Okchundang Candy

Gr 3-7–Much like its namesake, Okchundang Candy is a delicate, beautiful confection. This picture book feels like an elevation of what the format can show and teach. It’s closer to a short graphic memoir, homespun comic art depicting an affecting story of family, love, and loss. Creating illustrations in sketchy gray lines with splashes of colored pencil, Go details memories of her grandparents as a simple recollection. There’s plenty of appreciation for her grandfather’s kindness, his tender relationship with Go’s grandmother, his small acts of decency. Readers see nostalgia-infused memories of summers spent with grandparents, learning what love looks like. It spirals through time, through grief, loss, and even regrets as the grandparents age and diminish. Throughout it all, there is still a glimpse of the small bits of joy that appear throughout life.