Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program Blog

Lunch Bag Talk

Grab a bag lunch and join us to welcome award-winning writer Peter Bacho as he takes his first foray into the young adult readers market with Leaving Yesler which debuts late March 2010 from Pleasure Boat Studio.

Bobby Vicente is five months shy of turning 18. His family has just shrunk by half, after losing his mother to cancer and his older brother to Vietnam. His father, Antonio, a Filipino American immigrant who once had a glorious boxing past, is determined that his only family will not only avoid war, but somehow make it out their Yesler housing project in Seattle. Antonio doesn’t have a whole lot of time left to both educate and train sweet, kind-hearted Bobby. What happens in that fast-forward week before Bobby takes his GED—from falling in love, to having conversations with a dead brother not to mention a martyred saint, to witnessing murder—will literally determine the rest of Bobby’s life.

Peter Bacho, who was last seen on a Smithsonian stage on December 8, 2006, is the author of many titles, including the American Book Award-winning novel, Cebu, and the Washington Governor’s Writers Award-winning short story collection, A Dark Blue Suit. He teaches at The Evergreen State College Tacoma Campus in Washington. He’s also an avid boxing fan who starts every morning with coffee and heavy-bag workout… so don’t even think about messing with him!

To read an exclusive interview with Peter Bacho about his upcoming title on our Smithsonian BookDragon blog, click here.