Annette Makino shows a copy of her book, Yung Stands Strong. (Photo: Leah Spiers)
LEAH SPIERS, EL LEÑADOR, ARCATA, CA, NOV. 5, 2026
Annette Makino, a steering member of the Humboldt Asians & Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI) non-profit organization, wrote a new children’s book called “Yung Stands Strong: A Story of Expulsion and Resilience.”
Makino recalled visiting a fourth grade classroom at Alice Birney Elementary School and hearing their teacher, Roxana Stengl, read an early version of the book to the class and seeing how engaged the nine-year-olds were in the story.
“I loved the first thing the kids asked at the end of the story was, ‘When’s the sequel coming out?’,” Makino said.
The book follows a 9-year-old girl named Yung and her cat, Mui Mui, while they navigate the period in 1885 when approximately 300 Chinese people in northern Humboldt County were ordered to leave for San Francisco within 24 hours. The story explores local injustices in Humboldt County that took place during the 1885 Chinese expulsion and underlines resilience through Yung’s journey.
The book was developed as part of a grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy to create a Chinatown monument in Eureka and the book was an addition to reach younger audiences who were missed by the previous adult-focused tours.
All proceeds will support HAPI, a non-profit initiative under the Ink People Center for Arts and Culture, which focuses on spreading awareness of Asian American history and culture.
The team of writers and contributors who helped the book come to life included Makino as the main writer, Yukari Mishima as illustrator, two main historians, Katie Bush and Alex Service, along with Jean Pfaelzer and three HAPI steering committee members.
Vicki Ozaki, HAPI steering member and one of the editors, shared how it was a new adventure for all involved in the book’s creation.
“It’s an amazing story we were able to build off of,” Ozaki said. “It helps you appreciate history in a different way.”
When asked about the total number of copies of the book that would be available to the public, Ozaki said there were 1500 physical copies printed and about half are being donated to local elementary schools, Humboldt County libraries and local bookstores in the community.
Paul Michael Atienza, associate professor in the department of Critical Race, Gender and Sexuality Studies (CRGS) and a steering member for HAPI, hosted a panel Q&A to highlight the book project. The event was part of the Campus & Community Dialogue on Race (CDOR).
Atienza shared how he was grateful for the turnout of the panel discussion, especially all the students who showed up.
“It was nice to see folks who were able to hear the story,” Atienza said.
Atienza hopes the book brings people together and a chance to tell the full history of Humboldt County.
“I think the way our book committee created the story is very impactful,” Atienza said. “I hope that our group is able to share more stories.”
Free PDF versions of the book will be available the first week of November on the Cal Poly Humboldt Press website and pre-orders are available online through Makino’s art business, makinostudios.com.
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El Leñador is an English and Spanish newspaper produced by Cal Poly Humboldt students.
