New Children's Book Celebrates Korean Heritage and Tradition

Speaker 1: 00:00 So much of American identity can be explored through heritage, particularly in the traditions that families pass down from generation to generation. For many Korean Americans, the question of identity means examining how these traditions fit into the modern way of life and what it means to truly embrace one's heritage and history. These themes are explored in a new children's book that tells the story of a 10 year old girl who learns to embrace her Korean heritage by immersing herself in her family's history and legacy. It's a story with a particular resonance right now during Asian and Pacific American heritage month, as well as a time where Asian-Americans are facing a rising tide of racism. Joining us now is Christine Peck, author of the girl and the gold dress Christine Wall. Speaker 2: 00:50 Awesome. Thank you, Jay. Thank you for having me, Speaker 1: 00:53 Christina, I've got to ask so much of this book has to do with examining the importance of family tradition and heritage. What inspired you to create a story that draws on these themes? Speaker 2: 01:05 You know, the inspiration actually came from my own family experience a couple of years ago in 2019, I took my family, my children to South Korea for the first time. And it really was a special experience because we visited the marketplace where their great grandmother had once sold humble fabrics, handbooks, our traditional Korean dresses. And so my daughter ended up getting a humble dress at that very same marketplace. The moment just felt, gosh, so amazing to be able to connect her to her history. That way I had been wanting to write a children's book with my mom, the illustrator, uh, for a long time. And that's the idea that sparked this book, Speaker 1: 01:49 As you mentioned, your mother was the illustrator on this project. Did you know from the start that you wanted to have her involved in this project? Speaker 2: 01:57 Oh, absolutely. That was the make or break thing for me, it was always going to be a book that I wrote and that my mom illustrated, she immigrated from South Korea to America in the 1970s. And she had been an art major in college, but she couldn't afford the tuition. She dropped out, she got married and immigrated to America and really put aside her art career to pursue the American dream and to raise her three kids. And so this was a way of kind of thanking her, paying her back to be able to showcase her art in this way. And I'm so, so proud of her. This has been a really emotional and special experience for both of us. Speaker 1: 02:40 And, you know, even though the audience for your book is children, it touches on some very serious subject matters, particularly in a brief depiction of a war, torn Korea. Why was it so important to invoke this more somber imagery? Speaker 2: 02:54 I did wonder whether war and that topic was appropriate for children, but it's so integral to the history of Koreans and Korean-Americans that I didn't feel like I could tell the story without that component, because it was really central to our family history and many family histories. And I think, um, you know, to be able to show the struggle, the hardship, the sacrifice that our ancestors went through and to be able to honor that that was really important for me. Speaker 1: 03:27 And how much of this story is autobiographical. Speaker 2: 03:30 I get that question often, you know, is this a true story? Is it based on a true story? And the answer is yes, somewhat. And so I would call it historical fiction. Obviously the Korean war happened. And the other things that happened in this book are the moment in the marketplace where the character Hannah goes to the marketplace to get a humble dress. And it's the same marketplace that her great-grandma once sold Humboldt fabrics that is true in our family history. The other thing that also happen are those, you know, perilous train rides, uh, when people were fleeing the war from, uh, North Korea to South Korea, you found a spot on that train, whether you crammed into a compartment or rode on the roof. And so we've heard many harrowing stories from our grandmothers, great grandmothers about what happened then. And then the other thing that is true, and that actually happened is the wrapping of the fabric around the body to transport the fabric as a way of making a living and surviving. And so that story really stood out from our grandmother. And I really wanted to include that as a key moment in the book. Speaker 1: 04:45 I'm sure when you began working on this book, it was hard to imagine it would be released at a time when we're seeing an increase in anti-Asian American rhetoric and violence. How does it feel as an author to have a work that so explicitly deals with the importance of cultural connection, uh, to come out at a time like that Speaker 2: 05:04 The timing could not be more important of course, with COVID happening. That actually was the impetus for us starting on this project, it's taken about a year to, from start to finish. Initially it was because we had the time, you know, our evenings were free. We were stuck at home. I told my mom it's now or never. And then as the Asian anti-Asian crimes started occurring and we started hearing more about this in the news, we thought, Oh my goodness. You know, there, there's a sense of urgency here. And to have this book now come out for, um, Asian Pacific American heritage month and amidst all these anti-Asian hate crimes. It's more important than ever. I firmly believe that the key to combating racism and ignorance is education. And so children and even adults who see this book and see that other cultures, people different from them are to be respected, included. And it's something beautiful to be shared. I think that creates future generations. That will feel the same way. Speaker 1: 06:08 I've been speaking with Christine Peck, author of the girl and the gold dress. Christine, thank you so much for joining us. Speaker 2: 06:15 Thank you so much for having me.