Join two Korean-American picture book writers as they discuss the many different layers of consideration, introspection, and deliberation that go into conceiving and writing picture books, and the importance of humor and diversity in children's literature.

For many young readers, being able to see themselves reflected in the books they read is a profound experience. Seeing and reading accurate representations of one's own identity and culture provide a sense of visibility and relatability. Not only are diverse representations in children’s books important for children of color, but they’re important for all children, as they offer a chance to learn realities and experiences different from their own and to appreciate that difference.

Frances Cha, the bestselling author of If I Had Your Face who has just written a humorous picture book about centuries-old dokkaebi journeying from Korea to modern New York, will be in conversation with Aram Kim, author, illustrator and designer of children's books, about writing and illustrating Korean-themed picture books for children.

During the event, picture books by Frances Cha and Aram Kim will be available for sale.
The Goblin Twins will be available on September 5, 2023. Available for pre-order.

The Korea Society
350 Madison Avenue, 24th Floor
New York, NY 10017

About the Speakers:

Frances Cha is the author of the novel If I Had Your Face, which was named one of the Best Books of the Year by Time Magazine, NPR, BBC and Esquire among other publications and is being translated into 11 languages. Born in Minnesota, she moved to Texas at age 4, Hong Kong at age 8 and South Korea at age 11. She received her MFA in fiction from Columbia University, where she received a Dean’s Fellowship. She worked as the assistant managing editor of Samsung Economic Research Institute’s business journal in Seoul, and as a travel and culture editor for CNN in Seoul and Hong Kong. She has taught media studies at Ewha Womens University and creative writing at Yonsei University. Currently, she teaches fiction workshop in the Columbia University MFA program. Her children’s book The Goblin Twins is forthcoming from Crown Books for Young Readers (Penguin Random House) in September 2023.

Aram Kim is an award-winning writer, illustrator, and designer of children’s picture books. She was born in Ohio, raised in South Korea, and now lives in New York. By day, she is an Art Director at Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group. At all other times, she writes and illustrates her own stories. Her debut picture book Cat on the Bus was called a “beautifully designed visual work” by School Library Journal and included in the Children’s Choice Reading List 2017 as well as New York Public Library’s summer reading list 2018. No Kimchi For Me!, about family, food, and intergenerational connections, has universal themes, and at the same time celebrates Korean culture. It was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection, Bank Street’s Best Children’s Books of the Year 2018, and 2018 A Baker’s Dozen: The Best Children’s Books for Family Literacy by The Pennsylvania Center for the Book. It’s the first one in the series Yoomi, Friends and Family which also includes Let’s Go to Taekwondo! and Sunday Funday in Koreatown. Aram’s most recent book, Tomorrow is New Year’s Day is about Seollal, a Korean celebration of the Lunar New Year that came out in December 2022. Aram is a recipient of the 2022 Mills Tannenbaum Award for Children’s Literacy.