The colours of home by Sally Soweol Han

Moving to a new neighbourhood is, in itself, a testing experience for many children, but moving to a new country is something else again. So when Bomi moves from Australia to Korea, there are bound to be some dramatic changes. Yet she finds comfort in seeing familiar colours in new places, and they bring her a sense of calm and comfort as she see the grey of the bark of the ancient gum tree at the end of her old street in the grey bark of the silver birch in her new park, and purple hydrangeas dance in the sun here, just as the jacarandas did at home. But no matter which country she is in, the same silver moon watches over her while she sleeps and the same yellow sun greets her as she wakes...

Once again, as she did in Tiny Wonders, Korean-Australian creator Sally Soweol Han encourages the reader to observe and appreciate the colours around them to connect them to their surroundings. Whenever we are in a new situation, we look for the familiar so we can connect to what we already know, do, understand, appreciate and value so we can put the unfamiliar into context and so linking colours of the landscape offers a simple way to ground ourselves. This is visual storytelling at its best and offers so many opportunities for the reader to see their own world through new eyes.

Given the number of children in our schools for whom Australia is a new country, this is a valuable addition to the collection to share with them as they adapt and adjust to so much that is confusing, confronting and challenging.

Themes: Colour, Migration, Korea.

Barbara Braxton