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Summary
Summary
A child-friendly story about the trials and triumphs of starting over in a new place while keeping family and traditions close.
When Hee Jun's family moves from Korea to West Virginia, he struggles to adjust to his new home. His eyes are not big and round like his classmates', and he can't understand anything the teacher says, even when she speaks s-l-o-w-l-y and loudly at him. As he lies in bed at night, the sky seems smaller and darker. But little by little Hee Jun begins to learn English words and make friends on the playground. And one day he is invited to a classmate's house, where he sees a flower he knows from his garden in Korea -- mugunghwa, or rose of Sharon, as his friend tells him -- and Hee Jun is happy to bring a shoot to his grandmother to plant a "piece of home" in their new garden. Lyrical prose and lovely illustrations combine in a gentle, realistic story about finding connections in an unfamiliar world.
Author Notes
Jeri Watts has written numerous short stories as well as the picture book Keepers and the middle-grade novel Kizzy Ann Stamps. She lives in Virginia, where she is a professor at Lynchburg College.
Hyewon Yum is the author and illustrator of several acclaimed books for children. She has received the Society of Illustrator's Founder's Award, the Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator Award, an Honorable Mention for the Bologna Ragazzi Award, and the Golden Kite Award for her work. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Hee Jun and his family have moved from Korea to West Virginia, where his father has accepted a teaching job. The whole family struggles: "In Korea, I was ordinary," reflects the school-age boy. "I was not extraordinary, not different." His grandmother, a "wise and wonderful teacher" in Korea, sits dull-eyed on their new front porch. After Se Ra, Hee Jun's younger sister, "bites and kicks and even spits on her teacher," it's suggested that Grandmother attend school with her so they can both learn English. Yum's (Puddle) colorful spreads carefully attend to the characters' expressions, emotions, and relationships. Grandmother's favorite Korean flower turns out to grow in the garden of Hee Jun's new friend, Steve. "?`Rose of Sharon,' Steve says. `It's mugunghwa in Korea,' I say. `It's rose of Sharon here,' Steve says." When Hee Jun brings a sprig back to his grandmother, readers know it's the beginning of an ordinary life for the family. Closely observed and greatly moving, Watts's (Kizzy Ann Stamps) story is a useful springboard for discussions about difference and tolerance. Ages 5-8. Illustrator's agent: Sean McCarthy, Sean McCarthy Agency. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
*Starred Review* In Korea, I was ordinary, says Hee Jun, who chronicles his family's move to America and their gradual assimilation into their West Virginia community. Though he arrives at school knowing no English, within a few months Hee Jun has made a friend and is learning the language. After his little sister, Se Ra, acts out, biting and kicking her teacher, her grandmother stays in class to help her adjust. Soon they are both learning English. One of the endearing aspects of Watts' book is Hee Jun's awareness of his grandmother, an honored teacher in Korea, and her initial sense of loss and loneliness, which fade as she learns the language, befriends Se Ra's teacher, and finds familiar flowers growing in her new country. This gentle, compassionate immigration narrative shows the difficulties of adapting to a new culture. Unlike most picture books on the subject, its setting is contemporary and its intergenerational story reflects the struggles of several family members. Scenes in Korea are written in past tense, but once the setting shifts to America, present tense adds immediacy to the simply worded, effective storytelling. Yum, a Korean artist who moved to America, contributes sensitive and expressive watercolor illustrations. A perceptive portrayal of an important American experience.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2016 Booklist
New York Review of Books Review
In emotionally direct prose and watercolors full of tiny, charming details, Bagley ("Boats for Papa") turns two of the forest's less charismatic creatures into heart-stealing stars. Zelda, a hedgehog, looks forlorn as she tells Aaron, an anteater, he can't come along to her family's new house. But before the move they spend an afternoon playing and having ice cream cones - his miles-long tongue makes an astonishing appearance - creating a reassuring balance between happy, funny and sad. THE GIRL WITH THE PARROT ON HER HEAD Written and illustrated by Daisy Hirst. 40 pp. Candlewick. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 3 to 6) Hirst's original debut walks a wonderful line between fanciful and realistic, with loose, buoyant art and an offbeat story that finds a child's innermost truth. Isabel, a girl who happens to have a parrot on her head, responds to the loss of her friend Simon (one day he "went away in a truck, and he never came back") by hating everything. Then she takes to sorting her stuff into boxes. But there's a big, scary wolf who won't fit anywhere - so a new friend, Chester, helps her send him packing, too. BEN SAYS GOODBYE By Sarah Ellis. Illustrated by Kim La Fave. 32 pp. Pajama Press. $16.95. (Picture book; ages 3 to 6) When Peter moves away, Ben does not want to say goodbye, or do much of anything. He decides to move too - under the table, to become a cave boy. There he grunts instead of talking and draws stories about two friends on the "walls." When he's ready to come out, a potential new friend is settling in at Peter's house. Ellis's simple story catches the rhythms of moving and of grieving, while La Fave's black crayon-like lines and minimal faces register the oversize worries a little guy can carry around. A PIECE OF HOME By Jeri Watts. Illustrated by Hyewon Yum. 32 pp. Candlewick. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 5 to 8) Little is as earthshaking as the experience of starting over in not just a new house, but a new country. Hee Jun's family moves from Korea to West Virginia for his father's job. He can't stand being so different from his classmates. English words "feel like stones, heavy in my mouth." But gradually the strange becomes familiar, and a new friend's kindness eases his homesickness. Watts's elegant story and Yum's soft, radiant art combine to make the book wrenching, hopeful and lovely in equal measure. LIFE WITHOUT NICO By Andrea Maturana. Illustrated by Francisco Javier Olea. 36 pp. Kids Can Press. $16.95. (Picture book; ages 4 to 8) "After Nico leaves, a hole appears in Maia's life," begins this astute, sensitive tale of friendship and separation, made all the more resonant by Olea's adorably moody art. With Maia's best friend gone, the emptiness she feels lasts for a while. But new things creep into her life: a kitten, another friend, the chance to learn piano. They talk on the phone. When Nico comes back - the move was temporary - she worries it won't be the same, but she learns that "there are some things time cannot change." ONLINE An expanded visual presentation of this week's column at nytimes.com/books.
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-When his family moves from Korea to West Virginia, Hee Jun has a difficult time adjusting. He doesn't look like the other children, he can't understand English, and when he tries to speak, the words "feel like stones.in [his] mouth." Even the sky looks "smaller and darker" than in Korea. His grandmother stays in school each day with his little sister, who is also having a hard time, but Hee Jun must cope on his own. As the months pass, though, brother, sister, and grandmother begin to learn English and Hee Jun slowly transforms from an outsider to an ordinary boy among his classmates. The story comes full circle when Hee Jun brings home a gift from a new friend-a rose of Sharon plant, the English name for the mugunghwa blossoms his grandmother grew in Korea. "'A piece of heaven,' she says. 'A piece of home.'" The young boy's distress, as well as his grandmother's, at not fitting in is evident in the large watercolor illustrations. He appears alone in his front yard, slumped over his desk, or frowning as he sits in the center of the classroom. Grandmother changes from the brightly dressed teacher she was in Korea to a bowed woman wearing drab clothing. But the mugunghwa plant, foreshadowed on the title page, brings renewed spirit to them both as they savor a piece of home. This immigration story, paired with Irena Kobald's My Two Blankets, can offer readers who feel different and alone hope that things will get better, and may encourage others to help them on their way. VERDICT The lengthy text paints a realistic picture of difficulties faced by a family striving to make a new start, and the positive resolution is quietly satisfying. A solid addition for most collections.-Marianne Saccardi, Children's Literature Consultant, Greenwich, CT © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Moving from Korea to West Virginia, a young boy leaves the familiar behind. Watts begins this immigration story with Hee Jun describing his remarkable grandmother, who had sparkling eyes. "My grandmother could find the extraordinary held within the ordinary." She coaxes the national tree of Korea, called the mugunghwa, to flower, revealing delicate blossoms with bright red centers. Readers are shown Hee Jun's life back home, where he is ordinary. "A regular boy, playing and laughing and bossing my little sister." Life seems easy and commonplace. With the announcement of the move, the little boy swings from a carefree outlook to concern and frustration. The narration clearly describes his irritation with the language barrier, while the illustrations show Korean Hangul lettering in his dialogue bubbles. Emotions show clearly in Hee Jun's moon-shaped face as round-eyed classmates stare and the teacher speaks loudly to him. This tangible emotional struggle extends to others in the family as well. His little sister acts out, and grandmother loses her sparkle. But slowly, over time, the family adjusts to the new world, with Hee Jun teaching his grandmother the English name for mugunghwa. Watts' clear storytelling successfully conveys Hee Jun's emotional journey to readers, and Yum's emotive illustrations sensitively complement the text. Immigrant children will relate to the head-spinning switch from ordinary to different, and their classmates might better understand the emotional impact of moving to a foreign land. (Picture book. 5-10) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
