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ST. PAUL — Kao Kalia Yang is the Hmong American writer of several award-winning books, including The Latehomecomer (2005) and The Rock in My Throat (2024). Her newest book is a lovely picture book sharing the memories of her aunt and uncle’s old blue house–Kalia’s first memory of a home. It’s called The Blue House I Loved.
In a recent What We’re Reading interview, Kalia shared the story behind the blue house.
She explained, “I live only a mile away from where the blue house once stood. And my aunt and uncle used to live in that house. It was my first memory of a home in America, really. We lived in the housing projects. They lived in the blue house.”
Kalia described how the blue house was where she and her cousins would play, their families would come together and talk, listen to music and cook. While an empty lot is all that remains of the blue house, Kalia noted that just the memory of the house conjures even the taste of the past.
“I can still taste the sweetness of the sugar that we put into our rice and water. You know, my cousins and me, each of us balancing a little bowl on our knees. Rice and water and sugar–that taste, it brings me back and it reminds me again of the sweetness that was there in our lives, that continues to be there.”
The Blue House I Loved is illustrated by artist and architect Jen Shin and is her first book. Kalia met Jen at a Soros Fellowship conference where Jen revealed that one of her dreams is to become an illustrator. Kalia had the opportunity to do something about that. She said, “I’m listening and learning, and in my head I’m thinking, ‘I have this manuscript that I’ve just sold, and it’s about a [house]. I want an architect to illustrate this book.’”
With the Minnesota Book Awards just around the corner it’s worth noting how 2025 was a very successful and historic year in books for Kao Kalia Yang. She had a historic night at the awards ceremony last April–winning in 3 categories.
Kalia described the night, “I was convinced that I was dreaming…And somebody said, ‘How are you going to take these [awards] back?’ Because they’re pretty heavy. And I answered, ‘There are so many hands here. I brought many hands to help.’… My family, long before that moment, had decided that this life journey was going to be special. And it was just such a joyful experience to share that with book lovers across the state and to say that our stories, that they truly matter.”
Learn more about writer Kao Kalia Yang.
Bonus content: Kao Kalia Yang on ICE in Minnesota
Kao Kalia Yang speaks about immigration and ICE in Minnesota on January 14, one week after Minneapolis resident Renee Good was killed by ICE agents.
Listen • 6:23
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