Conference on Literature and Hawai‘i’s Children Announces Honorees and Schedule

Children’s Literature Hawai‘i (CLH) has announced its free Twenty-Third Biennial Conference on Literature and Hawai‘i’s Children, taking place June 5-7, 2026, in person at Honolulu Theatre for Youth's Tenney Theatre and Chaminade University of Honolulu and virtually via Zoom.

This year’s conference theme is “Discovering the Magic of Children’s Literature.”

Free and open to the public, the Conference welcomes teachers, librarians, academics, aspiring authors and illustrators, children and families, and anyone with an interest in literature for young people.

This year, CLH will be inducting the third member of its Hall of Fame: Graham (“Sandy”) Salisbury. Probably best known for his Under the Blood-Red Sun, a novel set during the dark days of Pearl Harbor, Sandy has also authored three other World War II novels set in Hawai‘i, two collections of local short stories, four standalone novels set in Hawai‘i, and the delightful Calvin Coconut series, evincing his own elementary school experiences on the Windward side of Oahu. Sandwiching his writing career between being a musician when younger and now an accomplished painter. Sandy joins the previously inducted Hall of Fame members James Rumford and Tammy Yee. All three have demonstrated lengthy and distinguished service to children’s literature in the state of Hawai‘i. The conference will end with Sandy’s induction Sunday afternoon.

CLH will welcome three featured guests for this year’s conference: authors Kristiana Kahakauwila and Kelly Murashige, and illustrator Jing Jing Tsong.

Kristiana Kahakauwila is a Kānaka Maoli author and associate professor in the department of English at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, where she directs the creative writing program. She is the author of This is Paradise: Stories and Clairboyance.

Kelly Murashige is a local Hawai‘i author whose work has resonated with young readers across the Islands. She is the author of The Lost Souls of Benzaiten and The Yomigaeri Tunnel.

Jing Jing Tsong is an author-illustrator whose imaginative and vibrant artwork has graced the pages of books including the graphic novel Fake Chinese Sounds. Her illustrations bring warmth, humor, and cultural depth to children’s literature.

On Friday, our opening festivities at Tenney Theatre include readings from the featured guests, scenes from their books dramatized by the Honolulu Theatre for Youth, and questions from the audience. On Sunday, “Story Magic” for children 5-12 features various crafts based on the work of our featured guests (including printmaking led by featured illustrator Jing Jing Tsong) and, in connection with the conference theme, a magician.

On Saturday and Sunday, the conference will feature keynote speeches from the featured guests, as well as Special Professional Sessions, a children’s art and writing contest award ceremony, and an array of presentations on creating, interpreting, and using children’s literature. Sessions will span topics of interest across today’s literary landscape, with special attention to Hawai‘i’s uniquely multilingual and multicultural literary environment. All sessions will be held both in person and on Zoom, with recordings available online after the conference. Of special interest is The Ten-Minute Story: Teen and Adult Workshop led by featured author-illustrator Jing Jing Tsong. This hands-on session welcomes everyone from age 12 or 6th grade on up. In a Conference first, adults are invited too! Participants will work on developing an idea and characters for a one-page graphic panel.

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