Okchundang Candy - by Jung-Soon Go (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Growing up, Jung-soon spent every moment she could at her grandparents' house. Dressing up and watching cartoons. Dyeing each other's fingernails with crushed balsam petals. Getting the whole neighborhood together to sweep their streets. Falling asleep together...just the three of them, happy. Grandfather was Grandmother's best and only friend. On every Jesa day, during the ancestral ritual, he would gently place the okchundang candy in her mouth, a big smile spreading across her face as it melted on her tongue."--

Book Synopsis

I still remember that house filled with summer...

Growing up, Jung-soon spent every moment she could at her grandparents' house. Dressing up and watching cartoons. Dyeing each other's fingernails with crushed balsam petals. Getting the whole neighborhood together to sweep their streets. Falling asleep together...just the three of them, happy.

Grandfather was Grandmother's best and only friend. On every Jesa day, during the ancestral ritual, he would gently place the okchundang candy in her mouth, a big smile spreading across her face as it melted on her tongue.

But nothing ever stays the same, and as Jung-soon got older, so did her grandparents. With breathtaking colored pencil and watercolor art, she presents an achingly beautiful graphic novel about the little joys and sharp sorrows that make up a life together as a family.

Review Quotes

"Told in spare, quiet prose sprinkled with humor... Love and family life permeate each page of this heartwarming story."

[STAR] "Delicate and raw...a meditative graphic novel that twines the joys of living and the pain of loss into one indistinguishable braid."

[STAR] "Go's finely detailed illustrations in pencil and watercolor are as sweet as her words, especially when depicting her grandparents' affection for each other... a beautifully rendered remembrance of grief and loss, and a moving meditation on the bonds of family and the power of everlasting love."

[STAR] "Takes on aging and death--topics many authors flinch from--with a rare mix of respect, tenderness, and candor... Themes of familial love and loss will pierce readers' hearts while also offering them both windows and mirrors into Korean culture. An achingly lovely work laced with profound truths on love, death, and grief."

[STAR] "This sweet, poignant tale deserves to be appreciated by all audiences, particularly adults with aging parents. Queue the (cathartic) ugly tears, though, and prepare with plenty of tissues. Heartbreakingly glorious... stupendously affecting."

About the Author

Jung-soon Go loves sharing her stories through picture books, essays, novels, and cartoons. For Okchundang Candy, she won Special Prize in the 2023 Korea Picture Book Awards.

Author residence: South Korea

Aerin Park, born and raised in South Korea, believes that language is a bridge to people's stories, culture, and history. She is passionate about integrating these elements into her work--both translation and Korean language teaching. When not working, you will find Aerin sharing Korean history with her three children, making kimchi from garden veggies, and shoveling the Minnesota snow.

Translator residence: Roseville, MN