Kaya of the Ocean is a middle-grade fantasy novel by Gloria Lai Huang that explores themes of mental health, the immigrant experience, and self-acceptance. The story follows Kaya, a thirteen-year-old girl who struggles with anxiety and a fear of water, as she discovers her lineage as a descendant of the Chinese water goddess Mazu. This heartfelt adventure combines elements of friendship, humor, and Chinese mythology, set against the backdrop of the beautiful beaches of Hawaii.

It has been named a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection and chosen by the American Booksellers Association as one of the best debuts on the Winter/Spring 2025 "Indies Introduce" list, as well as a great read on the January 2025 "Kids' Indie Next" list.

www.glorialaihuang.com

Bay Area artist and activist Nancy Wang has recently written a captivating fictional historical account of the Chinese who built and worked out of the fishing villages in the Monterey Bay area during the 1850s in California. Entitled Red Altar, her book brings to life the experiences of these early pioneers from China, including her fiesty multilingual ancestor who was the first Chinese American female born in California, and who made a name for herself as "Spanish Mary." If you'd like to buy an autographed copy of Red Altar, just go to www.ethnotec.org.

Whether or not you identify as spiritual or some kind of Christian, I'm pretty sure most of us are quite familiar with the tendency--if not the temptation--to live as if the grass is always greener on the other side of the septic tank. Armed with this mindset, many of us move on, move away, or just keep on moving rather than stay put in hopes of finding what we're looking for where we are.

As you'll soon learn, Rev. Lydia Sohn was preprogrammed by her Korean American immigrant parents to be a nomad. That was her first and most basic instinct. But at some point she was made to consider the potentially greater value of staying, which has long been a spiritual practice of Benedictine monks. Energized by what a difference this made in her life and her work, Sohn eventually wrote Here: A Spirituality of Staying In a Culture of Leaving.

I have no doubt that much of what she shares in our conversation and in her new book will be life-giving, if not life-saving. You can learn more about her at www.revlydia.com.

In this latest installment of the Two Kens collaborative series between Ken Fong and Ken Kemp, they introduce a term that respected German sociologist Max Weber first introduced 100 years ago that they believe best describes what Donald Trump is working hard to accomplish in his second term, and how knowing this term also tells us how best to thwart Trump's efforts. They were inspired by Jonathan Rauch's article in The Atlantic that appeared on February 24, 2025, entitled One Word Describes Trump: A Century Ago, A German Sociologist Explained Precisely How the President Thinks About the World. Fong and Kemp then look at the different responses to Trump's recent State of the Union address, especially how Senate Majority Leader John Thune appears to be subjugating his evanglical convictions to appear steadfastly loyal to President Trump.

Dr. Grishma Shah's debut novel Anagram Destiny is a soul warming love story nestled in an inspiring tale of the American dream, manifesting an Indian immigrant success story shattered by the evils of globalization– paying homage to a generation of immigrants who held their heads low so one day, their children could lift theirs high.

To learn more about Dr. Shah and her novel go to www.shahgrishma.com. 

If you're one of the fortunate people who know who Tyrus Wong was and what a pivotal role he played in getting the classic Disney film "Bambi" made, I think you'll still be blown away by what Dr. Karen Fang has revealed in her recent book, "Background Artist: The Life and Work of Tyrus Wong." I'll give you two hints: Christmas cards and custom kites.

In this episode seminary professor Dr. Soong-Chan Rah reiterates that the Trump administration's dismantling of USAID should serve as a serious wake up call to American Evangelical Christians because now Christian relief agencies will no longer receive gifts in kind  from the federal government. However, if they continue to celebrate USAID's demise, they are telling us that they really aren't "evangelicals," who take the Bible and Jesus quite seriously. 

As a nod to this being Black History Month and also as a form of pushback against the current dismantling of meritocracy in the U.S. Military by the Trump administration, I invited Dr. Roger Newman to talk about his latest novel Boys, a work of historical fiction based on what he learned about his Black Uncle Alex growing up in the Jim Crow South and facing systemic racism while serving in Army during World War II and beyond.

In this latest episode in the Two Kens collaborative series on American politics and Christian nationalism, Fong and Kemp point out the jarring historical parallels with how Germany's Hitler and Hungary's Orban were able to dismantle their countries democracies so quickly. This episode is a call to action and resistance for every American who is now seeing the clear signs of decay in our democracy.

Transition and outro music credit to The Isley Brothers and their "Fight the Power" anthem from 1975.

Celebrated playwright, director and producer Chay Yew is once again directing Lauren Yee's Cambodian Rock Band, this time in its Los Angeles debut at East West Players David Henry Hwang Theater in Little Tokyo from February 13-March 9, 2025. 

A poignant new classic of the Asian American theater canon, Cambodian Rock Band explores the story of a Khmer Rouge survivor as he returns to his homeland after thirty long years. While his daughter prepares to prosecute one of the country's most notorious war criminals, the ghosts of their shared past begin to stir. This deeply moving story weaves back and forth through time as father and daughter confront history, turning to music as a path towards healing.

You can listen to my 2018 interview of Lauren Yee when her play was first being produced at the South Coast Repertory Theater: https://asianamericapodcast.com/2018/03/ep-141-cambodian-rock-band/

Please go to www.eastwestplayers.org to find a performance that fits your schedule.

Hawaii-based writer Chris McKinney has edited Honolulu Noir, the latest in the Akashic Noir series of location-based dark short stories. Comprised of stories about the people of the city, written by those who know this place best. The volume opens with a story featuring Chang Apana, the Native Hawaiian/Chinese real-life cop who was the inspiration for the controversial Charlie Chan. It ends with a supernatural journey from the Philippines to Hawaii. In between, readers will find multicultural tales of invasion (whether yakuza, ISIS recruiters, or vampires), madness, addiction, and murder—all the stuff that many people don’t know happens here. Unbeknownst to the rest of the country, Honolulu can be a very dangerous place. Here, even the alluring crystal-blue waters might kill you.