Jackie Balbastro: Hello Joanna, I am so excited to get to talk to you, thank you for agreeing to do this interview. Instagram: A big thank you to Joanna Ho for the following interview on her bestselling debut picture book, Eyes That Kiss in the Corners (HarperCollins, 2021), out now! Make sure to check out our review of Eyes That Kiss in the Corners here! Keep your eyes open for more books to come!” (Bio and headshot taken from author’s website.) She is currently the vice principal of a high school in the Bay Area, where she survives on homemade chocolate chip cookies, outdoor adventures, and dance parties with her kids.

She has been an English teacher, a dean, the designer of an alternative-to-prison program, and a professional development mastermind. She holds a BA in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, and a master’s from the Principal Leadership Institute at Berkeley. She is a writer and educator with a passion for anti-bias, anti-racism and equity work. Her upcoming picture books include Playing at the Border: A Story of Yo-Yo Ma (Fall 2021), and One Day (2023) her debut YA novel, The Silence that Binds Us will be released in 2022. EYES THAT SPEAK TO THE STARS opens up the opportunity for parents to teach children about the differences between cultures, but how we're all human and hurt the same way.About the Author: “Joanna Ho is the New York Times bestselling author of Eyes that Kiss in the Corners. It's also perfect for people of different nationalities to see how stereotypes, no matter how innocent they can be, can hurt someone's feelings. It's also about holding on to your culture and staying true to who you are.įinal Verdict: This is a book that should certainly be in school libraries everywhere. Instead, it teaches about the importance of keeping your head held high and looking towards the future. Overall, the message is deeper than the boy's eyes appearing like stars, like I anticipated. There are terms throughout the story too that are common to Japanese culture. I love the inclusion of the Japanese culture and how it even goes back to the boy's ancestors.

The illustrations are stunning and luminous which make them appear as bright as a star. They see through the darkness and guide them to a brilliant future.

His dad comes back with an inspirational message about how his eyes look to the stars and can foresee a wonderous future. When he questions his dad about this, he expresses how hurt he is by being drawn differently from the others. In EYES THAT SPEAK TO THE STARS, a little boy his upset when his friend draws his eyes as lines rather than open like everyone else's.

One day joanna ho