Executive Overview
In a significant milestone for contemporary children’s literature and educational advocacy, the National Education Association (NEA) has officially selected Mia Wenjen’s critically acclaimed work, Barbed Wire Between Us, for its prestigious Read Across America calendar. Featured prominently for April 2027 under the overarching national theme "Build Belonging," the book stands as a vital touchstone for educators, students, and communities striving to foster empathy, historical awareness, and inclusive classrooms.
Published by Red Comet Press and illustrated with striking emotional resonance by Violeta Encarnación, Barbed Wire Between Us utilizes the powerful literary device of the reverso poem. The narrative bridges decades, drawing profound parallels between two stories of incarceration and family separation at Fort Sill, Oklahoma: a Japanese American girl detained during World War II and a Latina girl separated from her migrant family in the modern era.
Alongside Wenjen’s elementary selection, the NEA’s April 2027 curated list highlights vital middle school and young adult titles—Chanel Miller’s The Moon Without Stars and René Peña-Govea’s Estela, Undrowning, respectively. Together, these selections offer a comprehensive roadmap for educators seeking to address complex socio-political themes through storytelling. This report provides a detailed examination of the selection, the thematic resonance of the featured texts, supporting pedagogical resources, and the broader implications for literacy and civic engagement in American schools.
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Detailed Chronology: From Concept to National Recognition
The journey of Barbed Wire Between Us to the Read Across America calendar reflects a deliberate trajectory of rigorous research, artistic collaboration, and sustained community engagement by author Mia Wenjen and her publishing partners.
- Inception and Historical Grounding: The narrative roots of Barbed Wire Between Us trace back to deep explorations of American history, specifically the multifaceted uses of Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Originally serving as a military post, Fort Sill was utilized during World War II as a Department of Justice internment camp holding Japanese Americans, and decades later, as a temporary influx facility for migrant children.
- Artistic Collaboration: Wenjen partnered with illustrator Violeta Encarnación to translate the complex emotional landscapes of institutional confinement and forced separation into visual formats accessible to elementary readers. Red Comet Press championed the manuscript, bringing it to print to fill a critical gap in historical verse for young readers.
- Critical Acclaim and Early Outreach (2025–2026): Leading up to its widespread distribution, the book gained traction through features in prominent literary spaces, including Publishers Weekly interviews and dedicated teaching modules. PragmaticMom and various educational networks rolled out comprehensive teacher guides, origami crane folding activities linked to the narrative, and geography-based learning games connecting students to WWII internment sites.
- NEA Read Across America Selection (April 2027 Spotlight): The NEA’s selection of the title for its April 2027 "Build Belonging" calendar marks the culmination of these efforts, embedding the book into lesson plans, library displays, and literacy programs nationwide.
Supporting Context & Metrics: The Power of the "Build Belonging" Theme
The NEA’s "Build Belonging" initiative is designed to combat isolation in schools by curating literature that reflects diverse experiences, promotes cross-cultural understanding, and encourages students to see their own histories—and the histories of others—validated in the classroom.
The Elementary Spotlight: Barbed Wire Between Us
- Author: Mia Wenjen
- Illustrator: Violeta Encarnación
- Publisher: Red Comet Press
- Literary Form: Reverso poem (a poem that can be read in two directions, revealing opposing or parallel meanings).
- Thematic Core: Explores institutional incarceration, human rights, historical memory, and empathy across generations. By juxtaposing the experiences of a WWII Japanese American internee with a contemporary separated Latina migrant child, the book prompts young readers to question institutional policies while recognizing the enduring resilience of families.
The Middle School Spotlight: The Moon Without Stars
- Author: Chanel Miller
- Publisher: Philomel Books
- Thematic Core: Focusing on seventh-grader Luna, a White and Chinese American student, the novel explores peer pressure, identity assimilation, and the social fallout of a successful zine project created with her best friend, Scott. As Luna navigates the gravitational pull of the popular crowd, the book captures the precarious nature of middle school social structures and the courage required to remain authentic.
The Young Adult Spotlight: Estela, Undrowning
- Author: René Peña-Govea
- Publisher: Quill Tree Books
- Thematic Core: Seventeen-year-old Estela grapples with clinical anxiety and panic attacks driven by her family’s looming eviction. Set against the backdrop of an elite high school, the narrative delves into systemic inequities and racial tensions triggered when Estela places second to a non-Latino student in a Latine poetry contest.
Pedagogical Integration and Supplementary Resources
To maximize the impact of Barbed Wire Between Us in classrooms, a robust suite of educational materials has been developed by the author and participating literacy advocates. These tools are designed to move students from passive reading to active historical and emotional inquiry.
1. The Teacher’s Guide
A free, downloadable Barbed Wire Between Us Teacher’s Guide provides structured lesson plans, discussion prompts, and historical background summaries. The guide assists educators in navigating sensitive topics—such as Executive Order 9066 and modern immigration policies—with age-appropriate sensitivity.
2. Interactive Classroom Activities
- Origami Crane Workshops: Inspired by the symbolism of peace and endurance in Japanese culture, educators can utilize the "How to Fold an Origami Crane" activity alongside a curated list of eleven children’s books featuring origami motifs.
- Geography and History Games: Interactive geography games developed by literacy advocates encourage students to map out historical internment sites across the United States, fostering spatial awareness of civil liberties violations throughout American history.
- Multimedia Integration: Official book trailers and musical accompaniments provide alternative entry points for auditory and visual learners, ensuring universal access to the emotional core of the text.
Official Statements & Industry Impact
The inclusion of these works in the NEA calendar underscores a broader movement within American education toward inclusive, mirror-and-window literature—books that serve as mirrors reflecting students’ lived realities and windows into the lives of others.
Literary analysts and educators have noted that poetry, particularly the reverso form used in Barbed Wire Between Us, offers a unique cognitive scaffolding mechanism for young readers. By demonstrating how a single set of words can be inverted to tell an entirely different story, students learn the importance of perspective-taking—a foundational pillar of empathy.
Furthermore, Mia Wenjen’s extensive catalog of works—including Postcards from Malcolm X: How Yuri Kochiyama Became a Civil Rights Activist, Fortune Cookies for Everyone!, The Traveling Taco, We Sing from the Heart, and Food for the Future—demonstrates a sustained commitment to illuminating marginalized histories, cultural intersections, and social justice narratives for young readers.
Future Outlook: Read Across America 2027 and Beyond
As schools look toward the implementation of the April 2027 Read Across America calendar, the anticipation surrounding Barbed Wire Between Us highlights the growing demand for literature that tackles complex civic issues without compromising emotional resonance or literary artistry.
Educators, librarians, and community leaders are encouraged to utilize the official NEA resources, access the specialized teacher guides, and incorporate these monthly selections into school-wide reading initiatives. By building belonging through shared stories, classrooms across the nation can cultivate critical thinkers equipped to understand the past, empathize with the present, and shape a more equitable future.
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