Nainai’s Mountain

A Taiwanese-American girl is nervous about visiting Taiwan-- until her paternal grandmother, her Nainai, takes her on a mountain-climbing adventure and shows her its wonders.

Traveling from California to Taiwan for the first time, even with her parents and her Nainai around her, is a lot for a little girl to take in. The plane ride lasts forever, she can’t read any of the signs, and she’s worried there will be unfamiliar bugs.

But then Nainai becomes her tour guide, and Taiwan transforms. As they huff and puff up Nainai’s favorite mountain, stomachs full of bao and juicy sausage, Nainai spins yarns about riding to the movies in pedicabs, eating frozen pineapple, and playing pinball to win snacks. Even the bugs turn out to be more cool than scary.

At the top of the mountain is a surprise: all sorts of people playing and exercising--and they all remember Nainai. The little girl is filled with pride when they can tell just who she is: ＂your granddaughter!＂

Author Livia Blackburne shares an author’s note about the inspiration she drew from childhood visits to Taiwan, her parents’ childhoods there, and her own mountain-climbing grandmother. The deep well of lived experience is evident on every page, and is perfectly evoked by Joey Chou’s intricate, colorful illustration. Whether it’s a reflection of home or a window into somewhere brand-new, kids, grandparents, and everyone in between will love following Nainai to the top of her mountain.

Livia Blackburne is a New York Times bestselling author of novels and picture books. Her titles include I Dream of Popo, which received starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly, Kirkus, and Booklist; Midnight Thief, an Indies Introduce New Voices selection; and Rosemarked, A YALSA Teens Top Ten nominee. Born in Taiwan and raised in Albuquerque, she now lives in Los Angeles with her husband and daughter.

Joey Chou was born in Taiwan and moved to Southern California as a teenager, where he received a BFA from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. He has illustrated such books as Group Hug, When the Snow Is Deeper Than My Boots Are Tall, Ruby’s Chinese New Year, Monster & Son, and Disney Parks Presents: It’s A Small World. He is also a visual development artist on feature animated films.