Julie Kim

Oh my goodness! This book was such a delight to read! The art style and story telling were so well done - incorporating traditional Korean art and folktales with a gentle contemporary spin. I loved how the story starts and ends inside the cover, and how there are pages where it’s just the gorgeous illustrations driving the journey. There were mini- chapters (The Rabbit, The Goblins, and The Tiger) that encompass little bits of lore as the kids interact with each of the creatures. The book also incorporates some Korean words, in Korean characters, in it with a small dictionary at the end to show what each of the words spelled out in Korean means. I also appreciate the page of explanation at the end that describes where each of the creatures in the story came from in traditional lore.

My favorite part is how there are little hidden elements throughout the whole story that connect things around halmoni’s house to the folklore world and vise-versa. I particularly liked the mirror behind halmoni, and then behind noona.

This is one of those books that I was compelled to read slowly to enjoy the journey and the illustrations. The illustrations are so beautifully done, I could just spend hours looking at all the little details. Highly recommended.… (more)