★2021 Newbery Honor Winner★
The first author to win both the Newbery Medal for fiction and nonfiction,
Kristinita Sunthonbat's work is revealed for the first time in Korea!

The children's book "The Children Who Walk in the Dark" by Christina Suntonbat, the first author in the 100-year history of the Newbery Medal to win both the fiction and non-fiction categories in the same year, has been published by Book Reading Bear.
Suntonbat has demonstrated his talent as a storyteller by winning the Newbery Honor, the world's first and oldest children's literature award, for "The Children Who Walk in the Dark," as well as the title of best children's book of the year selected by the Jane Adams Peace Society, the Texas Literature Institute, the Washington Post, and the School Library Journal.
"Children Who Walk in the Dark" is the author's first work to be introduced in Korea. It is an exciting adventure story about children who stand on the extremes of darkness and light, fugitives and pursuers, poverty and wealth, and a serious rebellion that raises questions about the absurdity and inequality of the world.


Walking in the pitch-black darkness,
Dispelling the darkness of the world with the light within
A dazzling rebellion of children!

There are children who live with the stigma of being a criminal from the moment they are born.
They are nine-year-olds 'Pong' and 'Somkit'.
The two are forced to remain in Namwon Prison until they turn thirteen because their mother is a criminal.
Even though those mothers passed away giving birth to two children a long time ago.
Unlike the two children who live in Chatana's 'shadow', there is also 'Nok', a girl who lives in Chatana's 'light' to the fullest as the perfect daughter of the warden of Namwon Prison.


All the lights in Chatana, the city of light where three children were born and raised, are created by the hands of one person, the 'Governor'.
The governor, who brought peace and order to the city that was burned down by a great fire, is like a god to the citizens of Chatana.
Fong dreams of one day leaving prison and wandering the rainbow city created by the Governor, but when his hopes are dashed, he impulsively decides to escape.
And he left his best friend, Somkit, alone in prison.
But Pong soon realizes that the outside world is just as absurd and unequal as the prison.
The best light belongs to those who can afford it.

Meanwhile, the family is eager to track down Pong in order to restore the honor of their family that was tarnished by his escape from prison.
But as he searches for Pong and wanders through every nook and cranny of Chatana, he begins to question the Governor's golden words, which he had taken as his creed.
Just as Pong decides to defy fate after hearing the Governor's words, "Those born in darkness will surely return," Nok also decides to reflect on his own identity, which has been lived in the light.
Suntonbat said that he decided to become a writer after reading Victor Hugo's "Les Misérables" as a child, and that he was inspired to write this work by "Les Misérables."
"Children Who Walk in the Darkness" vividly depicts the struggles of children born with the label of darkness to dispel the darkness that surrounds them and the darkness of the world.
While continuing the theme of 『Les Misérables』, which explores the difference between law and justice, it completes its own character and story by assuming that the one who opens the door to a new world is a child, not an adult.


“You can’t escape the darkness.
Darkness is everywhere.
“The only way to see through the darkness is to shine a light.” - From the text

Children wandering in the darkness without any real protection.
These children probably don't only exist in fantasy worlds.
"Children Who Walk in the Dark" encourages young readers to think about how to illuminate the world with their own light.


Not only for children but also for adults
A modern-day Les Misérables that raises countless questions

In "Children Who Walk in the Dark," three children wander in search of their own light in the reality they face, and adults walk alongside them.
Pong, Somkit, and Nok each meet a fateful 'adult' at a crossroads where they must make important choices.
Pong meets a wise old monk, 'Master Cham', in a temple where he hides to fill his hungry stomach, and Somkit, after being released from prison and living on the streets, catches the eye of 'Ampai', who is like a godmother to the poor.
Meanwhile, he goes to find his role model, the Governor, to inform the citizens of the secret protest plan of the melted Chatana.


These adults, of all ages and genders, awaken the light that lies deep within children's hearts in their own ways.
A true master who has the ability to bestow blessings on people does not bestow blessings that can turn lives upside down, like getting rich overnight.
He prays for the orphans to live with 'clear and clear thoughts' and 'finding wonder in everything they look at', and for years he tells Fong, who has doubts about himself, that he 'has a good heart'.
Rather than intervening directly in the lives of children, it is about stepping back and offering empowering blessings so that they can trust in their own abilities.
Perhaps that is why Amphai, one of the orphans who truly received the blessings of the Master, does not pay attention to the Governor's adage that 'the light shines only on those who deserve it' and, as an adult who always stands on the side of the weak, moves forward 'with unwavering courage'.
The Governor also becomes a 'negative example' who shakes the Green's beliefs with his ruthlessness.


Published in Korea in this meaningful year, the 100th anniversary of Children's Day, "Children Who Walk in the Darkness" is an excellent work for children and adults to enjoy together.
Just as the first clause of the Children's Declaration was "Don't look down on children, but look up to them," this work features adults who, with the same perspective as children, look at the path they will take and support them.
What children expect from adults will not be much different now than it was 100 years ago.
The story of three children determined to change the world they belong to and the adults surrounding them also makes adults who read the book with the children think a lot.


The Newbery Medal, the world's first and best children's literature award
Christina Suntonbat, the first author to win both fiction and non-fiction awards

The Newbery Medal is the world's first and oldest children's literature award. Since 1922, the American Library Association (ALA) has awarded it annually to the most outstanding children's book published in the United States.
With a history spanning over 100 years, it has produced numerous award-winning works and award-winning authors.
There are quite a few authors who are widely read in our country, including Beverly Cleary, Patricia McLachlan, Lois Lowry, and Louis Sachar.
While it's not uncommon for a writer to win multiple Newbery Medals, like Lois Lowry, it's unprecedented for one writer to win multiple awards in one year.
But something unusual happened in 2021.
Christina Sunthonbat won the Newbery Honor for both this book, "The Boys Who Walk in the Dark," and her nonfiction book, "All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team," which tells the true story of the 2018 rescue of twelve Thai boys and their coach from a flooded cave.


It is interesting that he is the first author to win the Newbery Honor in two categories in the same year, but it is even more noteworthy that both works are set in Thailand.
There are quite a few works set in Asia, but among them, works set in Thailand are rare.
The author, who spent part of his childhood in Thailand, has incorporated all the elements of Thai culture he cherishes into this book, and has himself stated that 'Children Who Walk in the Dark' is like a love letter to Thailand.
Just as this author has made children who live in the shadows of the world the main characters of his works, he has also portrayed previously under-recognized cultural spheres in an attractive way, and we are quite excited to see what kind of works he will present in the future.


Awards

2021 Newbery Honor Winners
2021 Jane Adams Peace Society Children's Book Award Winner
Winner of the 2020 Texas Literature Institute Best Book Award
The Washington Post's Best Children's Books of 2020
2020 School Library Journal Best Children's Books of the Year
2020 National Public Radio (NPR) Children's Readers' Choice
2020 Austin Mayor's Book Club Selections