New Friends

7/7/2020

Danbi Leads the School Parade by Anna Kim

Danbi means "sweet rain" in Korean

Danbi’s off for her first day of Kindergarten. A momentous occasion. For this little charmer, the day is even more significant. It's her first day of school in America.
New day. New school. New country.

Boom. Boom. Boom. She approaches this venture into the unknown with her heart wildly thumping.

For a girl from Korea, everything is strange and puzzling. A blonde teacher with very pale skin, and a cluster of children, many who do not look like her, stare in wonder at the newcomer. Things are off to a difficult start.

Everything is foreign. New language. Baffling writing system. Dancing is strange. Games don't follow any rules that she knows. Saddest of all, she is without a friend.

When it's time for lunch, the dynamics shift. There's something about food that breaks down barriers. Her classmates are fascinated with her chopsticks. She is intrigued by juice boxes with accompanying straws. Tapping out a rhythm with various eating implements, the lunch table becomes a rhythmical fest. The children take their music out of the room and throughout the school. Making music. Making friends. Danbi Leads the School Parade. Now the booming is no longer the sound of anxiety. It becomes part of a jubilant celebration.

She makes a friend. Danbi shares a treat with a girl sporting blonde pigtails and teaches her how to use chop sticks. In return, her new friend teaches Danbi how to write her name with the mysterious rounded letters.

The opening end papers and title page set the stage as Danbi bids farewell to her beloved grandmother and little dog, then takes flight across the ocean to a home in the United States. Closing end papers bring the story full circle, as she plays with a new friend and puppy dog in her new neighborhood.

Kim's soft pastel art bursts across each page with joy and tenderness. Expressive faces with proportionately large heads capture apprehension, sadness, and eventually exuberance as Danbi progresses through her first day of school.

Author’s Note recounts her first day of school in America. " I remember standing in front of the whole class, everyone staring at me, not understanding a word from the teacher." She pays tribute to one special classmate who was kind and gentle, with an unforgettable smile. Her hope is that children who read this book will want someone like Danbi for a friend.