Subtitled A Story about Household Items of the Past, this book was written to introduce today’s children to everyday household items and appliances of the past. It is interesting that this picture book does not simply provide information; instead it presents facts through a game of guessing given by the Dokkaebi, a kind of goblin that appears frequently in Korean folk tales. People used to believe that old objects once thrown away turned into Dokkaebi. One day, a Confucian scholar who only reads books, falls into a trap set by the Dokkaebi and ends up wagering his three daughters in a bet. He has three days to guess what household item the Dokkaebi used to be. It is a desperate situation because if the scholar loses the guessing game, his daughters have to marry the Dokkaebi. As the scholar and his three daughters gather to play the game, the book explains the structure of a traditional Korean house, moving from room to room, and in the process, shines the spotlight on each of the common household items and appliances found inside. The most important feature of this book is that the guessing game stimulates children’s intellectual curiosity and interest. As they read the story, examining the items and trying to guess the answer themselves, they will learn about old household goods along the way.
