'American Born Chinese' author to accept lit award in Norman

Oct. 19—World Literature Today will welcome Gene Luen Yang, the author of "American Born Chinese," a graphic novel that inspired the Disney+ series, to receive the 2023 NSK Neustadt Lit Prize for Children's and Young Adult Literature.

Yang will receive $35,000 and will visit Norman from Oct. 23-25 for the Neustadt Lit Fest where he will accept the prize, speak on his work, sign books, and meet with students at the University of Oklahoma.

The event starts on Monday at 10:30 a.m. at the Joe and Jayne Buskuhl Hall 130 at Gould Hall at OU. The public will be able to visit with Kelvin Yu, producer of the Disney+ series "American Born Chinese," who is well-known for writing and producing the Fox hit animated series "Bob's Burgers." Yu will talk with Yang about producing the show.

At 11:30 a.m. at Gould Hall, the public is invited to a conversation with Trung Le Nguyen, an American cartoonist known for writing "The Magic Fish" graphic novel.

On Tuesday, Oct. 24, the public is invited to Neustadt Night at the Museum from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Sandy Bell Gallery of the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art.

On Wednesday, Oct. 25, Yang will participate in a roundtable event from 2-3 p.m. at Sandy Bell Auditorium at the Fred Jones Museum of Art, and he will accept his award at a closed event at 7 p.m.

RC Davis, executive director of World Literature Today, said the Neustadt may be more famous internationally than it is in Norman, even though it takes place in the city every year.

"One of the prizes is called a Neustadt International Prize for Literature, and it is really one of the most famous literary prizes in the world," Davis said. "A few years ago, the New York Times published a columnist who argued it was the most important literary prize in the world after the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Davis said a few years ago, the Nobel Foundation invited his staff to the Nobel Prize ceremony to recognize how much the Neustadt International organization influences the Nobel Prize for Literature.

The organization holds the children's and young adult's prize on odd-numbered years, and the adult prize, worth $50,000, on even-numbered years.

At the event, jurors will decide who will win the 2024 prize, which will be recognized next October.

Davis said Yang is only the second author to receive the prestigious McArthur Fellows "Genius Grant," which recognizes anyone who demonstrates "extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and marked capacity for self direction," according to its website.

"He's only the second graphic novelist ever to get one of those," Davis said. "Having him here is very exciting. He's a contemporary figure right now, so it's exciting that we get to honor him."

Michelle Johnson, managing and culture editor of the World Literature Today, said that jurors came from all across the world.

In addition to Yang, this year's finalists included Barbara McClintock, Molly Knox Ostertag, LeUyen Pham, Richard Van Camp, Renée Watson, Carole Boston Weatherford and Rita Williams-Garcia.

"This is something special to Norman," Johnson said. "It's a unique thing for Norman because people can come listen to these writers read their work, meet the authors, and have their books signed."

She said it is rare for people in the Midwest to receive this kind of attention in literature.

To prepare for the Neustadt Lit Fest, one OU class, taught by James Ziegler, addressed only Yang's work.

Maddie Meyers, a sophomore from Frisco, Texas who is studying English and serves on the Student Advisory Board for World Literature Today, is enrolled in the Gene Luen Yang literature class and said her class will be involved at the festival.

She said she plans to meet with Yang with her classmates for lunch during his stay.

She said "American Born Chinese" has done so well for many reasons, in part, because of Yang's attention to art, detail and clever visuals.

"The representation that his work has to offer Asian and Asian American experience for young adult and grade school audiences makes it very special," Meyers said.

She said this festival will help her in her career.

"This class is such a special experience, as well as being involved with a big festival and a big literature prize at this level. It's not something you can get in a lot of places," she said.

Amanda Kordeliski, director of libraries and instructional technology, said Norman Public Schools students will be involved at the festival.

"The long-time partnership between NPS, OU and World Literature Today provides amazing opportunities for all our learners," she said. "From hearing and meeting authors and engaging in their work each year, the Neustadt festival provides unique experiences for our learners that otherwise would not be possible. We deeply value and appreciate WLT and their partnership with NPS Libraries."

Brian King covers education and politics for The Transcript. Reach him at bking@normantranscript.com.