Korean Children's Favorite Stories

Korean Children's Favorite Stories is a captivating collection of Korean folktales for children which are still being told, just as they have been for generations. Some are Korean-specific, while others echo those told in other countries. Written with wit and pathos, they unveil the inevitable foibles of people everywhere and expose the human-like qualities of animals and the animal-like qualities of humans.

These Korean fables pulsate with the rhythm of life and the seasons, transporting the reader to a wonderland where ants talk, a baby rabbit outwits a tiger, a tree fathers a child, and a toad saves a whole village. 

Kim So-un was an eminent Korean storyteller and a specialist in Korean poetry and folklore. A former journalist for a major newspaper and chief editor of the Korean Children's Educational Institute, he published some two dozen books during his lifetime, including anthologies of poetry, folktales, folklore, folk songs and critical essays. Kim So-un is the author of Korean Children's Favorite Stories. 

Jeong Kyoung-Sim is a graduate of the College of Fine Arts at Seoul National University. She has illustrated five books for children and three for adults. In her work, she uses traditional colors and painting methods to express a sense of Korean aesthetics.

"The illustrator enjoyed reading Kim So-un’s stories while she was growing up, and it’s no wonder. His words are written with a light touch, and the scenes of death and destruction here are considerably less gruesome than those in your average folktale. As he writes in the collection’s introduction, these stories "reflect the serenity of the men and women nurtured by the ancient land of Korea." Asian Reporter's BookReviews