Celebrating Children Through Books

Children are the weakest members of any society in the world. They are weakphysically, and they have little experience. Without support they cannot survive,nor can they escape difficult situations. They lack any deciding political power.They are easy prey to evil-doers and are easily abandoned in threatening situations.The terrible tragedy in Haiti demonstrated the way that children stand in thefront lines of disaster. Even in the midst of the horror and sadness, conniving andcalculating hyenas made children their target; news clips reported that a group ofHaitian police officers were apprehended at the border trying to engage in humantrafficking of abandoned children.In some ways, however, children are incredibly resilient. They have the powerof dreams. Resignation to failure is not within the lot of children. They alwaysbelieve in the possibility of success. They also have the power of communication.They communicate not with words and power but with curiosity and faith. Theirhearts do not draw a line of reasoning of pros and cons. They make friends easily.And above all, they have the power of pure reflection. They fret about having upseta bunny with their forceful kicking, or worry about whether a word they utteredmight have hurt a friend’s feelings. They strive to be better people, and are acutelypassionate about wanting to live in a better world.It is for this reason that reading children's books is a time for children tolearn about the strengths needed in life. They invent countless stories at home,in school, and at the playground. The stories are truly diverse; they are exciting,heartbreaking, hilarious, and scary. But the stories protect their dreams. Theyremain noble, and more than in any other form of literature their stories examinechildren's selves and the world around them with brutal honesty. The spirit of bookscomes alive in the stories of children.This volume introduces books for children. Korean society today is intenselyinterested in its children and youth. Korean parents are passionate about education,and the cultural atmosphere enveloping children today is diverse. While Koreainitially staggered behind, the last decade has seen an unprecedented boomin the publication of children's books. Picture books of refreshing and uniquevisions are coming to life, and they engage with a wide range of social issues.Many Korean writers are passionately trying to bring into print Korea's illustrioustraditional history and folk tales through children's picture and prose books.From this rich corner of Asia and through these books, Korea's children mightlearn to communicate with the rest of the world more profoundly and with moreexcitement.This special section centers on four keyword concepts: family, school, friends,and folk tales. These keywords are common to children from all over the world.The works examined here are those books that best demonstrate the present andfuture of Korean children's books. The best way to protect our weak children is togive them good books. We are delighted to display our outstanding books to thechildren of the world. Greetings, children of the world! 

By Kim Ji-eun(editorial board member)