Lim, Hope. Mommy’s Hometown. Candlewick Press, 2022. 978-1-536-21332-4. Unpaged. $17.99. Grades K-2.

Every night, a young boy’s mother tells him all about the place in Korea where she grew up. It sounds incredibly peaceful, complete with dirt roads, mountains, and a river that runs through the village. However, when the boy finally visits the village with his mother, it is nothing like she described. Instead, there are tall buildings, paved roads, and traffic. The boy is disappointed at first, but soon realizes that while some things change, other things always remain the same. 

THOUGHTS: This is a beautiful story about the unchanging bond between parents and their children. It would be a great book for introducing young students to urbanization or for completing compare and contrast activities. As an added bonus, the characters are Korean, making this an outstanding choice for multicultural collections.

Picture Book          Julie Ritter, PSLA Member

Tags: Asia; Korea (South); Family stories.