1.30.2014

Politics and Prose bookstore



After six months of living in the DC suburbs, I finally made it to Politics and Prose, probably the most famous indie bookstore in DC. And I don't know why I waited so long ... it's actually not that far from my house, it has free parking in the back, and most importantly, the book selection is amazing (at least in the Kids' section)! And the sheer number of author visits they have is staggering; I'll be going at least once a month for author readings, just for children's literature.

In fact, the reason I went today was to see Cokie Roberts talk about her new children's nonfiction book, Founding Mothers: Remembering the Ladies. (I'll "review" the book in a separate post.) The talk itself was informative, of course, but what I thought was really great was the contingent of school children from various neighborhood schools who were there on a field trip. (I never thought about taking students to the local bookstore for author visits. When I worked in a school library we had a great local bookstore within walking distance of the school. Not being a teacher, it never occurred to me that I could take a group of kids to see an author ... ah well, it's an idea I can pass along to my former co-workers and my replacement.) Roberts clearly saw the children as her main audience and directed questions at them and let them ask questions first.


[Roberts signing a copy of her book for Maya]
 
[the 2014 ALA YMA winners on display downstairs in the Kids' section]


I ended up browsing the Kids' and YA (PG-15) sections for an hour or so after Roberts's talk. I know they carry books that would be harder to find at B&N (and my library, which I love, but the system is kinda slow about acquiring newly published books) so I'm looking forward to frequenting the store to read through the newest and best in children's literature.

I got a one-year membership even though there's a good possibility I won't buy enough books to "break even." But I want to support indie bookstores and if that means upping their membership numbers and giving them $25, I'll do that. (FYI: They'll be instituting a frequent buyer program later in the year.)

Politics and Prose
5015 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20008
(202) 364-1919

1.28.2014

Journey and A Splash of Red

After the ALA YMA were announced yesterday, I headed to the library and I managed to pick up some new picture books, including a few award winners. Yes, I did feel bad for taking all of them, but I promise I'll return them relatively soon.


I re-read A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin by Jen Bryant & illustrated by Melissa Sweet. I first read it in April of 2013 and I loved it, mostly because I'm a big fan of Sweet's artwork and I'm a sucker for picture book biographies. It was so much better the second time around because I took the time to really look at the details on each page.





I finally got my hands on Journey, written and illustrated by Aaron Becker. It's a selection for the Seven to Ten age group on the 2014 Capitol Choices list, but I wasn't able to get it from the library until now.

Reading these books back-to-back worked for me because color is so important to both books. Red is particularly important and the emphasis on the color was glaringly obvious when I read both books in the same sitting.


1.27.2014

2014 ALA Youth Media Awards

The 2014 American Library Association Youth Media Awards were announced this morning in Philadelphia; I watched it live online. It's always exciting -- and actually really touching -- to find out what books get awards. And besides excitement, there are always some personal disappointments and surprises (and controversy!). The committees do the best they can within the constraints of the award guidelines and trying to build consensus amongst the committee members. It's certainly not a job I envy!

Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children's literature:

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures*, written by Kate DiCamillo and published by Candlewick Press.

Newbery Honor Books:

Doll Bones, written by Holly Black and published by Margaret K. McElderry Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division

The Year of Billy Miller, written by Kevin Henkes and published by Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

One Came Home, written by Amy Timberlake and published by Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

Paperboy, written by Vince Vawter and published by Delacorte Press, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc. 


Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children:

Locomotive, illustrated and written by Brian Floca and published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing

Caldecott Honor Books:

Journey*, written and illustrated by Aaron Becker and published by Candlewick Press

Flora and the Flamingo, written and illustrated by Molly Idle and published by Chronicle Books LLC

Mr. Wuffles!* written and illustrated by David Wiesner and published by Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company



Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award recognizing an African American author and illustrator of outstanding books for children and young adults:

P.S. Be Eleven, written by Rita Williams-Garcia and published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

Coretta Scott King (Author) Honor Books:

March: Book One*, written by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, illustrated by Nate Powell, and published by Top Shelf Productions

Darius & Twig, written by Walter Dean Myers and published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers


Words with Wings, written by Nikki Grimes and published by WordSong, an imprint of Highlights


Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award:


Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dream for Me, illustrated by Bryan Collier and written by Daniel Beaty and published by Little, Brown and Company, Hachette Book Group


Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award:


Nelson Mandela*, illustrated and written by Kadir Nelson and published by Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers


Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award:


When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop, illustrated by Theodore Taylor III and published by Roaring Brook Press, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership


Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement:


Authors Patricia and Researcher Fredrick McKissack are the winners of the Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement. The award is presented in even years to an African American author, illustrator or author/illustrator for a body of his or her published books for children and/or young adults, and who has made a significant and lasting literary contribution.

 Patricia McKissack and her late husband Fredrick McKissack, both natives of Tennessee, began their writing and research partnership in the 1980’s.Their subject matter from family-based folklore to nonfiction titles, are scholarly researched and written with accurate, authentic text, creating a cultural transmission of history. Their immense range of topics are informative, readable and enjoyable, covering accounts from slavery days to biographical studies of noted men and women in African American history past and present.


Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written for young adults:


Midwinterblood, written by Marcus Sedgwick and published by Roaring Brook Press, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group


Printz Honor Books: 


Eleanor & Park*, written by Rainbow Rowell and published by St. Martin’s Griffin (Macmillan)


Kingdom of Little Wounds, written by Susann Cokal and published by Candlewick Press


Maggot Moon, written by Sally Gardner, illustrated by Julian Crouch and published by Candlewick Press


Navigating Early, written by Clare Vanderpool and published by Delacorte Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House LLC, Penguin Random House Company



Schneider Family Book Award for books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience:


A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin*, written by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet and published by Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc. wins the award for children ages 0 to 10. 


Handbook for Dragon Slayers, written by Merrie Haskell and published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers, is the winner of the middle-school (ages 11-13) award.


Rose under Fire, written by Elizabeth Wein and published by Hyperion, an imprint of Disney Book Group wins the award for teens ages 13-18.  



Alex Awards for the 10 best adult books that appeal to teen audiences:


Brewster, written by Mark Slouka and published by W. W. Norton & Company


The Death of Bees, written by Lisa O’Donnell and published by Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers


Golden Boy: A Novel, written by Abigail Tarttelin and published by ATRIA Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.


Help for the Haunted, written by John Searles and published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers


Lexicon: A Novel, written by Max Barry and published by The Penguin Group, Penguin Group (USA) Inc.


Lives of Tao, written by Wesley Chu and published by Angry Robot, a member of the Osprey Group


Mother, Mother: A Novel, written by Koren Zailckas and published by Crown Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.


Relish*, written by Lucy Knisley and published by First Second, an imprint of Roaring Brook Press, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership


The Sea of Tranquility: A Novel, written by Katja Millay and published by ATRIA Paperback, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.


The Universe Versus Alex Woods, written by Gavin Extence and published by Redhook Books, an imprint of Orbit, a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.



Andrew Carnegie Medal for excellence in children's video:


Paul R. Gagne and Melissa Reilly Ellard of Weston Woods Studios, Inc., producers of “Bink & Gollie: Two for One,” are the Carnegie Medal winners. The video’s cast is anchored by Kate Micucci and Riki Lindhome, with music by David Mansfield. Tony Fucile’s artwork is brilliantly brought to life by Chuck Gammage Animation.



Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults:


Markus Zusak is the 2014 Edwards Award winner. His books include: The Book Thief and I Am the Messenger, published by Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, and Getting the Girl and Fighting Ruben Wolfe, published by Arthur A. Levine, an imprint of Scholastic.  




May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture Award recognizing an author, critic, librarian, historian or teacher of children's literature, who then presents a lecture at a winning host site:


Brian Selznick will deliver the 2015 lecture.



Batchelder Award for an outstanding children's book originally published in a language other than English in a country other than the United States, and subsequently translated into English for publication in the United States:

Mister Orange published by Enchanted Lion Books, written by Truus Matti, and translated from the Dutch by Laura Watkinson

Batchelder Honor Books:

The Bathing Costume or the Worst Vacation of My Life, published by Enchanted Lion Books, written by Charlotte Moundlic, illustrated by Olivier Tallec, and translated by Claudia Zoe Bedrick

My Father’s Arms Are a Boat, published by Enchanted Lion Books, written by Stein Erik Lunde, illustrated by Øyvind Torseter, and translated by Kari Dickson

The War Within These Walls, published by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, written by Aline Sax, illustrated by Caryl Strzelecki, and translated by Laura Watkinson


Pura Belpre Author Award honoring a Latino writer whose children's books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience:

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass, written by Meg Medina and published by Candlewick Press

Belpre Author Honor Books:

The Lightning Dreamer: Cuba’s Greatest Abolitionist, written by Margarita Engle and published by Harcourt, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

The Living, written by Matt de la Peña and published by Delacorte Press, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House LLC, a Penguin Random House Company

Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote: A Migrant’s Tale, written and illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh and published by Abrams Books for Young Readers, an imprint of ABRAMS

Pura Belpre Illustrator Award honoring a Latino illustrator whose children's books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience:

Niño Wrestles the World*, illustrated and written by Yuyi Morales and published by Roaring Brook Press
Belpre Illustrator Honor Books:

Maria Had a Little Llama / María Tenía una Llamita Pequeña*, illustrated and written by Angela Dominguez and published by Henry Holt and Company, LLC

Tito Puente: Mambo King / Rey del Mambo, illustrated by Rafael López, written by Monica Brown and published by Rayo, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 

Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote: A Migrant’s Tale, illustrated and written by Duncan Tonatiuh and published by Abrams Books for Young Readers, an imprint of ABRAMS 

Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children’s & Young Adult Literature Award given annually to English-language works of exceptional merit for children or teens relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender experience:
 
Beautiful Music for Ugly Children, written by Kirstin Cronn-Mills and published by Flux, an imprint of Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd.

Fat Angie, written by e. E. Charlton-Trujillo and published by Candlewick Press


Stonewall Honor Books: 


Better Nate Than Ever, written by Tim Federle and published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division


Branded by the Pink Triangle, written by Ken Setterington and published by Second Story Press


Two Boys Kissing, written by David Levithan and published by Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc.


 
Geisel Medal for the most distinguished book for beginning readers:

The Watermelon Seed, written and illustrated by Greg Pizzoli and published by Disney Hyperion Books, an imprint of Disney Book Group

Geisel Honor Books:

Ball, written and illustrated by Mary Sullivan and published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

A Big Guy Took My Ball!* written and illustrated by Mo Willems and published by Hyperion Books for Children, an imprint of Disney Book Group

Penny and Her Marble*, written and illustrated by Kevin Henkes and published by Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 


Odyssey Award for best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States:

Scowler, produced by Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group, written by Daniel Kraus and narrated by Kirby Heyborne

Odyssey Honor Audiobooks:

Better Nate Than Ever, produced by Simon and Schuster Audio, written and narrated by Tim Federle

Creepy Carrots!* produced by Weston Woods Studios, Inc., and written by Aaron Reynolds

Eleanor & Park*, produced by Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group, written by Rainbow Rowell, and narrated by Rebecca Lowman and Sunil Malhotra

Matilda*, produced by Penguin Audio, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., written by Roald Dahl, and narrated by Kate Winslet


Sibert Medal for most distinguished informational book for children:

Parrots over Puerto Rico, written by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore, illustrated by Susan L. Roth, and published by LEE & LOW BOOKS, Inc.

Sibert Honor Books:

A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin*, written by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet and published by Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

Look Up! Bird-Watching in Your Own Backyard, written and illustrated by Annette LeBlanc Cate and published by Candlewick Press

Locomotive, written and illustrated by Brian Floca and published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing

The Mad Potter: George E. Ohr, Eccentric Genius, written by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan and published by Roaring Brook Press, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership


William C. Morris Award for a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens:

Charm & Strange, written by Stephanie Kuehn and published by St. Martin’s Griffin, an imprint of St. Martin’s Press, a division of Macmillan


William C. Morris Finalists: 


Sex & Violence, written by Carrie Mesrobian and published by Carolrhoda LAB, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group


Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets, written by Evan Roskos and published by Houghton Mifflin, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company


Belle Epoque, written by Elizabeth Ross and published by Delacorte Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books


In the Shadow of Blackbirds, written by Cat Winters and published by Amulet Books, an imprint of ABRAMS



YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults: 


The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World’s Most Notorious Nazi, written by Neal Bascomb and published by Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.


YALSA Award Finalists: 


Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design*, written by Chip Kidd and published by Workman Publishing Company


Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese Americans During World War II*, written by Martin W. Sandler and published by Walker Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing, Inc.


Courage Has No Color: The True Story of the Triple Nickles, America’s First Black Paratroopers, written by Tanya Lee Stone and published by Candlewick Press


The President Has Been Shot! The Assassination of John F. Kennedy, written by James L. Swanson and published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.
  
* Books I've read (audiobooks that are marked were read, not listened to) as of February 2, 2014

1.19.2014

Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese Americans During World War II

[Note: I read an ARC of this book post-publication. I don't have an official copy so all of my comments are based on the ARC.]

Martin W. Sandler's Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese Americans During World War II is a great overview of the history of the Japanese American internment during World War II. The text is appropriate for middle school students, but the book would also work for older students (and adults) who haven't been exposed to this part of US history.

There was a quote in the book from a former internee who wondered if, during the war, people on the East Coast were even aware of the internment of Japanese Americans. I wonder if that still holds true today. Having lived in the Los Angeles area for most of my life, the Japanese American community and the history of internment were a constant in my life. I'm not sure that's necessarily the case on the East Coast (or the Midwest), where the Japanese American population is considerably smaller. For those who have had minimal exposure to Japanese Americans, Imprisoned would be a good primer.
Chapter 1: The Japanese Come to America
Chapter 2: Hysteria
Chapter 3: Removal
Chapter 4: Temporary Prisons
Chapter 5: The Removal Centers
Chapter 6: Japanese Americans at War
Chapter 7: Undercover Warriors
Chapter 8: Redress
Chapter 9: Never Again
The book covers the beginnings of the Japanese American (JA) community on the West Coast, the racism they encountered in the early 1900s, the subsequent treatment and detainment/imprisonment of the entire West Coast JA community (minus the Hawaiian Japanese Americans) after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the military service of young JAs, how the community dealt with re-assimilating into "regular" life after the war, and the redress movement. The book provides a nice arc of the JA experience with the added benefit of interviews and photos from those who were sent to camps.

From the publisher's summary:
While Americans fought for freedom and democracy abroad, fear and suspicion towards Japanese Americans swept the country after Japan's sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. Culling information from extensive, previously unpublished interviews and oral histories with Japanese American survivors of internment camps, Martin W. Sandler gives an in-depth account of their lives before, during their imprisonment, and after their release. Bringing readers inside life in the internment camps and explaining how a country that is built on the ideals of freedom for all could have such a dark mark on its history, this in-depth look at a troubling period of American history sheds light on the prejudices in today's world and provides the historical context we need to prevent similar abuses of power.
I really appreciated that Sandler included information about the Quakers (the American Friends Service Committee), who were vocal and active in objecting to the internment. It's important to recognize that, despite the majority of Americans who favored the imprisonment of Japanese Americans, there were those who were horrified that this was happening in the "Land of the Free," and it was their duty as citizens to point out that this was morally wrong, unjustified, and illegal. The Quakers continued with this work after 9/11 when Muslim Americans (and anyone who looked Arab) were being subjected to similar treatment as Japanese Americans 60 years prior.

I'm not an expert on the Japanese American internment, but I have personal connections to it. Members of my dad's family were interned at the Gila River (Arizona) camp during the war, but I didn't know the details about their experiences. My grandparents never talked about it, and it was probably with great reluctance that they even discussed it with me during high school. What I do distinctly remember, though, is my grandfather's pride of being an American. After they were released from Gila, they reluctantly moved to Japan (where my dad was born) because of how difficult it was to start over in Los Angeles (my grandpa was a pharmacist with a degree from USC). But it was always my grandfather's wish to return to the United States despite what had happened to their family during the war. They moved back to Los Angeles when my dad was in high school. The only indication of their internment was the apology/redress letter from President George Bush in their living room. (Now that I think about it, I wonder where that letter went after my grandparents passed away ...)

My issues with the content of the book come from my personal knowledge and what I feel could've been included. Don't get me wrong; what's included is a solid introduction to the internment and includes information I didn't know. (For example, did you know the Canadian government expelled their Japanese Canadian citizens to internment camps a month before Executive Order 9066 was signed by President Roosevelt?)

The exclusion of the Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee (Heart Mountain Resisters) is huge, in my opinion. With the word "betrayal" in the subtitle, Sanders had an opportunity to show that within the JA community the betrayal they felt by the US government manifested itself very differently. My guess is that very few people know about the group of young JA men who resisted the draft on the grounds that their Constitutional rights as Americans were being violated, and the illegality of their incarceration had to be resolved before they would comply with a draft order. It's a far cry from the majority of young JAs who willingly and bravely fought in the war to prove their loyalty to the United States. In fact, the Heart Mountain Resisters were persecuted by most of the Japanese American community and were ostracized for many years following the end of the war. I feel the Resisters showed a different form of bravery by standing on the principle that they had rights as United States citizens, knowing full well that their position wasn't popular among their own community.

One of the leaders of the movement, Frank Emi, was a student of mine when I taught computer classes at a JA nonprofit in Los Angeles's Little Tokyo. I never would've known about the Heart Mountain FPC if not for Frank. He was an extremely dignified man, and so kind and polite. You could tell he was disciplined (he was a lifelong practitioner of judo) and, I have to admit, he was one of my favorite students. Frank passed away in 2010, but through his involvement with the Heart Mountain FPC he left a legacy of civil rights activism.

[Back in 1999 I worked at the Little Tokyo Service Center in Downtown Los Angeles as their computer lab director. Frank Emi was one of my students; he's in the blue shirt on the left.]

The internment camp photographs of Ansel Adams and Dorothea Lange are mentioned on several occasions in the book. Although Lange and Adams had differing views on what their photographs should convey, both were essentially outsiders to the experience. Toyo Miyatake was an internee and a professional photographer who took photographs of the everyday camp experiences of the JA community. (He smuggled a camera lens into Manzanar and built a camera from wood scraps!) Again, I feel that Sandler had a prime opportunity to showcase a lesser known, but equally important, figure.

[Toyo Miyatake, JA photographer interned at Manzanar (photo from "Toyo's Camera" movie website)]

Design-wise, I had a really hard time with one thing. The sidebar-like sections in a bigger font, which are often quotes repeated within the text, were actually part of the text or a completely independent fact/quote from the main text. The example below shows that the bolded text is a continuation of the first two lines on the page. This is easy to figure out, but there were sections that were not so obvious. I should've taken a picture of one of the poorly designed sections ... if I can find a copy of the book at the library or bookstore I'll add a picture to this post.


All in all, though, this is a book I can recommend to young people. As I said before, it's a good starting point for understanding this dark period and it provides an opportunity for them to ask questions. Why would something like this happen? Could it happen again? Are there parallels to events that have happened in this century? We need the next generation to think critically about what it means to be an American, especially in an era when the demographics of the country continue to change drastically.

I found these quotes in the book to be particularly heartbreaking:
Perhaps most poignant of all was the statement made by a six-year-old. "Mommy," he exclaimed, "Let's go back to America."
Gazing at the soldiers in the guard towers, one child asked, "Mommy, who are they afraid of?"
We cannot allow any American child (regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, creed, sexual orientation, etc.) to grow up repeating these kinds of words. Students -- and adults who teach young people -- need to continue to educate themselves about parts of our history that may not be well-covered in text books. It is truly for the well-being of our nation and its future. Imprisoned would be a good addition to any school or classroom library collection.

Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese Americans During World War II (2013)
by Martin W. Sandler
Walker Childrens (Bloomsbury); 176 pages

Other Resources:
[Updated February 2, 2014 :: My husband forwarded me this article, "Growing Up Japanese American in Crenshaw and Leimert Park," which is a fascinating look at the sansei (third generation JA) growing up in Los Angeles after WWII. It is a dramatically different world and attitude about race & culture from what's described in Imprisoned. It's worth a read if you're interested to see how parts of the JA community changed after internment.]

1.18.2014

Bao Bao's debut

[screenshots taken from the National Zoo's Panda Cam]

The Smithsonian National Zoo's baby Giant Panda, Bao Bao, makes her public debut today. She's one of more than 300 pandas in zoos and breeding centers around the world, and there are about 1,600 pandas in the wilderness of south central China. Giant Pandas are rare and endangered, and have become a symbol for the animal conservation movement.

In modern times, images of pandas are ubiquitous and people young and old know about pandas. But even in China, where these adorable animals have been considered noble creatures for millenia, they were rarely seen. Apparently, there are no known artistic depictions of pandas from before the 20th century. So, when was the West first introduced to Giant Pandas?

The first Westerner to find Giant Panda furs was probably the French missionary/zoologist/botanist Armand David in 1869. The first live panda sighting by a Westerner was made by a German expedition in 1916: a panda cub was purchased by Hugo Weigold, but the cub did not survive long enough to make it back to Europe. President Theodore Roosevelt's sons Kermit and Theodore Jr. brought back a panda they killed in 1928.

The popularity of pandas did not explode until Ruth Harkness took a live panda out of China in 1936. How did a fashion designer from New York City become the first person to introduce live pandas to the West? Ruth Harkness decided to continue her husband's quest to find a panda after he passed away in Shanghai (from cancer) during his expedition. The story of Ruth's journey and adventure are chronicled in Mrs. Harkness and the Panda (2012), a picture book by Alicia Potter (and illustrated by Melissa Sweet).


The panda cub, Su-Lin, was sold to the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago for about $9,000, and was joined by Mei Mei, another panda Ruth brought back from China, the following year. Sadly, Su-Lin didn't live very long in captivity; he died of pneumonia in 1938. You can see the stuffed Su-Lin at the Field Museum in Chicago:


It's unthinkable now that anyone could walk out of China with a panda cub in her arms, but that's how the West's mass exposure to pandas all began. The pandas currently in zoos around the world are on loan from the Chinese government for $1,000,000 per year (for up to 10 years), and any cubs born during that time belong to China. That means Bao Bao will eventually be sent to China (or anywhere the Chinese government wants to send her).