(2) PS Illustrated by Chris Raschka. Park and Raschka capture with deep understanding and admirable simplicity children's attachment to their favorite books. Each of Park's unpretentious nonrhyming quatrains is accompanied by a portrait of a different child, in Raschka's recognizable impressionistic style and harmonious colors. "This is my book. / My favorite book. / I carry it with me / wherever I go" features a young Black girl holding an umbrella and her book, striding through puddles on a rainy day. "I don't hear you call. / I can't come right now. / I'm too far away / in the world of my book" depicts a blind girl reading a book in braille, curled up on a rug with her cat. Other poems see a boy reading by soft light, tucked into bed at night with his stuffed animals; a girl absorbed in her book on a crowded subway; a boy in a wheelchair dressed up as his favorite character (a pirate). The total effect is warm and childlike; the diversity of children and experiences is welcome. Altogether a winning paean to childhood reading.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2024

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Robert Sae-Heng. Ms. Chang has asked her students to think about what one thing they would save--beyond their families and pets--if their homes were on fire. "Your Most Important Thing. Any size. A grand piano? Fine." What follows is a series of poems, inspired by an ancient form of traditional Korean poetry called sijo, that capture the voices of the kids in the class as they ponder and discuss, argue, defend their choices, and sometimes change their minds. Their most important possessions range from the obvious ("My dad's wallet. Duh") and humorous (cool sneakers--"I put those babies on my feet, it's like, see ya later, fire") to the altruistic (grabbing a mother's insulin kit) and the aspirational (a bedroom rug to help folks in the building "Stop, Drop, and Roll"). Ms. Chang reminds the kids what to do in a real emergency, and that they all must "Protect, Affect, Respect One Another!" in class, but she also joins in the conversation and is deeply moved by their astute suggestions and profound revelations. Sae-Heng's lovely graphic-style grayscale drawings grace every page and reflect an inclusive, modern urban landscape and school setting. This is an ode to learning with a savvy and caring educator who knows how to build community and empathy by having students share their stories and who joins in their exercises (and is even convinced to change her mind).

Reviewer: Luann Toth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2021

(1) YA In 1880, fourteen-year-old Hanna and her father settle in the (fictional) town of LaForge, in Dakota Territory. Papa is white; Hanna's late mother immigrated from China and had both Chinese and Korean ancestry. LaForge is modeled on De Smet, South Dakota, where four of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books took place. Park's novel is clearly in conversation with that series, from Hanna's friendlier interactions with, and more thoughtful views about, members of the Ihanktonwan tribe to racist attitudes among LaForge's townspeople, who object to Hanna's presence in the school and blame her after a local man assaults her. But this novel stands on its own, with a vividly drawn protagonist in self-reliant Hanna, who has plenty of complex relationships: with her stubborn father, with her much-missed mother, with her classmate Bess, with a well-meaning but conflict-averse teacher. An author's note explains the "fancy mental gymnastics" Park, who is Korean American and loved Wilder's series growing up, needed to do as a child in order to imagine herself as Laura's best friend, and describes the author's ongoing conflict with the books' problematic elements.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2020

(2) PS Illustrated by Debbie Ridpath Ohi. Gurple (a gangly purple robot with green appendages) and Preen (a diminutive green robot with some neat purple accessories) have crash-landed on an alien planet. Their cargo--a bunch of brand-new crayons--has scattered everywhere, and the robots must retrieve it all. The crayons are actually containers; it's not until breaking them that the robots (and we) can see what's inside. Gurple is perplexed and frustrated ("a TABLECLOTH? What are we supposed to do with that?"); Preen (who communicates in beeps) thoughtfully gets to work repairing the ship. Finally, the mission's commander is released from her crayon, and after being brought up to speed, the explorers are on their way, blasting back off into outer space. The last page brings us down to Earth, as the "commander" is revealed to be a little girl in her bedroom, surrounded by robot toys, crayons, and space-and-science paraphernalia--gazing out her bedroom window at the night sky. In the category of they-were-toys-all-along picture books, this one stands out, as the child's imagined scenarios--and Park's and Ohi's storytelling--are particularly creative and freewheeling. The dialogue, especially Gurple's interjections ("Zap my apps!" "Bits and bytes!"), is bright and witty, as are the digital crayon-box illustrations with lots of dimension and plenty to look at--and starring an endearing android odd-couple pair.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Jennifer Black Reinhardt. Gondra is a biracial (gender-unspecified) dragon, a mixture of both Eastern and Western dragon attributes. The little dragon explains and celebrates the ways it takes after each parent (Gondra can breathe fire and mist!). Reinhardt's watercolor, ink, and collage illustrations can be cluttered and overly decorative. Still, this is a well-meaning and otherwise effective story about combining traditions to create a new family.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Brian Pinkney. In this picture-book companion to Park's novel A Long Walk to Water, Nya's little sister Akeer becomes feverish while they're fetching water far from their South Sudan village, and Nya must carry her and the water. Then with her mother, Nya must walk several days to get Akeer medical treatment. A nonfictional ending reinforces the importance of clean water access worldwide. Swirling watercolors aptly portray the topography and the hardship.

Reviewer: Michelle H. Martin | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2019

(4) 4-6 Wing & Claw series. Illustrated by James Madsen. In this trilogy finale, apothecary Raffa and the Afters--refugees from a great quake--resist the Chancellor who's trying to exterminate them. With his talking bat and human friends, Raffa uses herb lore to generate nonviolent ways to disarm the guards and drugged animals sent to attack them. Although Raffa isn't a believably childlike character, his team's creative solutions keep the story moving.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) 4-6 Wing & Claw series. Illustrated by James Madsen. Apothecary apprentice Raffa (Forest of Wonders) attempts to rescue enslaved animals used by Senior Jayney to attack recent immigrants. After a botched raid, Raffa's father is accused of setting the fire Raffa created as a distraction. Despite some heartwarming teamwork among Raffa's friends, the amount of contrivance needed to keep the plot moving hampers a sense of rising tension.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Jennifer Black Reinhardt. Park and Reinhardt pair animal names with actions. Each double-page spread features a single phrase (e.g., "Flounders flounder") and the definition of the verb form ("to flounder = to be helpless"). Visual humor abounds in the watercolor and ink pictures. The final spread gives the etymological background ("Old English," "Old North French") of each animal name and action.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2016

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by James E. Madsen. Yearning to use his apothecary talent to create cures, Raffa discovers a new vine that gives his patient, a wounded bat, the power of speech. But Raffa's cousin Garith takes the vine to the city, where it's exploited to train animals to attack humans. The plot never works up much menace, but Raffa's dreams and hopes will earn him readers' sympathies.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Matt Phelan. Plans for a modest fete grow increasingly tangled for Xander, the lone panda at the zoo. At first he's pragmatic, but by the time a crocodile slips into the mix, he's a wreck. Liberal use of internal rhyme makes Park's text sing. Phelan's sprightly ink and watercolor illustrations show Xander spinning until he's prostrate, convinced his party will balloon out of control.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2013

(3) 4-6 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers series. Siblings Amy and Dan reach a breaking point when they discover the Vespers' fatal plan (Trust). In Doom, the two face the near-impossible task of destroying a Doomsday device and shutting down the Vespers indefinitely. The final two entries in this suspenseful series are more focused and deliberately paced than previous books, which helps bring the story to a satisfying conclusion. Review covers these 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers titles: Day of Doom and Trust No One.

Reviewer: Lana Barnes

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline. A boy learns from his father how to collect "tears" ("the pearls of sap that seep out of a tree when the bark is cut...maybe they are called tears because it seems as if the tree is crying"). Three wise men take one of them as a gift to the Baby Jesus. Textured acrylic-gouache illustrations set the scene nicely in this lyrically told story.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter

(2) 4-6 Park presents a novelization of how Salva Dut, one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, escaped his war-ravaged country and returned years later to found a company called Water for Sudan, Inc. A tandem narrative follows another Sudanese eleven-year-old, Nya, in 2008, as she trudges to and from a murky pond to collect water for her family. Park's spare text is riveting.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2011

(4) 4-6 39 Clues series. In Nest, Amy and Dan learn some unpleasant truths about their family's lineage while trying to evade the Holts in South Africa (among other places). Code finds the sibs dramatically separated in China. Warning takes them to the Caribbean--and a showdown with the man in black. The series continues to spit out compulsively readable, if slight, tales of adventure. Review covers these 39 Clues titles: The Emperor's Code, The Viper's Nest, and Storm Warning.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(2) 4-6 Firefighter Jim teaches nine-year-old Maggie how to score baseball games, an interest that becomes a way of keeping faith after Jim is called to serve in Korea. When he returns, traumatized, Maggie hopes baseball can bring him back to himself. Park's simple narrative voice captures Maggie's yearnings and her widening understanding of the world in this tender, introspective tale. Websites.

Reviewer: Vicky Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2008

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Istvan Banyai. Park presents twenty-seven sijo (traditional humorous and/or ironic three-line Korean poetry) about seasons, home, and school. Her poems go beyond culture and personal sensibility and strike at common human experience. Banyai's illustrations enhance the collection with an extra element of wit and imaginative freedom; he staves off sentiment with retro-style cartoons, carefree lines, and playful interpretations of the verbal text.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2007

(3) 4-6 Initially reluctant because she is embarrassed by her Korean heritage, seventh-grader Julia warms to her 4-H-like project of raising silk worms. But when she learns that she must kill the worms to reap the silk, she faces difficult moral choices. Park undermines her engaging novel with metafictional conversations between herself and Julia that interrupt the narrative flow.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2005

(4) PS Illustrated by Diane Bigda. On each double-page spread, the text asks "What kind of animal says..." while animal sounds from several different languages (gav-gav, bo-bo, woof-woof) are provided. The reader opens the fold to discover the identity of the animal. The book is attractive to look at, but the busy design--which incorporates whimsical handlettering--often gets in the way of the information. There is no pronunciation guide.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Julie Downing. Each night Sang-hee's father lights the mountaintop fire that begins the chain of bonfires informing the king that no enemy boats have been seen. When his father is hurt, Sang-hee must take his place. Aptly capturing a young boy's point of view, this well-written story, set in nineteenth-century Korea, is accompanied by handsome if somewhat romanticized illustrations.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander