NORA SMITH
Staff writer
Kao Kalia Yang, author, teacher and public speaker, pushes boundaries and expectations as she writes across audiences and genres. Now, she will share this approach with Chautauquans in a more conversational format.
Yang first visited Chautauqua when her debut book, The Song Poet: A Memoir of My Father, was a finalist for The Chautauqua Prize in 2017. Now, after serving as a guest judge for the 2026 Chautauqua Prize, she returns to lead a Master Series Masterclass titled “The Picture Book with Kao Kalia Yang” from 9 to 10:30 a.m. today in the Alumni Hall Ballroom with a registration fee of $49.
“I’m excited to return and, this time, to bring my parents along to see this part of the world,” Yang said. “I think that there are worlds within worlds, and the world of Chautauqua is very special.”
Yang said the Chautauqua community is familiar with her work for adults, but since her last visit, she’s published 14 books for children, with more on the way, and therefore wants to bring this side of her writing to Chautauquans.
“I thought it was a very rich way to bring all these sides of me to the community,” Yang said. “I’m going to start with A Map into the World, which is my first picture book, because a big part of this journey is talking about why an author for adults would move into the children’s space.”
Yang said she will then let audience members pick which book they’d rather hear from out of two options: From the Tops of the Trees and The Rock in my Throat. Afterward, Yang will close the class with a reading from A Home on the Page, which she said answers her most frequently asked question: “Why are you a writer?”
Despite moving across different genres and audiences, Yang said her stories focus on “traditionally underrepresented people and perspectives.”
“I write from the Hmong community because I’m Hmong, but I’ve also written beyond,” Yang said. “I’m interested in writing the person on the street, the voices, the perspectives that have not been represented.”
Yang said a goal throughout her work is to maintain transparency and a commitment to humanity.
“I think hearing from people who’ve not had the privilege of being heard from offers perspectives that all of us can gain by hearing and listening deeply,” Yang said. “And I think inviting ourselves there, too.”
Interim Michael I. Rudell Director of Literary Arts Stephine Hunt said it’s important to realize that picture books can be enjoyed by all audiences and that Yang’s masterclass will intertwine reading from picture books with conversation on how to write them.
“[Chautauquans] should come ready to learn that even picture books are works that are important in the literary world and for literary cannons,” Hunt said. “Picture books are not just for children, and they are works of art, literally on the page in terms of the artwork that’s done, but also in the storytelling practice.”
Yang said she hopes audience members will gain an understanding of her contributions to the children’s space, but also realize how stories can be distilled. For example, a children’s book is often 32 pages.
“The distillation of memory and experience is something that’s really critical to everybody at every stage of life,” Yang said.
She also hopes audience members will realize that as authors and readers alike move across genres and audiences, the sensibility of a writer doesn’t have to change.
“I want to be the kind of author that a child can grow up with and then an adult can grow old with,” Yang said. “I think it would be beautiful to exemplify this in my masterclass.”
In closing, Yang said audience members are sure to be delighted.
“Whatever expectations you have for the children’s book form, the picture book form, expect that to be pushed,” Yang said. “A writer like me doesn’t just write because they have stories to tell. I want to push the edges of meaning, and I’m doing so across audiences and age groups.”
