WAITING FOR MAMA

In this quiet tribute to filial devotion, a little Korean boy climbs onto the high platform of a streetcar station to wait for his mother. As each streetcar arrives with passengers hurrying to and fro, he asks the driver if his mama is coming. Finally, one driver warns the boy he will get hurt if he stands so close to the streetcar and tells him to stand still until his mama comes. Time passes, the wind blows and snow falls as the obedient child waits patiently without moving or speaking until his mother arrives. Presented in Korean Hangeul as well as English, the spare text depends on the illustrations for context and mood. The muted watercolors capture people and scenery as they might have appeared in Seoul in 1938, when the story was first published. Bustling passengers, crowded streets and the anonymous streetcar are seen from the perspective of the small waiting boy. A perfect union of text and illustration tell a simple but moving story. (afterword) (Picture book. 3-6)