Hmong American author Kao Kalia Yang has made history at the Minnesota Book Awards, becoming the first person to win three awards in a single year. Her deeply personal works, spanning a range of genres, resonated with readers of all ages, securing her recognition in the fields of children’s literature, middle grade fiction, and memoir.
Yang’s books received top honors in three categories: The Rock in My Throat won the award for Children’s Literature, The Diamond Explorer took the prize for Middle Grade Literature, and Where Rivers Part won in the Memoir category. Reflecting on the significance of this accomplishment, Yang expressed a profound sense of belonging. “It means that the world understands how much beauty I think lives in art, in writing, and in our stories,” she said during an interview at her home in St. Paul. “It all felt incredibly humbling, a little astonishing, but more than anything, I felt like I belonged.”
Yang’s path to this moment of recognition has been one marked by challenges. “I used to think that all of the world was a refugee camp,” she recalled, reflecting on her early childhood in a refugee camp before her family resettled in St. Paul. “This journey is about my own relationship with speaking, with words,” she said, holding her award-winning children’s book, The Rock in My Throat, which tells the story of her experience with selective mutism after moving to the United States.
As a child, Yang found herself silenced by the overwhelming pressure to fit into a new culture and language. “My voice died inside of me when I noticed how other people didn’t have the patience to wait when my mom and dad were struggling with the language,” she shared. In her acceptance speech for The Rock in My Throat, Yang honored those who supported her during this difficult period. “I want to say thank you for all the people who waited all those years when I could not overcome the weight in my throat,” she said. “The rock in my throat is so much about what it is like to be lonely.”
In The Diamond Explorer, Yang delves into the journey of a young Hmong American boy exploring his identity and his place in a world that feels both foreign and frightening. Yang admitted that of all her books, The Diamond Explorer surprised her the most. “If you ask me, what was the real shocker, it was this one,” she said, acknowledging the book’s riskiness as her first venture into middle grade literature. Despite its challenges, she said it wasn’t the most daunting to write. That distinction, she explained, belonged to her memoir, Where Rivers Part.
Writing her mother’s story, she noted, was the most challenging task of all. “When you take on your mother’s voice, it doesn’t matter who you are; it’s a scary, daunting task,” Yang said. But it was a task that helped her better understand her own life and journey. “Long before I knew a pillow, it was the softness of my mother’s arms,” she said. “Even in a dirty place, my mother gave me space and room to feel clean.”
At the Minnesota Book Awards, Yang’s accomplishments felt particularly meaningful. “It feels like I’m giving my mom a star,” she said, proudly affixing a new Minnesota Book Award star sticker to her memoir. “Neither of my parents ever got a sticker, and in many ways, it feels like I’m giving it to her. I was there because they lifted me. I’ve never been confused about that.”
Yang’s journey, marked by struggles and triumphs, has culminated in a historic moment of recognition—a testament to her talent, resilience, and the power of storytelling.
