Xieng Mieng: A Sticky Mess

I’m happy to be one of the backers for Nor Sanavongsay’s first children’s book Xieng Mieng, and so happy to receive my autographed copy shortly after Christmas.

A drawing of some of the backers, Lee couldn’t stop laughing when she saw a drawing of me.

The story of Xieng Mieng is dear to my heart, and I absolutely love the illustrations. My mom used to tell the story of Xieng Mieng to us when we were little, and I used to tell the story to Lee when she was little.  I guess you can say it’s a tradition for our family, and now the younger generation can read the story to their children. Lee is excited to see it in print.

You can get your copy from Amazon, about Xieng Mieng book: A Sticky Mess is the comedic origin story of one of the most beloved folk heroes of Laos. A young monk keeps getting in trouble with the head of the monastery who thinks the boy can’t do anything right. Finally, the young boy decides to turn the tables with the help of a chicken and a little bit of a sticky snack called mieng. What happens next has become the stuff of legend for over 600 years! This is the hilarious tale of cleverness and ingenuity for children aged four and up.

My niece also loved the book.

I’m so happy for Nor and hope to see more Lao American books from him.

Rules-Cynthia Lord Book Signing

Lee went to Cynthia Lord’s book signing at Lenoir Rhyne University for the Little Reader program on April 13, 2013. She was so excited to finally meet the author, and this is the second book signing that she has gone to at LR.

A stage play of Rules by LR student.

The little readers on stage, I had to switch to my 70-200mm zoom lens to get this closeup shot of Lee. The rest of the photos were taken with my 24-105mm lens.

This has to be the proud moment for any author.

Lee was so happy to be able to take photo with one of her favorite authors. People were standing in line waiting patiently for their turns, so I only had 1 shot at this.

LR campus was beautiful last weekend.

Here is her signed copy of Rules, I finally had a chance to practice with my new flash since I took this late at night.  It’s Emily or Lee for short, and our last name was too long so the author drew a line across. This is definitely a good message, “Dream Big!”

Photos were taken with 5DMkIII, Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens , and EF70-200mm f/4L USM lens.

Kickstarter: Lao Children’s Book: Xieng Mieng Adventures

This is an update on the project, if you have not made a pledge you still have time, February 28, 2013 will be the last day.  Most people think of a pledge as giving or donating monies, but in this case you are preordering the book through Amazon.com.  Once you make a pledge, choose your reward and it will direct you to Amazon.com for payment of your order. Here is the link to check out the different level of rewards.