Grace Lin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Grace Lin
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| Born | Grace "Pacy" Lin May 17, 1974 New Hartford, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Author, illustrator |
| Education | Rhode Island School of Design (BFA) |
| Notable awards | Newbery Honor Award (2010) National Book Award Finalist (2016) Caldecott Honor Award (2019) Children's Literature Legacy Award (2022) |
| Spouse |
Robert Mercer
(m. 2001; died 2007)Alex Ferron
(m. 2010) |
| Children | 1 |
Grace Lin (born May 17, 1974) is a talented Taiwanese-American writer and artist. She creates wonderful books for children and young readers. She has won many important awards, like the Newbery, Geisel, and Caldecott honors. Grace Lin is famous for helping to show more Asian American characters and stories in children's books. She believes in having many different kinds of people represented in stories.
She has published more than 25 books. All of her books are written for young readers, from little kids to middle schoolers. Many of her stories feature young Asian and Asian American characters. These characters appear in everyday life and in amazing fantasy worlds.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Grace Lin was born in 1974 in New Hartford, New York. Her parents were from Taiwan. Her father, Jer-Shang Lin, was a doctor, and her mother, Lin-Lin Lin, was a botanist.
She grew up in upstate New York with her two sisters, Beatrice and Alice. They were the only Asian students at their elementary school. Grace started making her own books when she was a child. In seventh grade, she entered a national book contest for students. She won fourth place and $1000, which was a big achievement!
Later, she went to the Rhode Island School of Design. She graduated in 1996 with a degree in children's book illustration.
Grace Lin's Career
Writing and Illustrating Books
After college, Grace Lin tried to get her books published. When that didn't happen right away, she worked for a company that made t-shirts and mugs. After a couple of years, she lost that job. This made her decide to follow her dream of becoming a children's book author and illustrator.
An editor from Charlesbridge Publishing saw her art samples. The editor asked if Grace had a story to go with her pictures. Grace didn't have a story ready, but she said yes! She quickly created a story for her art. This led to her first book, The Ugly Vegetables, being published in 1999. Since then, she has published more than 25 books. She has illustrated many of these books herself. Grace Lin continues to write and illustrate new stories.
Other Important Work
Grace Lin does more than just write and illustrate books. In 2016, she gave a TEDx talk called "The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child’s Bookshelf." In this talk, she explained why it's important to have diverse books for children. She wants kids to see themselves in books (mirrors) and also learn about others (windows).
Since 2017, Grace Lin has written nine articles for New England Public Radio. She often writes about her own experiences as a parent and as an Asian American author. In 2017 and 2018, she appeared on PBS NewsHour. There, she talked about how different races and cultures are shown in children's books.
Grace Lin also hosts two podcasts. "Book Friends Forever" started in 2019, and "Kids Ask Authors" started in 2020. She is also on the advisory committee for We Need Diverse Books. This is a group that works to promote diversity in children's literature.
Personal Life
Grace Lin married Robert Mercer, an architect, in 2001. He was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer. To help, Grace and Robert started a fundraiser called "Robert’s Snow: For Cancer’s Cure." This fundraiser was based on Grace’s children’s book, Robert’s Snow.
Grace and Robert asked other children’s book artists to paint wooden snowflake ornaments. These ornaments were then sold in an auction to raise money for cancer research. The fundraiser happened twice and raised over $100,000. After Robert passed away in 2007, the fundraiser stopped.
Grace remarried in 2010 to Alexandre Ferron. They have a daughter named Hazel, who was born in 2012. Grace Lin lives in Florence, Massachusetts with her family.
Style and Themes in Her Books
Common Themes in Her Stories
Grace Lin often writes about cultural identity and how people see themselves. She also writes about peace and the relationships between friends and family. Many of her books focus on the experiences of Asian and Asian American characters. She often uses her own life experiences in her stories, especially in her Pacy series.
Professor Susan Thananopavarn from Duke University says that Grace Lin's books help to challenge stereotypes. By showing Asian American main characters in everyday life, her books show how diverse the Asian American community is. Grace Lin also includes parts of traditional Chinese and Taiwanese fantasy folktales in her stories. You can see this clearly in her Where the Mountain Meets the Moon series.
Grace Lin's Illustration Style
Grace Lin's art style uses bright colors, clear shapes, and detailed, layered patterns. She draws all her illustrations by hand. She especially likes to use a type of paint called gouache. Grace developed her unique art style during her last year at the Rhode Island School of Design. She has said that her inspiration comes from traditional Chinese folk art. She also gets ideas from European artists like Matisse and Van Gogh.
List of Works
Books Written and Illustrated by Grace Lin
Pacy Series
- The Year of the Dog, Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2006. ISBN: 978-0-316-06002-8
- The Year of the Rat, Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2007. ISBN: 978-0-316-02928-5
- Dumpling Days, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-316-12589-5
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon Series
- Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, BOOK 1 Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-316-03863-8
- Starry River of the Sky, BOOK 2 2012. ISBN: 978-0-316-12595-6
- When the Sea Turned to Silver, BOOK 3 Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2016. ISBN: 978-0-316-12594-9
Ling & Ting Series
- Ling & Ting: Not Exactly the Same!, Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2010. ISBN: 978-0-316-02453-2
- Ling & Ting Share a Birthday, Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2013. ISBN: 978-0-316-18404-5
- Ling & Ting: Twice as Silly, Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2014. ISBN: 978-0-316-18402-1
- Ling & Ting: Together in All Weather, Little, Brown (New York, NY), 2015. ISBN: 978-0-316-33549-2
Other Books
- The Ugly Vegetables, Charlesbridge (Watertown, MA), 1999. ISBN: 978-0-88106-336-3
- Robert's Snow, Penguin (New York, NY), 2004. ISBN: 978-0-670-05911-9
- A Big Mooncake for Little Star, Little, Brown, 2018. ISBN: 978-0-316-40448-8
- Mulan: Before the Sword, Disney Press, 2020. ISBN: 978-1-368-02033-6
Books Illustrated by Grace Lin
- Roseanne Thong, Round is a Mooncake: A Book of Shapes, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA), 2000. ISBN: 978-0-8118-2676-1
- Dim Sum for Everyone!, Alfred A. Knopf (New York, NY), 2001. ISBN: 978-0-375-91082-1
- Kite Flying, Alfred A. Knopf (New York, NY), 2002. ISBN: 978-0-375-81520-1
- Kathy Tucker, The Seven Chinese Sisters, Albert Whitman (Morton Grove, IL), 2003. ISBN: 978-0-8075-7310-5
- Martha Brockenbrough, I Am an American: The Wong Kim Ark Story, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2021. ISBN: 9780316426923.
