Multiplication tables are difficult
Mr. Gu Gu Gu
7×3=21, Rocket 7 launch 3, 2, 1
7×6=42, 7 and 6 are close friends
7×9=63, my friend Yuna San
The Story of Crumbs
Author's Note

“Multiplication tables are hard, and friends are hard too!”

In the second semester of the second grade of elementary school, children encounter 'multiplication tables'.
Unlike addition and subtraction, which can be counted on fingers, multiplication tables must be memorized.
San-i, the main character of 『Mr. Gu Gu Gu』, cannot remember the multiplication table at all.
When Yuna explains the principle, the number 2 appears as a swan floating on water, and when she memorizes the 3rd level, the game 369 comes to mind.
My mother wonders why my name is Yeonsan and I can't remember the multiplication tables.
For San-i, multiplication tables are not just a math unit.
This is the moment when you realize the difference between yourself and your friends.
While the other kids in his class are carrying their school bags and going home, San-i has to sit at his desk and memorize the multiplication tables.
The time spent alone in the classroom memorizing multiplication tables is just too long for San-i.

The pigeon 'Mr. Gu' who appeared in front of such a mountain is nothing less than a savior.
It's amazing that pigeons can speak human language, but San-i is even more amazed that they can perfectly learn the multiplication table.
Moreover, he boasts of a secret method that makes it easy to memorize, so San-i can't help but be captivated! He offers bread as tuition, but his audacity to demand a house and rice is also unusual.
When young readers hear Mr. Koo's absurd but strangely persuasive multiplication table secret, they might at first think it's ridiculous, like San-i.
But before you know it, you'll find yourself giggling and following along.
Those spells that stick in your mouth even as you tilt your head! Who knew the multiplication table could be this fun?

New friends made by Gugudan

Actually, there is something else that upsets San-i.
Yuna, who has been with me since first grade, seems to be drifting apart these days.
Yuna is good at memorizing multiplication tables.
When San-i stays in the classroom, Yuna goes home with Subin, who is good at memorizing multiplication tables like her.
San-i feels as if Gugudan is blocking the relationship between him and Yuna.
The reason why San-E wants to be good at multiplication tables is because he wants to escape the frustration of being the only one who can't do it, and he wants to shake off the shame of falling behind his friends.
And more than anything, I want to spend time with Yuna like we used to.
That sadness stabs a corner of San-i's heart.

Besides San, there is one more child who stays in the classroom every day.
It's Itima.
Tima is the tallest of the second graders.
Even boys can't move in front of Tima.
Perhaps because he seemed blunt, San-i had never had a conversation with Tima.
After school, San-i and Tima recite the multiplication tables together.
“Sala sala salaku salari sala…….” Whenever Tima mutters an unknown spell while reciting the multiplication table, San-i becomes curious.
What does that mean? And the incident where Tima, who seemed indifferent, stopped the kids teasing San-i on his behalf became an opportunity for San-i to become even more curious about Tima.
San-i, who musters up the courage to talk to Tima, learns that Tima's father is Singaporean and even the origin of Tima's name.

And one more, no, one more.
We can't forget Mr. Koo, whom San-i meets every day.
The other pigeons find Mr. Gu strange, as he has so much to learn and so much to know.
So Mr. Gu has no friends to hang out with.
At first, I thought he was a show-off, but he kept walking around alone, and he looked lonely and sad, so I started to feel sorry for him.
Mr. Koo says that teaching San-i the multiplication table is fun.
Mr. Koo is also a precious friend I met thanks to the multiplication table.

Author Park Na-hyun captured the hearts of children with a sensitivity that is unusual for a new author.
The moment when you were anxious that your best friend would become closer to another friend, the moment when you felt sad because you felt like you were the only one left behind, the moment when you mustered up the courage to talk to a friend you were curious about, and the moment when you felt unnecessarily concerned about a friend who was alone.

Artist Sim Bo-young captured these moments of San-i's life in lively and witty drawings.
Readers will want to look at each of San-i's expressions and say, "You too? I've been there too!"
These feelings of San-i's will be familiar to any child who has ever struggled with friendships.

I can do it too!

San-i becomes completely absorbed in Mr. Gu's secret method and studies hard.
Then, he suddenly realizes that Tima is memorizing the multiplication tables through drawings.
Mom told them to memorize it through song, Yuna told them to memorize it through principle, and the teacher told them to memorize it through repetition.
Everyone is different! So, wouldn't San-i find his own way?

“I was proud.
“I also developed my own way of memorizing the multiplication tables.”
(Page 91)

『Mr. Gu Gu Gu』 is said.
There must actually be a way to memorize multiplication tables, make friends, jump rope, and even apologize.
It's okay if your speed and method are different from others.
As readers cheer for San-E, they will also come to realize this.
That it's okay to be awkward and upset about something.
This heartwarming message will naturally permeate the hearts of young readers, filled with laughter and empathy.