Amazingly (at least for me, since my stories often undergo big changes from my first idea to the final draft!), AMY WU AND THE PERFECT BAO didn’t change much from the very first draft I wrote. The biggest tweak was probably having Amy herself come up with the solution of cutting the bao dough into smaller pieces so that they fit her hands better. In the first draft, it was Grandma who came up with the idea! Zhang was born in Texas to immigrants from China. Her father was from Wuhan, and her mother from Fuzhou. [7] We love this sneak peek into this family’s home and meal-time tradition. It reminds us of cooking together with our own families. With the help of little hands sometimes the recipes don’t come out exactly right, but memories are made and (hopefully) the food is just as delicious. We may not be making bao, but the idea is the same. Families eating together and working through frustration is a common experience no matter who you are. As for the second question, Yes, cooking with kids can definitely be messy! But, I hear you. I’ve been asked the mess question many times. I wrote a detailed answer, along with strategies for successful messy sensory play, that I believe can apply to cooking as well. It can be found by reading, “What about the Sensory Mess?” Bao?

AMY WU AND THE PERFECT BAO is my debut picture book, and seeing Charlene’s illustrations has honestly been one of the most thrilling parts of the whole process! I had a general idea of how I pictured the characters and illustrations, but I was eager to see how an illustrator interpreted the text and the characters as well. Charlene did such an amazing job giving Amy’s family dimension and character through the illustrations, and I especially loved the addition of the little kitty, who wasn’t mentioned at all in the original text. Now I can’t imagine the book without it! After reading this book my daughters had to get in the kitchen to make their own bao buns. My oldest daughter was so serious about it that she specifically asked for a bamboo steamer for her birthday. So we put her new steamer to work and got in the kitchen to make Amy Wu’s bao. Our recipe has a few adaptations to the filling to make them perfect for our family. Amy Wu’s Perfect Bao Recipe- Makes 20 Bao Bao Dough They did! I hadn’t originally imagined Grandma with pink hair, but I think it adds something great to her character. Amy is every bit the spunky, vivacious kid I wanted her to be! I recommend it to anyone who likes good quality picture books with high re-readability. It's a sweet story with cute pictures. There's nothing in it to bother a sensitive child, like bullying or meanness, and it encourages children to think about solutions instead of just asking someone to solve it for them before trying. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl combine 3½ cups of the flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp salt and 1/4 cup sugar.So when my daughters like Amy Wu want to get in the kitchen and cook I let them. There are a few rules for safety. However, sometimes I look the other way when it come to kitchen messes. They have made their own toast and jam cakes and many other creative dishes along the way. The important thing is they are learning and getting a chance to try something on their own. Amy Wu reminds kids and even kids at heart to persevere and not let the little things (like using the oven and small fingers) stand in the way of your dreams. At the end of the story, Amy offers her bao to her classmates. What do you think her classmates thought of that? Would eat it? Why or why not? What would you say? In 2017, The Emperor's Riddle won an honorable mention for the NCTA's Freeman Award. [4] It also won a Parent's Choice Award. [3] By the age of twelve, Kat had started her first novel and begun plans for her life as a Real Live Author (she was rather more confident at twelve than she is even now). Said plans didn't come into fruition until seven years later, when her agent sold her Young Adult trilogy, The Hybrid Chronicles, to HarperCollins. The series, about a parallel universe where everyone is born with two souls, concluded in 2014.

Form the dough into a ball. Clean the bowl and lightly spray it with cooking spray. Place the dough ball in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Leave it in a warm place until the dough doubles in size about 1 to 1½ hours. (Note if your kitchen is a bit chilly like mine is this time of year, then turn on your oven. Place the dough bowl on top of the oven as it rises. The oven will warm your kitchen which helps with the rise.) Then the best part eating and sharing the bao. The pork filling creates a salty sweet balance with the dough. If you want you can dip the bao in soy sauce or make a soy based dipping sauce with some rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and if you want a tiny bit of garlic chili sauce. The Hybrid Chronicles Trilogy includes What's Left of Me (2012), Once We Were (2013), and Echoes of Us (2014). Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao is a children's picture book written by Kat Zhang and illustrated by Charlene Chua. It about Amy Wu, a little girl, who wants to make perfect bao, just like the ones her mom, dad, and grandma make. Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao melds together the richness of classic children's books storytelling with the cheery conciseness of newer picture books.The Emperor's Riddle, Zhang's first Middle Grade novel, is set in Fuzhou, China. It describes the adventures of a Chinese-American girl as she searches for an ancient, Ming dynasty treasure. The book details the legends involving the assassination of Chinese emperor Zhu Yunwen, the second emperor of the Ming dynasty, and touches on the events of the Chinese cultural revolution. [13] [14] Determination and a love for a delicious food hit a little silliness and tons of family support in this fun read, which is sure to direct interest to the kitchen and foreign foods. Amy Wu series is picture book and it was very easy to read for me. I like Amy because she never gives up and comes up with ideas to achieve her goal. Place the about 5 to 6 bao on each layer of the steamer. Carefully put the steamer in the simmering water and steam the bao for 10 minutes. The bao before I put the lid on to steam them.

Amy loves bao. She and her family gather together to make this special meal, but she has never been able to make the perfect bao. Amy’s dad, mom and grandma make perfect bao that is so delicious. Whenever Amy makes bao, it is too big, too small, or not the right amount of filling. This time, Amy is determined to make the perfect bao. The opportunity to see people like yourself in media is such a big deal, and honestly, something I don’t think I fully grasped until I was older. As a kid, I don’t remember specifically thinking that I wished there were more Asian-American characters in media. But not seeing myself reflected in the books and movies I consumed definitely contributed to my internalizing a lot of things as a kid about what sort of things I “fit” into. I was perpetually on the outside looking in. I hope that AMY WU is just one more opportunity for a kid to recognize themselves in Amy’s family. And of course, on the other side of things, I hope it lets non-Asian American kids explore a culture different from their own. It’s kind of hard for me to pin down my own style (I think many artists have that problem!). I guess my art tends to be quite energetic, usually with pretty strong colors. I think it’s evolved over the years, especially now that I’m working with more non-digital art for some other projects. But at the same time, I think if you looked at the older and newer work, it’s still possible to see the same artist behind it. Zhang graduated from Vanderbilt University. [8] Writings [ edit ] Young Adult novels [ edit ] Hybrid Chronicles trilogy [ edit ]The Memory of Forgotten Things was selected as a Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year. [20] Zhang's second middle grade novel, The Memory of Forgotten Things, is a return to science fiction. The twelve-year-old protagonist, Sophia Wallace, has memories of her deceased mother that don't make sense, memories that take place after her mother's death. She believes that an upcoming solar eclipse will allow her to cross over into a parallel world where her mother never died. [11] Reception [ edit ] Read this short story from Learning for Justice at https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/fall-2020/min-jees-lunch. There are follow-up questions to help you navigate talking about anti-Asian racism. This piece serves as a great conversation starter about what is happening. Some Things to Think About… There is a problem, though, when they make bao* together as a family Amy's don't turn out perfect. They're too stuffed or they're ugly. Her parents and grandma encourage her and give advice but Amy has a realization and comes up with her own solution. It works very well.

Amy is a vivid little girl who lives with her mom and dad and grandma. They have a loving supportive family that's brought to life through the bright illustrations with little smiles. The pictures just exude happiness. Charlene asks Kat: Did the story change a lot from 1st draft till the version I got to illustrate? If so, what were the big changes?The second book in the series is once again a look at Amy Wu's creativity. At craft time in school all kids are supposed to make a dragon and Amy's dragon is similar to the Chinese dragons from the stories she has heard from her grandma. All her friends think it does not look like a dragon at all. Amy tries to create another type of dragon, but it does not feel right to her. She once again comes up with an idea to create something which she loves and get others on board too. Charlene, what was your inspiration for Amy Wu’s look—her hair, her clothes, her body language, etc.? Then remove the steamer from the heat heat for 3 to 4 minutes before removing the lid, to keep the bao from deflating. Repeat the steaming process adding more water to the pan as needed until all the bao are cooked.