Download high-resolution image Look inside
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00

Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist

Illustrated by Chris Sasaki
Look inside
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00
Winner of the American Library Association's 2021 Asian/Pacific American Award for Best Picture Book!
 
An inspiring picture-book biography of animator Tyrus Wong, the Chinese American immigrant responsible for bringing Disney's Bambi to life.

Before he became an artist named Tyrus Wong, he was a boy named Wong Geng Yeo. He traveled across a vast ocean from China to America with only a suitcase and a few papers. Not papers for drawing--which he loved to do--but immigration papers to start a new life. Once in America, Tyrus seized every opportunity to make art, eventually enrolling at an art institute in Los Angeles. Working as a janitor at night, his mop twirled like a paintbrush in his hands. Eventually, he was given the opportunity of a lifetime--and using sparse brushstrokes and soft watercolors, Tyrus created the iconic backgrounds of Bambi.

Julie Leung and Chris Sasaki perfectly capture the beautiful life and work of a painter who came to this country with dreams and talent--and who changed the world of animation forever.
JULIE LEUNG is the author of the Mice of the Round Table series, including A Tail of Camelot, Voyage to Avalon, and most recently, Merlin's Last Quest. This is her first picture book. In her free time, she enjoys furtively sniffing books at bookstores and winning obscure board games. Originally from Atlanta, she now lives in New York City, where she works as a marketing director at Del Rey Books. Visit her on the web at jleungbooks.com and follow her on Twitter at @jleungbooks.

CHRIS SASAKI is a former character designer and illustrator for Pixar Animation Studios, where he has designed characters for Monsters University and Inside Out. His work has been featured at Gallery Nucleus, on Cartoon Brew, in the New York Times, and in the Society of Illustrators annual. He lives in Oakland, California. Visit him on the web at csasaki.com.
Educator Guide for Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist

Classroom-based guides appropriate for schools and colleges provide pre-reading and classroom activities, discussion questions connected to the curriculum, further reading, and resources.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Classroom Activities for Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist

Classroom activities supplement discussion and traditional lessons with group projects and creative tasks. Can be used in pre-existing units and lessons, or as stand-alone.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

  • WINNER | 2021
    Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APLA)-Literature Award
  • SELECTION | 2020
    CBC Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young Readers
  • SELECTION | 2020
    Notable Books for a Global Society Award
  • SELECTION | 2020
    American Library Association Notable Books
"“A beautiful, must-read tribute to hardworking families and the magic they create." —Kirkus, starred review

"[A] gorgeous picture book biography about an unsung hero of animation and Chinese American history." —Booklist, Starred Review

“Confidential, fluid prose deftly captures the stress and strangeness of his immigration experience and his artistic blossoming and impact…. A window into the troubled history of transpacific immigration and a look at a long-undersung contributor to our visual landscapes.” —Bulletin

 “A well-told story that spotlights the too-often unrecognized talent and contributions of America’s immigrants.” —School Library Journal

“A meaningful portrayal of one working-class experience and an image of a loving, hardworking family.”  —Publishers Weekly

About

Winner of the American Library Association's 2021 Asian/Pacific American Award for Best Picture Book!
 
An inspiring picture-book biography of animator Tyrus Wong, the Chinese American immigrant responsible for bringing Disney's Bambi to life.

Before he became an artist named Tyrus Wong, he was a boy named Wong Geng Yeo. He traveled across a vast ocean from China to America with only a suitcase and a few papers. Not papers for drawing--which he loved to do--but immigration papers to start a new life. Once in America, Tyrus seized every opportunity to make art, eventually enrolling at an art institute in Los Angeles. Working as a janitor at night, his mop twirled like a paintbrush in his hands. Eventually, he was given the opportunity of a lifetime--and using sparse brushstrokes and soft watercolors, Tyrus created the iconic backgrounds of Bambi.

Julie Leung and Chris Sasaki perfectly capture the beautiful life and work of a painter who came to this country with dreams and talent--and who changed the world of animation forever.

Author

JULIE LEUNG is the author of the Mice of the Round Table series, including A Tail of Camelot, Voyage to Avalon, and most recently, Merlin's Last Quest. This is her first picture book. In her free time, she enjoys furtively sniffing books at bookstores and winning obscure board games. Originally from Atlanta, she now lives in New York City, where she works as a marketing director at Del Rey Books. Visit her on the web at jleungbooks.com and follow her on Twitter at @jleungbooks.

CHRIS SASAKI is a former character designer and illustrator for Pixar Animation Studios, where he has designed characters for Monsters University and Inside Out. His work has been featured at Gallery Nucleus, on Cartoon Brew, in the New York Times, and in the Society of Illustrators annual. He lives in Oakland, California. Visit him on the web at csasaki.com.

Guides

Educator Guide for Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist

Classroom-based guides appropriate for schools and colleges provide pre-reading and classroom activities, discussion questions connected to the curriculum, further reading, and resources.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Classroom Activities for Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist

Classroom activities supplement discussion and traditional lessons with group projects and creative tasks. Can be used in pre-existing units and lessons, or as stand-alone.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Awards

  • WINNER | 2021
    Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APLA)-Literature Award
  • SELECTION | 2020
    CBC Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young Readers
  • SELECTION | 2020
    Notable Books for a Global Society Award
  • SELECTION | 2020
    American Library Association Notable Books

Praise

"“A beautiful, must-read tribute to hardworking families and the magic they create." —Kirkus, starred review

"[A] gorgeous picture book biography about an unsung hero of animation and Chinese American history." —Booklist, Starred Review

“Confidential, fluid prose deftly captures the stress and strangeness of his immigration experience and his artistic blossoming and impact…. A window into the troubled history of transpacific immigration and a look at a long-undersung contributor to our visual landscapes.” —Bulletin

 “A well-told story that spotlights the too-often unrecognized talent and contributions of America’s immigrants.” —School Library Journal

“A meaningful portrayal of one working-class experience and an image of a loving, hardworking family.”  —Publishers Weekly

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

PRH Education Classroom Libraries

“Books are a students’ passport to entering and actively participating in a global society with the empathy, compassion, and knowledge it takes to become the problem solvers the world needs.” –Laura Robb   Research shows that reading and literacy directly impacts students’ academic success and personal growth. To help promote the importance of daily independent

Read more

Penguin Random House ALA Midwinter Award Winners & Honorees for Elementary Education

The American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter announced their 2021 literary award winners and honorees at its virtual annual meeting. Below you can find which Penguin Random House titles appropriate for Elementary School students were among the winners. To see which Middle School and High School titles were honored, click here. John Newbery Medal When You

Read more