Joone by Emily Kate Moon

Emily Kate Moon always wanted to be an author/illustrator and she has now achieved that goal with her debut picture book Joone.

Joone is a story that is sure to put a smile on your face and a little sunshine in your day.   Joone, age 5,  narrates the different things about her life as she goes through a summer day.  She introduces herself, telling the reader that she lives in a yurt with her Grandpa, a retired scientist, and her pet turtle, Dr. Chin.   She likes the colors purple and orange, and ice cream sandwiches.  Everyday, she learns something new from her Grandpa and everyday, she teaches her Grandpa something new.

And Joone is a busy girl, her days are always well spent doing the simple things she like to do - swimming with Dr. Chin, sometimes helping Grandpa do repairs to the yurt, sometimes not helping Grandpa do repairs to the yurt, but playing with Dr. Chin instead.  Joone is a happy little girl who even spells her name with a smiley face:

If you are looking for a quiet summertime story to read to a child, Joone will definitely fit the bill.  When I read it to my 4 year old neighbor Lilly, she kept asking to hear it again and again.  And sometimes I could hear her whisper to herself things like "oh, I like them, too" about ice cream sandwiches, or "I have one, too" when Joone said she always wore her favorite orange dress.

Joone's story is written in simple declarative sentences, ideal for young children.  There is humor to be found, though it is subtle and there is a definite Asian sensibility throughout the story, though nothing is said regarding that.  The lovely illustrations, done by the author in gouache and pencil, are charming in their simplicity, yet at the same time, very expressive.  Grandpa playing checkers with Joone while wearing the daisy chain she taught him how to make is my particular favorite.  I made those when I was young and later wore a lot of them when my Kiddo was growing up.

While most kids don't live a simple, happy life like Joone's, this is a perfect story for young children and one that might even get a dialogue going with kids about their own day, recounting their own simple pleasures.  And it is one of those children's books that have a very positive image of an elderly adult, something I have become more and more aware of since I started reading Lindsey McDivitt's blog A is for Aging, B is for Books...

This book is recommended for readers age 3+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

Grandps's Yurt