Finding Papa

Angela Pham Krans is the award-winning author of Finding Papa, which received ALA’s Asian/Pacific American Honor Award for Literature. Her other titles include Words Between Us and Another Word for Neighbor. Angela enjoys writing humorous and heartfelt stories that highlight relationships between family, friends, and community. When Angela isn’t writing, she enjoys traveling, trying new recipes, and spending time with family. Angela lives in Atlanta with her husband, Hamilton, and their rambunctious dog, Archer. You can connect with her at angelakrans.com.Thi Bui is a cartoonist, an educator, a mom, and a restless explorer. Best known for her bestselling graphic memoir The Best We Could Do, she has also illustrated the children's books Chicken of the Sea and A Different Pond, for which she won a Caldecott Honor. You can find her work and interviews at thibui.com.

"Krans' prose gently helps young readers understand concepts such as missing loved ones and displacement. Repeated phrasing and recurring elements (crocodiles, mango trees, goodbyes) create a lyrical, compelling narrative and read-aloud. Bui's art, with its intimate portraits of family moments, is full of tenderness and expression. An affecting story of courage and hope in hardship." — Kirkus ReviewsBased on the author's real journey in 1983 from Vietnam to the U.S., the story brings another important voice to the recent influx of kid-authentic tellings of harrowing immigrant and refugee experiences such as Marwan's Where Butterflies Fill the Sky (BCCB 03/22), or Mayper's Night on the Sand (BCCB 07/22). Bui's illustrations stretch across the pages, with dappled textures and careful blending evocative of watercolor, while the compositions structure the story's pace. . . Add this to the aforementioned titles for an inclusive display on the various journeys people take to find safety and the hardships they often face. — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s BooksReassuring despite depicting a dangerous journey and uncertain time; there are many children for whom this is not history, but family stories. Essential. — School Library Journal (starred review)Drawing from personal experiences emigrating from Vietnam to America, per creators’ notes, the author-illustrator team foregrounds one family’s journey in this sensitive picture book. . . Mixed-media illustrations from Bui (A Different Pond) focus on interpersonal tenderness and varied landscapes, evoking across somber events a young child’s joy and yearning, and a playful parent-child bond.  — Publishers WeeklyStunning illustrations and gentle text tell the story of a separated family’s heartrending and hopeful journey from Vietnam to the U.S. A beautifully moving collaboration of lyrical text and striking illustrations. — Booklist (starred review)