Tracy Gates and Art Director Jim Hoover at Viking for Children’s.. We’ve been together for my Viking books and have developed a rapport any author would love. Viking is the home for children’s classics like A Snowy Day so it’s been a dream come true.

I hope other authors and illustrators get to experience what I did with A Boy Named Isamu.

A Boy Named Isamu is now available for purchase and this is a book that Viking and I have been excited about for years. It is a fictional boyhood story about a day in the life of the great Isamu Noguchi as he explores nature and starts viewing the world as an artist. It is also about becoming comfortable with yourself and solitude . The reception has been amazing with starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, ALA Booklist, and Kirkus Reviews with Kirkus calling A Boy Named Isamu ” A marvel of prose, illustration, and design that invites repeated meditation.” The Noguchi Museum contacted me shortly after publication, asked if they could see a copy then said they would love to carry A Boy Named Isamu in their shop and collaborate on projects. During panel talks and interviews for the book, I learned that not only did Asian Americans connect with the story but also bi-racial people, those with autism, and others who have always felt different. It has been a dream start to say the least.

You can buy A Boy Named Isamu at booksellers everywhere or visit Penguin or the Noguchi Shop.

Incredible news came over the weekend when the Theodor Seuss Geisel committee called and said Stop! Bot! is the 2020 winner of the Geisel award. I was stunned because it is the dream in children’s book publishing to be recognized by the American Library Association who also award the Caldecott and Newbery Awards.

I like to think I take awards in stride but this was a bolt of lightning. According to the ALA, “The Geisel Award is given to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year.  Award winners are recognized for their literary and artistic achievements that demonstrate creativity and imagination to engage children in reading.” It’s hard to believe these words describe Stop! Bot!

As a child, I loved spending time at the elementary school library reading Caldecott and Newbury winners. One shelf was filled with Dr Seuss books. The other kids and I would sit on the floor in front of the shelf and read one Seuss book after another. Sometimes we traded books after finishing. Library hour always passed too quickly.

Stop! Bot! was meant to be fun and imaginative so winning an award named after Dr Seuss means the world. You wonder if your books make an impression and now I’m excited to create more stories. A new wacky story actually hit me while celebrating. Thanks again to the Geisel committee, Viking for Children’s and my dream team of editor Tracy Gates and art director Jim Hoover.

It is still a shock.

Dear Diary: A guide to the fine art of hanging out at your first Masters. Publication: Golf Digest. Art Director: Ken Delago

Stranger than Fiction. Publication: Notre Dame Magazine. Art Director: Kerry Prugh

Dear Diary: James Yang’s first look at The Masters. Client: Golf Digest. AD: Ken Delago

September. Client: Konica Minolta. AD: Kenny Eicher

Art Director, Ken Delago called last year with a dream assignment. Golf Digest wanted me to be the artist for the 2018 Masters Tournament as part of their First Look series. Each year Golf Digest Sends an illustrator to Augusta National to experience the masters and create an 8 page series of illustrations based on your first impressions. Ironically I am the first illustrator who golfs whom they’ve sent in 14 years and this was the assignment of my dreams. Many legendary illustrators and friends of mine who are insanely talented have done this gig and it was exciting and frightening at the same time. Not only did they ask for art, they also asked me to write a humorous story.

The story and art are now out with the 2019 Masters Preview issue and I have been grateful for the positive reaction from readers for both the art and the story.

Much thanks to Ken Delago and Editor in Chief Jerry Talde for making my dreams come true. You can read the story online at Golf Digest.

Trump is Hurting the Gun Lobby. AD: Hannah K Lee

Trump and Kim: What a Fine Mess. AD: Hannah K Lee

The Pentagon Doesn’t Know Where its Money Goes. AD: Hannah K Lee

Trump’s Next Target: Illegal Immigrants. AD: John J Custer

Len Small

Sean Qualls

Julia Rothman

Christopher Silas Neal

photo: Melinda Beck

Emceeing ICON10 -The Illustration Conference in Detroit was both a thrilling and frightening experience. The reaction from attendees and speakers went beyond my dreams and it was fun pretending to be a talk show host for two days.  A wrong step here or there could have made it an awkward time for all. Thank god it turned out well and I still have a career!

After time to reflect, here are nuggets of advice from myself and others which could help you crush as emcee if you’re lucky enough to get a call:

An emcee needs to be visible and invisible at the same time: My wife is a performer and choreographer who has emceed many award shows. She said never try to prove that you are clever or brilliant. Emceeing is about focusing on others.  When talking about yourself, make it relate to the audience. Mrs Yang was spot on. More than one attendee said they liked how my emceeing wasn’t about me. Some even mentioned how they were turned off by emcees who try to be comic geniuses or purposely outrageous. A performer at the conference told me you have 3 minutes to win an audience. Thank god I learned this after my opening monologue.

Research is good: After getting the call, I binged YouTube videos of my favorite talk show and podcast hosts and read their thoughts about a successful show.  Past emcees for ICON used costumes, props, or scripted pieces which are not my thing. I’m more comfortable as an old school host where I ad lib jokes and move things along. I’m not saying you can’t use props, it’s about finding an approach which feels genuine. More than once I used something learned from talk show hosts.

Don’t force funny:  The best advice from my favorite hosts was don’t try to be funny, be yourself. Let reactions and jokes come from an honest place. The jokes I made from honest reactions received the biggest laughs. There was a moment when I tried to channel Chris Rock and it didn’t work. When I went back to being myself, the audience responded. If a joke doesn’t work, don’t panic and try to compensate. Let it pass and wait for the next pitch. Sometimes a comment which makes people smile is enough especially for those of us who are not performers.

Have a few anecdotes in your back pocket. Everyone has anecdotes they love to tell. Use your stories when there is a technical glitch or need to stretch a segment. My mind went blank on the second day and I pulled out a personal story. No one noticed the mental reboot onstage.

Slow down a beat when you talk:  I’m a fast talker so this is a great note. When I slowed down a beat, the mind was able to relax and this came across onstage.

Let speakers know you’re nervous too. They will appreciate it. A highlight of emceeing ICON is having a brief moment to chat with speakers before they went onstage. Many were nervous so I would share that I felt the same. They appreciate it. It’s also good to give them a verbal pat on the back before they hit the stage.

Move things along: An Emcee is a transition from one talk to another. If transitions seems abrupt between talks that’s a bad thing. The best compliment received was ICON10 was a smooth conference.

It was a blast pretending I was a talk show host and I will always be grateful to ICON and Presidents Len Small and Julie Murphy.

Thanks for letting me be the popular kid at summer camp.

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“May” part of a calendar series for Konica Minolta. Kenny Eicher, AD.

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