The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Lee, Tae-Jun

Waiting for Mama: A Bilingual Picture Book

40 pp. | North-South | August, 2007 | Trade ISBN 978-0-7358-2143-9 $16.95

(4) K-3 Translated by Eun Hee Chun. Illustrated by Dong-Seong Kim. A small boy on a streetcar platform implores, "Isn't my mama coming?" He's still waiting when the bilingual (English and Hangeul) text ends. But after three illustrated pages--if you look really, really closely--he's walking with Mama. The tale's pervasive melancholy is echoed in expansive double-page spreads in muted colors. Originally published in Korea in 1938, the story isn't likely to resonate with readers.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz