- Overview
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This original work of children's fiction is set against Udo, a small island near the main island of Jeju-do, and tells of the importance and meaning of the culture of the haenyeo.
- Book Intro
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Asol is staying with her grandmother at her house on Udo, while her mother is away on a business trip to Vietnam. Due to her past of having been an outcast in school among her urban peers, Asol has trouble fitting in with her classmates in her new school on Udo. One day, Asol goes to the beach to find her grandmother and stumbles upon a dolhareubang statue, near where she discovers a lucky bag said to belong to Grandma Yeongdeung, the protector of Jeju Island. Grandma Yeongdeung asks for the bag back, but Asol will return it only if the Grandma Spirit agrees to grant her grandmother's wish. What exactly is her grandmother's wish? Will Grandma Yeongdeung grant the wish?
This book crosses over effortlessly between reality and fantasy, all the while describing in desperate detail the sacrificial lives of the women haenyeo divers who risked their lives to dive in the sea. The book's message is of hope, that the Jeju haenyeo culture will never cease. This culture, which values community and coexistence with nature, could teach an important lesson for us in contemporary society where the spirit of sacrifice and compassion seem to have long disappeared. Hopefully, this book will encourage more readers to reflect on the treasured haenyeo culture.
- About the Author
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Yoo Soon-hee
(English) Born in Seoul, Yoo majored in creative writing at the Seoul Institute of the Arts. In 2006, her story Soonhee’s house was selected in the MBC Children’s Story Awards, and she also received the Blue Literature Award in 2010 for Rules for winning eraser games. Yoo is the happiest when she is writing, talking with her twin girls, and meeting with her readers at lectures. Her stories such as Rules for winning eraser games and Space hotel have been included in grade school textbooks. She has written other books such as The strange elevator, Jimin says she didn’t do it! and Who is the real Snow White, etc.
(English2) Yoo was born in Seoul and studied creative writing at Seoul Institute of the Arts. She received the 2006 MBC Children's Story grand prize for Sunhee's House and for her work The Rules for Eraser Game, she was honored with the 2010 Pureun Literary Award. Her works include The Day I Cut Off My Smartphone, Ahn Jung-geun: The Star of Peace in Harbin, and The 13th Princess.
Bang Hyeon-Il
Bang studied painting at Hongik University and is currently working as an illustrator. Bang's illustrations can be found in The Stories I Want to Tell the Moon, I'm Off to the Stars, My Brother Is Looking Suspicious, World History as Seen Through Amusement Parks, and The Electric Pole Is All Alone.
