A sensitively told educational story of particular interest to caretakers interested in educating children about...
In this historical fiction picture book, Cha (The Professionals, 2014) uses one family’s story to share an overview of Korean immigration to California during the first half of the 20th century.
Doran Pak and her family live on a farm in a small Korean village. Kim’s muted pastel drawings show the family hard at work. As Christian missionaries spread their doctrine throughout the marketplace and advertise the opportunities to be had, a neighbor approaches the family and explains that many Koreans are moving to Hawaii in pursuit of promising farm work. An official order from King Gojong allows Koreans to immigrate to Hawaii for work. Though Cha’s simple explanation allows children to partially understand the immigration movement, the complexity and history behind the king’s ruling is beyond the scope of the story. Regardless, Doran’s family decides to move to Hawaii and eventually California. Initially reluctant to move to America, Doran settles in to her Californian surroundings—bright, minimalist images show her enjoying oranges from the orchard—as her family becomes involved in church and the burgeoning California Korean community. Through the Pak family’s experiences, Cha tells the story of immigrant success in farming and their subsequent ability to support the Korean independence movement. Cha explains, in ways accessible to children, how California Koreans organized in support of Korea against Japanese rule by forming marches and later joining American forces during World War II. The book ends with a historical timeline about prominent Koreans and American missionaries. Text is broken into short paragraphs, but the inclusions of Korean words and historical facts make this a book best read aloud by a caretaker or by a child transitioning to chapter books. The dull typeface could be better integrated with Kim’s soft, simple illustrations, which offer warm ambience. Overall, however, Cha deftly handles relating a complicated history in a way children can begin to comprehend.
A sensitively told educational story of particular interest to caretakers interested in educating children about Korean-American history.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4675-9779-1
Page Count: -
Publisher: Central California Korean Historical Society
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The seemingly ageless Seeger brings back his renowned giant for another go in a tuneful tale that, like the art, is a bit sketchy, but chockful of worthy messages. Faced with yearly floods and droughts since they’ve cut down all their trees, the townsfolk decide to build a dam—but the project is stymied by a boulder that is too huge to move. Call on Abiyoyo, suggests the granddaughter of the man with the magic wand, then just “Zoop Zoop” him away again. But the rock that Abiyoyo obligingly flings aside smashes the wand. How to avoid Abiyoyo’s destruction now? Sing the monster to sleep, then make it a peaceful, tree-planting member of the community, of course. Seeger sums it up in a postscript: “every community must learn to manage its giants.” Hays, who illustrated the original (1986), creates colorful, if unfinished-looking, scenes featuring a notably multicultural human cast and a towering Cubist fantasy of a giant. The song, based on a Xhosa lullaby, still has that hard-to-resist sing-along potential, and the themes of waging peace, collective action, and the benefits of sound ecological practices are presented in ways that children will both appreciate and enjoy. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-83271-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2001
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