J&Y Law’s Stacy Thumsuden Brings “Different Is Still Us” to the KPBS San Diego Book Festival

Key Takeaways 

• J&Y Law Attorney Stacy Thumsuden attended the KPBS San Diego Book Festival on Saturday, August 22, 2026, at the University of San Diego. 

• Stacy met with the San Diego Council on Literacy and other local literacy and family-focused organizations to donate copies of the firm’s new children’s book, Different Is Still Us. 

• Different Is Still Us was written by J&Y Law co-founders Jason Javaheri, Esq. and Yosi Yahoudai, Esq. to help children through the difficult changes that follow a parent’s serious injury. 

• The donation supports literacy efforts across San Diego County and puts the book directly into the hands of the families who may need it most. 

On Saturday, August 22, the University of San Diego campus filled with readers of every age for the KPBS San Diego Book Festival — a free, all-day celebration of authors, stories, and the simple joy of a good book. Among the thousands of attendees moving between author panels, youth reading stages, and rows of local booksellers was a familiar face from J&Y Law: Attorney Stacy Thumsuden. 

But Stacy didn’t come for a panel or a book signing. She came with free books to give away! 

A Day to Celebrate Reading 

Now one of the region’s signature literary events, the KPBS San Diego Book Festival runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and draws thousands of book lovers to the University of San Diego campus each year. Presented by the University of San Diego and produced by KPBS — San Diego’s public media home and self-described “storyteller” — the festival brings together local and national authors across dozens of genres, from mystery and romantasy to parenting, self-help, and children’s literature. 

The day is built around several stages and gathering spaces: main-stage author panels and live entertainment, a youth reading stage packed with storytimes and demonstrations for the littlest readers, and a long stretch of exhibitor tables where local authors and independent booksellers meet their community face to face. It is, in short, exactly the kind of place where a book finds the reader who needs it. 

Why J&Y Law Came to the Festival 

Stacy spent the afternoon meeting with the San Diego Council on Literacy and other local literacy and family-focused organizations, donating copies of the firm’s new children’s book, Different Is Still Us. 

“So much of what we do at J&Y Law is walking alongside families on the hardest day of their lives,” said Thumsuden. “A book like this can’t undo what happened, but it can give a child a way to understand it. Handing it to organizations like the San Diego Council on Literacy means it reaches the families who need it most.” 

About the San Diego Council on Literacy 

The San Diego Council on Literacy works to unite the community in support of literacy for all, through advocacy, partnerships, and resources. For decades, the organization has connected San Diegans with tutoring, learning resources, and support, while raising awareness of just how unevenly literacy is distributed across the county. 

That mission made the Council a natural partner for a book designed to help families talk through a frightening, confusing moment together. Literacy, after all, is not only about reading a job application or a medicine label. It is also about giving parents and children a shared language for the things that are hardest to say out loud. 

The Story Behind “Different Is Still Us” 

Different Is Still Us tells the story of a young lion cub whose father is seriously injured in an accident and can no longer play soccer with him the way he used to. It is an honest look at a parent’s sudden change in ability, the grief of missing the way things used to be, and the resilience a family can find in a new normal — together. 

The book was written by J&Y Law co-founders Jason Javaheri, Esq. and Yosi Yahoudai, Esq. For Javaheri, the story began with a memory rather than a marketing plan: he grew up with a chronically ill mother and knows firsthand what it feels like to be a child watching a parent struggle, unsure whether things will ever feel normal again. There wasn’t a book that spoke to that experience when he was young, so the firm set out to write one — developing it in-house, reading early drafts to their own kids, and folding in notes from child and family clinicians along the way. 

For a personal injury firm that meets families every day in the aftermath of a serious accident, it is a fitting extension of the work: something to hand a worried household that speaks a child’s language when the grown-up words feel impossible. 

“In my work with elder abuse, I see every day how much a family’s ability to talk openly can affect an outcome, especially when it comes to talking about grandma and grandpa,” said Thumsuden. “Literacy is where that starts. When you give a child a story they can hold onto, you’re giving the whole family a shared language for something that can be really hard to talk about.” 

Supporting Literacy Takes a Community 

Events like the KPBS San Diego Book Festival are a reminder that stories do their best work when they travel — passed from an author to a reader, from a firm to a nonprofit, from a nonprofit to a family sitting together at the kitchen table. By meeting with the San Diego Council on Literacy and other local organizations, Stacy helped send Different Is Still Us out into exactly those hands. 

Different Is Still Us is available now on Amazon in paperback and Kindle. And if your family is navigating the aftermath of a serious injury, J&Y Law is here to help you understand your options and take the next step.