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School Library Journal review for You Are a Lion!

2012-02-23T04:26:00.003-08:00

Another great review from School Library Journal!

PreS-Gr 2-The increasing popularity of yoga has even babies practicing asanas, and this picture book is a fun way to get toddlers started. Paired spreads introduce a pose in simple non-rhyming verse, accompanied by an image of a child on a small circle of grass (think yoga mat) in the middle of white pages; the spread that follows reveals the pose in a nature setting along with the creature the pose imitates. The instructions for the poses are extremely basic and appropriate for young children; the illustrations will encourage participation and some rambunctiousness. The sweet, colorful digital illustrations are melded with block prints and pencil and include half a dozen children of various ethnicities demonstrating such poses as a lion, a butterfly, a cobra, a downward-facing dog, and a few others. The soft hues and natural settings convey the spirit of a yoga class while looking like children at play outdoors. The text reads almost like haiku and will be simple to recite during a storytime or a yoga practice. There is no discussion of yoga, no Sanskrit beyond a couple of appropriately placed "Namaste" greetings, and the activities could be used to corral the energy of a rowdy group or an individual child. This is a good choice for introducing yoga into storytime programs, even for librarians who have never practiced a pose.-Susan Oliver, Tampa-Hillsborough Public Library System, FL

Review for You Are a Lion

2012-02-16T21:42:00.000-08:00

My second author book You Are a Lion also received a lovely review from Kirkus! The book is going to be available on March 15th.

Sometimes a stretch of the imagination is good for the body, as well.

Seven simple yoga poses (lion, butterfly, dog, snake, frog, cat, mountain) and a rest pose are depicted by a rounded and multiethnic group of preschoolers. An opening scene shows six children gathered in a grassy meadow: “When the golden sun rises / Warm rays fill the garden / Children all gather / Namaste to the morning.” Each subsequent pose is shown in a two-page spread in which a different child demonstrates the pose (“Sit on your heels / Hands on our knees / Tongue out! / You are a …”). This is followed by a two-page opening in which the creature joins the child, and the world around becomes its habitat (“…LION / King of the jungle / Roaring so loud / Make the woods rumble”). Yoo’s palette is filled with warm colors, and her block-print and line drawings fill the space without overwhelming it. The generous white space in these openings, along with the friendly type, adds to the overall feeling of invitation and encouragement. This is a pleasingly uncomplicated introduction to yoga that can also simply be read as an invitation to play.

A celebration of the ways that even young children can experience the wide world through their bodies as well as their minds. (Picture book. 2-7)

Review for Tua and the Elephant

2012-02-16T21:31:00.002-08:00

Tua and the Elephant (written by R. P. Harris) received the very first review from Kirkus and it is starred review! How exciting!

"How do you hide an elephant? Inspired by a trip to an Asian elephant refuge, Harris transports young readers to the lands of curry, banana leaves and the bustling Chiang Mai Night Market. Little 9-year-old Tua, which means "peanut" in Thai, finds a young, but very large captured elephant. Their connection is instant. But this elephant is chained, used as tourist bait. Tua must face dangers including poachers and treacherous rivers as she steals away with the young elephant, pursued by two menacing mahouts, or elephant drivers. Naming her new friend Pohn Pohn, Tua escapes with her to a Buddhist temple, where she learns of an elephant preserve in the mountains. Will Tua be successful in getting Pohn Pohn into the preserve? For a book aimed at middle graders, kudos on three fronts: providing a child's-eye view of Thailand with foreign words to be decoded in context, creating a strong connection between the elephant and the girl and using a simple vocabulary to introduce the complex issue of poaching. Yoo's multiple illustrations, done in charcoal and linoleum block prints, catapult the story even higher. Foreign yet familiar, the action is often humorous and reinforces the sweet bond between pachyderm and "peanut." A rousing adventure that introduces the issue of elephant trafficking in a gentle and appropriate way" - Kirkus Reviews Starred Review

A fun exhibition.

2012-01-25T14:10:00.001-08:00

I am very happy to be included in this fun exhibition called IN THE STUDIO at St. John's University. In this exhibition, eight children's book artists will showcase each of their work process and some of the final art work with published books. I collected some of my sketches, dummy book, block print proof, and final art from my book Only a Witch Can Fly written by Alison McGhee. Please visit the show if you are around.

Mom&I magazine interview

2012-01-13T11:51:00.000-08:00

I had this lovely interview with Mom&I magazine (January issue) awhile ago. Mom&I is a Korean magazine which is published in U.S. for Korean American. I met Sally, the editor of the magazine, and we talked over a pot of coffee at a cafe. She was a wonderful person to talk to and I enjoyed lots of coffee. Many thanks to Sally!

지난 겨울 인터뷰했던 Mom&I 1월호가 나왔습니다. Mom&I 는 미국에 사시는 교포분들을 위한 잡지입니다. 편안하게 인터뷰 진행해주시고 기사도 너무나 잘 써주신 샐리씨 감사드립니다~!

New Year, New Book!

2012-01-08T11:19:00.001-08:00

I received the best Christmas gift from Chronicle Books last year. Tua and the Elephant is finally ready to be out this spring! This is my very first chapter book that I illustrated. The cover art is printed on a matt type paper which is my favorite! And the interior illustration colors turned out very nicely.

Big thanks to Julie and Eloise !!!

지난 여름,겨울 그림작업했던 책이 드디어 2012년 4월 출판됩니다. 역시 Chronicle 출판사의 디자인 감각은 참...작가에게 그림작업후 보람을 느끼게 합니다. 작업 열심히 해서 보냈는데 디자인이 엉망이면 다리에 힘이 쫙 풀리거든요. 이번 책은 처음으로 두가지 색 분판인쇄 작업을 했는데 전부터 너무나 해보고 싶었던 꿈의 프로젝트였습니다. 또 하고 싶어요~ 또 시켜주세요~

에디터 쥴리와 디자이너 엘로이즈에게 많은 감사를 드립니다!

Tua and the Elephant

2011-12-11T23:19:00.000-08:00

This is my first chapter book that I worked for the cover and interior illustrations. I did full color cover art and two color illustrations for the interior art. Two color separation process was very confusing at first but as I figured some idea, it was so much fun to work.

The book is going to be published soon next year.

And here is already some nice preview from Betsy Bird's blog.

Thanks for the lovely preview!

The cover confused me on this next one for a second there. Tua and the Elephant is written by R.P. Harris but it’s illustrated by the remarkable Taeeun Yoo. Naturally when I saw that Yoo was involved (if you’ve seen her Only a Witch Can Fly then you know what she’s capable of) I assumed that we were talking about a picture book here. Nope. With 204 pages and a recommended reading age of 8 to 12 this is a chapter book with illustrations. In it Tua (“Peanut” in Thai) wants a sibling. When she makes the acquaintance of an abused elephant she decides to rescue it. Consider this a road trip novel with elephant. Might make a nice companion to Michael Morpurgo’s An Elephant in the Garden.

Halloween with witch!

2011-10-24T12:35:00.000-07:00

as only a witch can fly...:-)

Polar bear mug

2011-10-18T21:10:00.000-07:00

Polar bear mug for coffee in cold days...

You Are a Lion!

2011-10-04T09:34:00.000-07:00

My second book as author You Are a Lion is going to be published soon next year!

It is already available for pre order here!

Polar bear tote bag

2011-10-01T21:45:00.000-07:00

Polar bear tote bag is available at my etsy shop now!

red balloon

2011-08-01T14:46:00.000-07:00

Yay for So Many Days!

2010-12-08T11:30:00.000-08:00

Great news! BOOKPAGE has selected So Many Days as one of their Best Books of 2010.

Thanks to Bookpage!

Society of Illustrators Original Art 2010

2010-10-22T11:56:00.000-07:00

Last night I went to Society of Illustrators Original Art Exhibition opening reception. This year was 30th exhibition and it was crowded with all the talented artists and publish people as every year. One of my piece from So Many Days(written by Alison McGhee) was in the show.

This year Renata Liwska received the Gold medal with her beautiful The Quiet Book. Silver medal were awarded to Carson Ellis for her book Dillweed's Revenge, and Dan Santat also received Silver medal for his book Oh No!.

My dear friend Hyewon Yum was the winner of the Founder's Award for her beautiful book There Are No Scary Wolves.

Congratulations to all winners!

Swing rider...

2010-08-12T15:03:00.001-07:00

Life is full of surprises...

2010-06-25T12:05:00.000-07:00

So Many Days mug

2010-06-09T15:20:00.000-07:00

Recently I ordered 10 pieces of mug with my image from So Many Days. I was very excited to see how the image looks on mug! I would like to try more professionally with a bit better quality of print.

Anyone knows a good place to try?

Super duper Japanese publisher!

2010-05-22T08:12:00.000-07:00

The Sailor Publishing company (Japanese publisher who published the Little Red Fish in Japanese edition) sent me this wonderful gift - Little Red Fish Japanese edition copies, OBI papers, catalogs, and magazine that feature the Little Red Fish. I love these all!!

OBI is a narrow paper on the cover for a brief introduction of the book. How neat!

And in this magazine, the Little Red Fish has been chosen as the third place of the translated picture books of 2009.

This special boxful of gift totally made my day!

I deeply appreciate to the Sailor Publishing company for all their beautiful job for the Little Red Fish and the Umbrella Queen. They are very thoughtful and kind people!

Thanks so much!

sketch book

2010-05-19T12:44:00.000-07:00

at Austin airport...

sketches

2010-05-05T19:57:00.000-07:00

Injoo's studio...

Ezra Jack Keats award night.

2010-04-29T18:27:00.000-07:00

Last night Ezra Jack Keats award ceremony was hold at New York Public Library.

It was so wonderful to have all my lovely friends. They came all the way from Atlanta, Pennsylvania, Brooklyn, Jersey city and Lexington to celebrate for me.

I didn't get to have chance to take photo with my agents and art directors but thank you so much everyone to come and make my day so special~!

The little red fish Japanese edition~!

2010-04-14T08:42:00.001-07:00

The little red fish is available in Japanese now. And the cover looks so pretty! Original little red fish cover is red cloth with no dust jacket but in this Japanese edition, they used textured red paper with same textured paper dust jacket. I love the little window in the middle of the dust jacket.

And they used the cover of my book as their catalog cover!

Thanks for the beautiful job to the Japanese publisher. (I am dying to know this publishers name but I can not read Japanese.)

Yay for Only a Witch Can Fly!

2010-04-03T11:12:00.000-07:00

This is a little bit old news but I am still thrilled to post it here that Only a Witch Can Fly (written by Alison McGhee) is the winner of this year's Ezra Jack Keats Award!

Also Tonya Hegamin won as an author for her book Most Loved in All the World.

Thanks so much to Ezra Jack Keats committee!

Seven Impossible Before Breakfast interview

2010-02-07T13:50:00.000-08:00

I had a fun interview with Seven Impossible Before Breakfast last year November.

I forgot to post it here and it's a bit late but for anyone who is interested, you can still read it here.

Also SO MANY DAYS made it on the Spring 2010 Kid's Indie Next List!

This is inspired recommendations for kids from Indie Booksellers.

It's very exciting~

print from SO MANY DAYS

2010-01-26T20:59:00.000-08:00

Large limited edition digital print of image from SO MANY DAYS is now available at my printshop. This image is one of my favorite scene in the book~!

original print

2010-01-23T07:15:00.000-08:00

Original linoleum print of Polar Bear Sleeping available at my print shop. Limited edition of five and only three pieces left now.

Polar bear sleeping

2010-01-17T21:11:00.001-08:00

Polar bear sleeping print is now available at my print shop .

BookPage interview

2010-01-08T00:10:00.000-08:00

I had a fun illustration interview with BookPage last month and it is featured in their January print edition. It was such a fun idea of interview with drawings. Thanks BookPage !

You can go and check here .

SO MANY DAYS release!

2010-01-06T14:36:00.000-08:00

My new book SO MANY DAYS written by Alison McGhee is just released! This book is published by Atheneum Books. Huge thanks to Caitlyn Dlouhy and Ann Bobco. It was such a special work together!

Here is what Publishers Weekly said...

Yoo and McGhee (who recently collaborated on Only a Witch Can Fly) reunite, as meditative linocuts ground abstract poetry. A repeated refrain (“So many doors in all your days,/ so much to wonder about./ Who will you be and where will you go?/ And how will you know?”) addresses readers directly, as McGhee foresees what lies ahead and underlines the gifts and strengths the child already has. “You are a star trailing fire at night./ You are a bird urgent for flight./ You are braver than you know.” The words offer encouragement, but from on high: the speaker is an adult, powerful and all-knowing. Yoo counters with images of a girl in a raincoat and boots and her dog, who run, sail, fly, and tumble from one landscape into the next. To accompany the line “You are hope that wants to take wing,” the girl blows a handful of leaves into the air, which, as they rise, become a flock of birds and fly away. It’s these earnest depictions of small miracles that emphasize the magic and adventure that life offers. All ages. (Jan.)

Hokkaido Japan trip

2009-11-27T01:09:00.000-08:00

It was such a wonderful short trip to Japan Hokkaido. I was a bit disappointed with lack of snow though my parents were happy with pretty warm weather. I enjoyed slow walk, quiet street, pine trees, and enormous sea food. oh! And I tasted real Sapporo bear. :-)

Seven Impossible Things...

2009-11-10T22:33:00.000-08:00

I had an awsome interview with Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast awhile ago. And it is posted now here. Thanks so much Jules!

NYTims Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2009

2009-11-07T19:25:00.000-08:00

Yay~!!!! Only a Witch Can Fly has been selected as the NYTimes Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2009!!!

I am so thrilled!!!

Thank you!

2009-10-31T22:00:00.000-07:00

It was very fun book signing at Books of Wonder today.

There were wonderful authors include Neil Numbereman, Iza Trapani, Scott Beck, Emily Arnold McCully, Michael Garland. Thank you to everyone who came by!

Happy halloween!!

2009-10-30T22:30:00.000-07:00

Halloween book party

2009-10-28T22:10:00.001-07:00

I will be signing Only A Witch Can Fly at Book Cove on October 30th Friday at 7pm.

The Book Cove is located at

22 Charles Colman Blud. Pawling, New York 12564

Also I will be in book signing at the Books of Wonder on October 31th Saturday 12pm ~ 2pm.

Books of Wonder is located at

18 West 18th Street New York, NY 10011

Please stop by for fun Halloween book party~

Soft Yellow Blanket

2009-10-25T19:03:00.000-07:00

I did an illustration for the Babybug magazine Nov/Dec 09 issue awhile ago and I just received my copies.

2009-10-25T18:58:00.000-07:00

One of my original art piece from Only A Witch Can Fly is exhibited at Society of Illustrators Original Art 2009. The opening reception was last Thursday evening.

As every year so many people from children's book publishing field came to celebrate. I was very happy to be part of it. This year Kadir Nelson received Gold medal for his book Coretta Scott and Brian Floca's Moonshot and Kevin Kawke's Chicken Cheeks received Silver medal. Founder's Award went to Lincoln Agnew's beautiful book Harry and Horsie. Congratulations!

The show will be up till November 25th.

Only A Witch Can Fly on NYTimes book review!

2009-10-11T20:34:00.000-07:00

Only a Witch Can Fly got a lovely review from NYTimes today. And it is my very first NYTimes book review~!

Only A Witch Can Fly release today!

2009-08-04T07:15:00.000-07:00

Only A Witch Can Fly(written by Alison McGhee) release today! Please check out nearest local or online book store.

Praise for Only a Witch Can Fly:

“This sophisticated picture book is rich with imagination… More personal, quiet, and transcendent than most Halloween books, this is not a call to witchcraft, but rather to following one’s heart.”—Booklist

“Like its protagonist, this book soars.”—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

lunch with Na Eun family

2009-07-22T19:07:00.000-07:00

and flower from Na Eun...

stove

2009-07-08T13:45:00.000-07:00

my favorite stove in the world.

yay~ Kirkus Starred review~!

2009-07-06T20:54:00.000-07:00

Here is what Kirkus said about Only A Witch Can Fly and it is star review!

"If you were a young witch, who had not yet flown, / and the dark night sky held a round yellow moon..." Well, you'd want to fly, wouldn't you? McGhee's gently rhyming direct address coaxes out of readers a yearning they may never have known existed: to "[h]old tight to your broom / and float past the stars, / and turn to the heavens and soar." Yoo's gorgeous, muscular woodcuts, colored in subdued greens, browns and oranges with thick, night-black lines, tell the story of one young witch who, unable to sleep, takes herself outside with the support of her Cat and a brown velvet Bat-and with her little brother as silent witness-and, after a flop in the pumpkins, rises on her broom at last. Like its protagonist, this book soars. (Picture book. 3-7)

good news~

2009-05-26T22:13:00.000-07:00

The Umbrella Queen was named a Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year.

cricket piece

2009-05-07T14:16:00.000-07:00

I worked on this short story illustration for Cricket Magazine a while ago. It is about Wang Chao-Chun a popular heroine of Chinese. Her story appears in various versions. This story was retold by Phillis Gershator.

interview with Grimchek SangSang

2009-05-03T22:08:00.000-07:00

I had an interview with a Korean picture book magazine last month and I just received a copy from the editor. Many thanks to Soojung Kim the editor of Grimcheck SangSang. It was great to have coffee with her.

new image

2009-04-21T14:43:00.000-07:00

I just finished a short story illustrations for Spider Magazine. Above is one of the color study sketch and final image. This story is placed Asakusa in Tokyo and actually I visited Asakusa temple two years ago. I had a lot fun working on this with some of my photo references.

tree and cloud

2009-04-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

balloon girl

2009-04-01T19:12:00.000-07:00

Umbrella Queen Japanese edition

2009-03-11T14:32:00.000-07:00

I just received two copies of the Umbrella Queen Japanese edition! I was having foggy day but this package was quite great surprise. Thanks to my editor Steve for nice little note along with books.

Ladybug Magazine march issue

2009-03-01T20:53:00.001-08:00

I worked on the cover and interior image for Ladybug magazine march '09 issue several months ago and it just published! It's about kids yoga with garden animals.

exciting news!

2009-01-27T13:35:00.000-08:00

My beloved friend Shadra Strickland just won Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent! I am so thrilled and happy for her. Congratulations Shadra! Check out her beautiful book BIRD.

2008-12-11T09:42:00.000-08:00

The weather is so dark today. I feel like it's a perfect day to stay in my cozy room with tea.

I hope I can get some work done today.

I opened my art printshop at Etsy. Please visit here~!

Only A Witch Can Fly is coming...

2008-12-10T16:45:00.001-08:00

I just got a F&G of Only a Witch Can Fly~!

I looked through the color proofs with my art director yesterday and everything seems really coming along well.

I am so excited with this book!

The book will be published next year spring or summer.

Thanks so much to Rich for the beautiful design job.

Time 10 best !

2008-12-08T18:21:00.000-08:00

Time Magazine just announced their ten best children's book for the year and The Umbrella Queen is on the list! yay~!

Check it here!

2008-12-06T12:17:00.000-08:00

Beginning of this year I worked on the Meet the Austins Quintet cover art. And I just found out from my art director that the Austin Family Chronicles won first place for Children's Trade Cover Series at the New York Book Show. yay~!

welcome!

2008-12-06T09:52:00.000-08:00

This is my news, interest blog.

It's been a long time I left my blog space blank.

And finally I start my news posting. yay~!