Korean - Fun Reads

Subtitled "A Story about Household Items of the Past," Guess What I Used To Be was written to introduce today’s children to everyday household items and appliances of the past. It is interesting that this picture book does not simply provide information; instead it presents facts through a game of guessing given by the Dokkaebi, a kind of goblin that appears frequently in Korean folk tales. People used to believe that old objects once thrown away turned into Dokkaebi.

A young boy falls into the privy and his mother explains to him that he needs to appease the toilet god. They make "poo cakes" and sing to her and all ends well.

As the subtitle "Stories of Korean Ghosts Hidden in Classics" says, the author introduces the stories of Korean ghosts and the underworld that have been passed down through generations of grandmothers. Even so, it is true that the author, Lee Hyun, has never seen a ghost or the underworld, but this is where his imagination shines brightest. Take a look at the "Travel Guide of the Underworld." Make-believe categories like "famous places in the underworld," "celebrities of the underworld," and "special products of the underworld" are introduced with humor. -- List, books from Korea, vol.10, winter 2010

A servant rescues his young master by destroying ghosts from stories.