Paula Yoo
Paula Yoo is the author of 12 children’s books and Young Adult novels. Her books have won many awards, including the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the National Book Award Longlist for Young People’s Literature, YALSA-ALA Excellence in Nonfiction Honor, Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist, Michigan Notable, Asian/Pacific American American Librarians Association (APALA) Award, IRA Notables and Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selections, plus starred reviews from Kirkus, Horn Book, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and School Library Journal.
Rising From the Ashes
Based on more than 100 personal interviews, Rising from the Ashes follows these events through the eyes and experiences of the families of Rodney King, Latasha Harlins, shooting victim Edward Jae Song Lee, and dozens of business owners, journalists, police officers, firefighters, activists, and other community members. Deeply researched and compulsively readable, this is a vivid, propulsive, and moving story of a pivotal moment in recent American history that continues to resonate today.
Publication date: May 7, 2024
Honoring the work of photographer Hyungwon Kang
Visit the gallery dedicated to the work of photographer Hyungwon Kang, whose images are featured in the new book “Rising From The Ashes”
Paula Yoo's Books
Rising From The Ashes
In the spring of 1992, after a jury returned not guilty verdicts in the trial of four police officers charged in the brutal beating of a Black man, Rodney King, Los Angeles was torn apart. Thousands of fires were set, causing more than a billion dollars in damage. In neighborhoods abandoned by the police, protestors and storeowners exchanged gunfire. More than 12,000 people were arrested and 2,400 injured. Sixty-three died.
From A Whisper To A Rallying Cry
The Killing of Vincent Chin and the Trial that Galvanized the Asian American Movement
A compelling account of the killing of Vincent Chin, the verdicts that took the Asian American community to the streets in protest, and the groundbreaking civil rights trial that followed.
Good Enough
Patti’s parents expect nothing less than the best from their Korean-American daughter. Everything she does affects her chances of getting into an Ivy League school. So winning assistant concertmaster in her All-State violin competition and earning less than 2300 on her SATs is simply not good enough.
Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds: The Sammy Lee Story
SIXTEEN YEARS IN SIXTEEN SECONDS: THE SAMMY LEE STORY is the inspirational true story of Sammy Lee, a Korean American who overcame discrimination to realize both his father’s desire that he become a doctor and his own dream of becoming an Olympic champion diver.
Twenty-Two Cents: Muhammad Yunus and the Village Bank
Growing up in Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus witnessed extreme poverty all around and was determined to eradicate it.
Shining Star: The Anna May Wong Story
Born in 1905, Anna May Wong spent her childhood working in her family’s laundry in Los Angeles’s Chinatown. Whenever she could afford it, Anna May slipped off to the movies, escaping to a world of adventure, glamour, and excitement. After seeing a movie being filmed in her neighborhood, young Anna May was hooked. She decided she would become a movie star!
Upcoming Events
2025 YALSA Nonfiction Award Finalists in Conversation
SLJ webcast: with Paula Yoo, Elizabeth Rusch, Theo Parish, Candy J Cooper & Angela Shanté
2025 AWP (Association of Writers & Writing Programs) Conference & Bookfair
Panel: “Crafting Powerful Stories (with Difficult Topics) for Young Readers” with Paula Yoo, Abdi Nazemian, Elise Bryant, Aaron Aceves, and Rex Ogle
Screenwriting credits
News
For all appearances and media requests
If you’re interested in having Paula Yoo visit your school, library, bookstore, conference or organization, please contact The Author Village here and fill out the contact form at the bottom of the page.
https://theauthorvillage.com/presenters/paula-yoo
For all media and podcast inquiries please contact Norton Young Readers:
nortonyoungreaders@wwnorton.com