BOOK SPOTLIGHT: My GrandMom written and illustrated by Gee-eun Lee

MY GRANDMOM

written and illustrated by Gee-Eun Lee

Amazon Crossing Kids, 2022

ISBN: 978-1662508257

Source: Blue Slip Media

Ages 4-8

All opinions expressed are solely my own.

Book cover, illustrations, summary & author/illustrator information provided by Blue Slip Media.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Gee-eun is a little girl whose parents work a lot. So she spends her days with her beloved grandmother. Grandma comforts Gee-eun when she’s sad to see her parents leaving and shares in all of Gee-eun’s daily joys and problems. She even fills in for Gee-eun’s mom at the family sports day, though things don’t quite go as planned…But one thing is for sure: Grandma and Gee-eun always have an unforgettable time until the end of the day, when the whole family can come together for a meal made by Grandma. Based on the author’s relationship with her own grandmother, this is a heart-warming celebration of a most unique and precious guardian: the GrandMom.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR/ILLSTRATOR & TRANSLATOR

Gee-eun Lee is an award-winning Korean author/illustrator. She recently won the prestigious Bologna Ragazzi Award in the comics category for her book, The Story of How the Korean Shaved Ice Dessert Was Born, and is also a top winner of the Korean Young Illustrator Award. She studied design and illustration in Korea and the UK. Her first picture book, Paper Dad, was made into a children’s musical in Korea. My GrandMom is the second book she both wrote and illustrated and is based on her own grandmother.

Instagram: @studio_geeeun

Sophie Bowman is a PhD student at the University of Toronto, studying Korean literature. She was awarded the ICF Literature Translation Fellowship at Ewha Womans University. In 2015, she won the Korea Times Modern Korean Literature Translation Award grand prize for poetry with her translations of Jin Eun-young and co-translated Kim Bo-Young’s I’m Waiting for You and Other Stories. She recently translated the picture book Magic Candies by Heena Baek, which received a starred review from Publishers Weekly. Follow her on Twitter @SophieOrbital.

REVIEW

Originally published in South Korea in 2016, this sweet story about the relationship between a grandmother and granddaughter has much to recommend it.  The story highlights the relationship between a young Gee-eun and her grandmother.  With Gee-eun's parents working all day, she spends her time with her grandmom, Halmoni.  Grandma works hard to sooth Gee-eun as she cries when her mother leaves.  But cooking together, enjoying the outdoors together, and even competing at the Family Sports Day together brings them closer together.  I especially appreciated the inclusion of some of the difficult moments when Gee-eun is upset.  When things don't go well at the Family Sports Day, Gee-eun is upset with her grandmother.  Her grandmother helps her calm down by stopping to share a fried curry bun at the market before buying supplies for dinner.  After fixing a meal, grandmother and granddaughter gladly welcome her parents home.  While the illustrations don't quite work for me, I did appreciate the tender story of a beloved relationship based on the real relationship the author/illustrator had with her own grandmother. 

ILLUSTRATIONS