THE BLUE HOUSE I LOVED; Coming Soon!

University of Minnesota Press, 2026

 In less than a month a new picture book will release and it is worth pre-ordering, in my opinion. (Thank you to University of Minnesota press for an advance copy to read with no promise of a review). THE BLUE HOUSE I LOVE is written by Kao Kalia Yang and illustrated by Jen Shin. The narrative text adopts a look-back, first person voice, capturing the child point-of-view within a reflective account of a time of struggle and poverty that was nevertheless rich with family love, security, and joy.

The cover suggests the approach in voice and in illustration that hints at a misty/memory quality blended with architectural accuracy and detail. Readers will sense that from the title page in which crisp-line border that suggests features the drawing tools used to achieve the precision of blueprints.

Both narrative elements (naming the corner street location in St. Paul, and the build-date and history of this blue house) and illustration technique combine emotional resonance and family resilience with structural elements as if the building had been sliced to provide a view though the fourth wall. This Blue House was the source from which the Hmong family found refuge and stability, the footing on which to launch independence and progress. Within those exposed walls were the aspects of life that offered comfort from minimal means, including a splash of color in the rug. 

Without revealing a spoiler, things change. Even so, memories remain. Within those memories the narrator finds herself reliving and always remembering life in the BLUE HOUSE she loved. 

This is not only a lovely reminiscence of a childhood that certainly involved struggle but was wrapped in a sense of home and family and security. I connected with that entirely, even though my family's immigration story was several generations before I was born, and our struggles did not involve the social pressures faced by those adapting to new languages and cultures. Even so, my first memories of a childhood home involve specific architectural elements shared with the BLUE HOUSE (the single bathroom shared by many, the back porch where life unfolded), and the time spent with extended family, playing on the concrete basement floors, and more. 

For anyone who teaches or encourages writing from personal experiences and small moments, this is ideal mentor text to read and discuss. It's also a rich and robust view of a Hmong family living specific to its culture but also typical of many families, immigrant or not. There are far too few picture books (or novels) that center universal experiences from points of view beyond Black or White. (And too few from Black perspectives, too. Click here to see data.) When a picture book of this quality and rarity does appear on the scene, encourage friends, librarians, teachers, and readers to discover and enjoy it!