Tag Archives: Smithsonian Heritage Months 2021

Native American/First Nations Romance Authors

Hi friends! If you follow this blog [THANK YOU] – you’ll know this … well, that I’ve been largely absent this year. If you follow me on twitter … you might know there’s a lot going on. Anyway. More about that later. … Or never.

HOWEVER. I did want to do like this month >.< [SORRY that it’s really over] like the others – and this is definitely not an exhaustive list at all it’s simply who I know off the top of my head … and – so if you know of any other authors who should be on the list please let me know and I’ll add them! If you have no idea what I’m talking about … November is [Native American] Heritage Month.

Isobel Carr/Kalen Hughes
Pamela Clare
Cynthia Eden
Yasmine Galenorn
T. J. Michaels
V. S. Nelson
Alex Powell
Sharon Sala
Dee Tenorio

*And as always if you are on the list but don’t want to be, please let me know and I’ll remove you. Thanks!

A List of Latinx Romance Authors

Hi Friends! It’s Latinx Heritage Month 2021! (The Smithsonian still has “Hispanic Heritage Month” as does a lot of media – as well as old posts so I’m tossing in the kitchen sink.) Anyway! I mentioned it a while back but this is the way ALBTALBS will generally be celebrating the Smithsonian Heritage Months now. Please find a list of Latinx romance authors below.
(You can also search the blog for guest posts from years past – a few of the authors listed here have written really lovely posts, and/or shared exclusive excerpts from their books.)

And, if you missed them, you can find a list of Black Romance Authors here, as well as a list of APIA Romance Authors.

Lily Anderson
Carmen Baca
Sela Carson
Zoey Castile/Zoraida Córdova
Mary Castillo
Rebel Carter
Andie J. Christopher
Chanel Cleeton
Alexis Daria
Liana De la Rosa
Taylor V. Donovan
Carmen Falcone
Barbara Ferrer aka Caridad Ferrer
Leora Gonzales
Nadine Gonzalez
Adriana Herrera
Isabel Ibañez
Julie Leto
Angelina Lopez
Yamile Saied Mendez
Mimi Milan
Janelle Milanes
Laura Taylor Namey
Priscilla Oliveras
Berta Platas
Caridad Pineiro
Rosemary Rey
Elizabeth Reyes
Lilliam Rivera
Roxie Rivera
Danni Rose
Inés Saint
Jude Sierra
Sabrina Sol
Mia Sosa
Milly Taiden
Dee Tenorio
Piper Vaughn
Ismée Williams

 

As always – If you fall under the umbrella and aren’t listed let me know – I want to add you! (Or if anyone knows of an authors I missed. Thanks!)

Original Retro APAHM Guest Hudson Lin on Diversity 201: We Are Not a Monolith

Hi friends! If you’re wondering about the title … well, Hudson originally sent me this post in 2019. I cringe even now thinking about it. I nearly (figuratively) died when I saw earlier this year I’d totally dropped the ball, so I contacted Hudson and was graciously given permission to post it now. (I will say … in May 2019 I was recovering and re-learning how to walk again so … it wasn’t as if I was totally just not doing anything…) But I still feel terrible. So – my apologies to the wonderful Hudson Lin, and thank you!

Diversity 201: We are not a monolith
By Hudson Lin

When I think of the words Asian American, I get a very specific picture in my mind. This person has yellow skin, grew up in North America, speaks English fluently and perhaps a second Asian language. This person fits most of the mainstream stereotypes of Asians in the West. This person looks like me. 

But my mental picture of an Asian American is wrong. Because not all Asians have yellow skin, not all grew up in North America, not all speak a second language. Not all Asians are good at math and excel in school. Not all are quiet keep our heads down hard workers. Not all Asians are good at badminton.  Continue reading

Guest Author Stacey Agdern: Thoughts on History and Jewish American Heritage Month

Hi friends! Please welcome Stacey to ALBTALBS! She’s our first JAHM guest ever! This is really exciting. 😀

Thoughts on History and Jewish American Heritage Month:
By Stacey Agdern

Jewish American Heritage month was established in 2006 by presidential proclamation.  Which means that it’s the most recent of the heritage months, now sharing space with an already well established month.

Which means it’s hard to talk about it. 

It’s not that Jews aren’t proud of who we are. We are.  

It’s that we don’t want to take away from the important conversations that surround  AAPI history month. These days, as anti Asian prejudices increase, it’s even more important to focus on and celebrate the history and achievements of East Asians, South Asians, Southeast Asians and Pacific Islanders. 

But at the same time, these days, a great deal of conversation in Jewish spaces involves putting ourselves back into the narrative and reframing conversations where we’ve been erased.  It’s happening in so many different spaces, for so many different reasons. Continue reading

A List of API[A] Romance Authors

Hi friends! So I did this for Black History Month – created a list of Black Romance Authors which I hope you found helpful. So I wanted to do it for APAHM too.
With SAPAHM months I’ve had some international guests, so the lists might be slightly off – so apologizes if they are, please let me know what to change. (If I couldn’t find a webpage I linked to their Amazon profile page.) And … some of these authors write YA but YA romance, so I added you know – “(YA)” after their names.

Melia Alexander
Bella Andre
Grace Callaway
Jax Cassidy
S.A. Chakraborty
Gloria Chao (YA)
Mary H.K. Choi (YA)
Sylvia Day
Sara Desai
Sonali Dev
Piper J. Drake
Pintip Dunn (YA)
Vicki Essex
Hafsah Faizal (YA)
Eilis Flynn
Jen Frederick
Jeanette Grey
Jenny Han (YA)
Karen Harbaugh
Farah Heron
Helen Hoang
Mia Hopkins
Amalie Howard
Uzma Jalaluddin
Julie Kagawa (YA)
Soniah Kamal
Coleen Kwan
Thien-Kim Lam
Ruby Lang
Jackie Lau
Loan Le (YA)
Jade Lee aka Kathy Lyons
Jayci Lee
Hudson Lin
Jeannie Lin
Marjorie Liu
Gennita Low
Tif Marcelo
Sandhya Menon (YA)

Courtney Milan
Tara Pammi
Suzanne Park
Sajni Patel
Cindy Pon
Tara Quan
Alisha Rai
Amara Royce
Sophia Singh Sasson
Nisha Sharma
Royaline Sing
Suleikha Snyder
Jesse Q. Sutanto
Cecilia Tan
Sherry Thomas
Melanie Ting
Julie Tieu
Gita Trelease
Jen Trinh
Lillie Vale (YA)
[Grace Wen]
Ekaterine Xia
Cathy Yardley
Jennifer Yen (YA)

International Asian Pacific Islander Authors
H. Bentham
Halina Cabrera
Catherine Dellosa
Carla de Guzman
Six de los Reyes
Mina V. Esguerra
Elizabeth Galit
Georgette Gonzales
Agay Llanera
Arlene Manocot
Chris Mariano
Nicola Marsh
Bianca Mori
Farrah F. Polestico
Kate Sebastian
Nalini Singh
Camilla Sisco
Marian Tee
Jay E. Tria
Celestine Trinidad
Ines Bautista-Yao

Have you read these authors before? I know there are names I’ve missed – so do you have anyone I should add? (And thank you!)
And as always – if you want to be removed, please let me know.

*ETA: and unlike the other list, the italicized names are ones from crowdsourcing. So I switched it up. Just keeping y’all on your toes. 😉
*ETA² – Clarification after getting numerous comments – mostly on Twitter – Jackie Lau is not the only Asian Canadian author on the list. I included Canada in the “American” list because it’s in N. America, and is closer/much more similar than say someone who lives in Malaysia and has only ever lived in Malaysia. We’ll see how things change next year.

SAPAHM Guest Author Cathy Yardley on being Asian-ish

Hi friends! I’m so happy to welcome back Cathy Yardley. I really hope you read her post – I’m grateful for what she has to say, and that she was willing to share it with us. Thank you, Cathy. <3

Asian-ish

When Lime asked if I could write a guest post for APAHM, I was thrilled. And then I was sort of terrified. Because I have a very complicated relationship with my own Asian heritage.

So I was talking with my (white) father last month, and I mentioned something – don’t remember what exactly– that my brother and I had been talking about. I think it was being Asian parents. How funny it was that, now that we had kids of our own, a lot of Mom’s habits had stuck despite out best efforts. Hovering about grades, especially.

And my father said, “It’s not like you’re really Asian, though.” Continue reading

Happy APAHM + An Ending

Hi friends! It’s May 1, which means APAHM has rolled around again! What is APAHM you might ask? It’s Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Sometimes you might see AAPI – especially more recently in articles, or being said, and that’s Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

It seems fitting for me to say this during APAHM – I have slightly mixed feelings about it – I’m not happy about it but … I’m pulling the plugs on Smithsonian Heritage Month (SHM) posts in 2022. If people want to guest post they’d be more than welcome to. In fact, I hope they do. But I’m not going to keep trying for nothing. Putting out calls, seeing all the people who see it and just don’t care.

The attitude “oh Lime is just doing this to pander and we aren’t welcome any other time” which is patently untruePretty much anyone is welcome to guest at ALBTALBS at any time – it’s just for the SHMs we really tried to find highlight and celebrate people who fit under the umbrella of that particular month. It’s become more of a burden than a recognition – depressing and discouraging, and that’s … just not good. So I’m calling it quits on that. We’ll see where and how  everything else goes.

So uh – on that downer, especially looking at all the hate Asian Americans have gotten for the past year+ … whoo?

😐

Call for “Smithsonian [Heritage]” Month Guest Posts

Hi friends! i don’t know how many of you have stuck around with us since the beginning, but in 2012 or 2013 I got the idea to celebrate all the Smithsonian Heritage Months – and everything launched in 2014. A lot has changed since then, and the frequency of posts have as well. I have to say I cringe a bit at the word “heritage” now. Is that weird? Is that just me? :X However, that’s what they’re called so …

Anyway, what are the Smithsonian Heritage Months? (There used to be a calendar on the Smithsonian site that I can’t for the life of me find right now. I’m certain I’ve posted it in the past but this week I’ve noticed a lot of broken image links. 😐 Although poking around the Smithsonian site I’m seeing a lot of broken links and missing pages too, so that actually makes me feel better/less of a failure. Anyway.)

February: African American History Month aka Black History Month
March: Women’s History Month
May: Asian Pacific American Heritage Month aka APAHM
June: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Pride Month aka Pride Month
September 15-October 15: National Hispanic Heritage Month aka Latinx Heritage Month
November: American Indian Heritage Month aka Native American and First Nations Heritage Month

To explain the Smithsonian Heritage Month posts… At its inception, I only asked for people who fell under the umbrella of whatever month it was. (E.g. only someone who was APIA should write an APAHM post.) However, international friends asked about posting, and also to be honest, people weren’t volunteering and I didn’t want to keep asking the same people over and over. So I then opened it to ANYONE and EVERYONE.  You’re all welcome to write posts for ANY months. International friends, regardless of race/background. It just has to be relevant to the month (unless you fall under the umbrella month). So if you’re white I welcome you – and in fact challenge you – to step up to the place and research a person, an event, celebrate someone, whatever, and write a guest post for either Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Pride, Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, Latinx Heritage Month, or Native American/First Nations Heritage Month.

If you’re uncertain about writing a post, you could also volunteer to write a guest review of a book by an author who would fit in any of those months. An easy way to participate!

I’m hoping to line up more posts – but  also to maybe feature previous posts which you might have missed. Through the years if you’ve followed the Smithsonian Heritage Months you might’ve noticed really interesting and different tones to posts and months too. While some might’ve slipped through – tagging the same way years apart isn’t always the easiest – you can see a lot of the old(er) posts under the  Smithsonian Heritage Month tag. Seriously – there’s a lot of excellent content there. From some fun informative posts, some “I’m tired” posts … to ones where people are raw and honest and really bare their souls.

If you’re interested in writing a post or have questions, feel free to leave them in the comments, or contact me via the form on the site. Thanks <3

A “Crowdsourced” List of Black Romance Authors

Hi friends! It’s February, and I’m trying to bring back the Heritage Month posts … we’ll see how successful (or not) it is – but I wanted to start out with the basics (which I plan to put in a different post). This is more a “me” post than “the blog” post in a way, so I’m leaving it under my account rather than the administrator one. 

Anyway – there are apparently some people who think/say there are “no” romances out there by own voices/Black authors and … *stares.*
For myself, I wanted to make the commitment to not just read more diversely, but to read more Black romance authors. Especially after our Black Lives Matters post I wanted to put my money where my mouth was.

I’m just one person though, and I miss a lot – so I decided to crowd source on social media, and I wrote down every author suggested. The italicized names are ones I added to the list. There are of course many other lists compiled so I wanted to highlight them as well/will add them as I find them in the depths of my terrifying inbox. Continue reading