PEACEBOUND TRAINS by Haemi Balgassi, illustrated by Chris Soentpiet (Clarion, 1996)

Sumi misses her mother, who is in the Army, but she still has Harmuny (grandmother). They sit on Sumi’s favorite rock and ‘ at the sound of a train whistle ‘ Harmuny recalls when she and Sumi’s mother escaped war in Seoul, Korea on the roof of a peacebound train. A touching treatment of the effects of war on a family.

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Interview with Linda Sue Park & kiBooka Authors & Illustrators

By Stephani Martinell Eaton

Today we are celebrating Linda Sue Park’s initiative to bring together and highlight Korean American children’s book creators on her kiBooka website. Linda Sue will talk about the site’s inception, and we’ll hear from creators Janet Wong, Marie Myung-Ok Lee, Paula Yoo,

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Grandparents in Children’s Books

This bibliography is drawn from books published between 1995 and 2020. While some award-winners and bestsellers are included, part of the goal is to feature underappreciated gems. For more recent titles, visit Cynsations.

ARTURO AND THE NAVIDAD BIRDS by Anne Broyles, illustrated by K.E. Lewis, translated by Gust Soanish (Pelican, 2013). It’s time for Arturo and his Central American grandmother,

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Author Interview: E. Lockhart on The Boyfriend List

The Boyfriend List (15 guys, 11 shrink appointments, 4 ceramic frogs and me, ruby oliver) by E. Lockhart (Delacorte, 2005)(Listening Library, 2005). Everybody’s dumped Ruby–her boyfriend, her best friend, and all of the rest of her friends. She’s a leper at Tate Prep and the subject of unflattering scribbles on the bathroom wall. After a few panic attacks,

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