Myo Yim – illustratör

Three starred reviews! Based on the true story of the author’s great-grandmother, this “affectingly gentle” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) picture book about surviving the Armenian Genocide sparkles with hope and heart even amid unspeakable tragedy—perfect for readers of The Proudest Blue and Yuyi Morales’s Dreamers.Rose is what my parents call me:Dzovinar, their rose by the sea. Dzovinar (“zill-ven-ar”) lives with her family in Armenia, where the hillside is dotted with sheep and the apricot trees bloom every spring. She loves her home—but one day, soldiers storm her village, and she returns to an empty house. Their parents gone, Dzovinar and her sister are forced to flee. Afraid and alone, they journey across the desert, then over the ocean: first to France and then to America, where they hope a new future will bloom. Changed but not lost, Dzovinar takes root in a new land…forever a rose by the sea.

Filo’s Butterflies is a charming own voices picture book about how a young Samoan boy calms his nerves before his first siva performance at a family wedding.Aunty Rosie and Aunty Eve are getting married traditional Samoan style,  and it’s time for Filo to dance his first siva fa’ataupati! He’s been practising for weeks, but as the time for the siva gets closer, the butterflies in his tummy get bigger and bolder – they even flutter right up to his throat! Filo tries to calm them down, but will they stop him from performing the siva with his brothers and cousins?Filo’s Butterflies features the siva fa’ataupati, a traditional Samoan dance only performed by men.

A heartwarming picture book in which a small child and her tenacious nana work together to catch the biggest fish in the sea – only to realize that their sweet bait has lured in something much bigger.Marina was the smallest of the town’s children. Nana was the oldest of the town’s elders.But even the old and the small have dreams.When word spreads around their small fishing town that the Big One is close to shore, Marina and Nana know that they will be the ones to catch the elusive and legendary fish. “When we catch the Big One,” says Nana, “we’ll need four hands to haul him in and two mouths to tell the story.”They set out in a tiny boat with only grit, gumption, and a rose-ripe peach for bait. But the Big One doesn’t appear that day. Or the day after that. Each time, Marina listens carefully for the swish of the Big One’s tail, but each time there’s nary a nibble on their peach. Nana is certain they’ll catch him, but Marina isn’t so sure anymore. Then one morning, when the mist is so thick they can’t see a thing, something giant nudges the boat. What they find is something much bigger – and astounding – than they could have ever imagined!Written by the bestselling author of The 57 Bus and the Escargot series, Dashka Slater, and beautifully illustrated by Myo Yim, this tale of adventure celebrates the spirit of perseverance and inspires both the young and the young-at-heart to keep fishing for their dreams.