To mark the publication of author Aram Kim's new book "Tokki's Trick" (Macmillan, 2026), an English picture book retelling of the classic Korean novel "The Rabbit's Tale" (Tokkijeon), the Korean Cultural Center New York will hold a story time and pop-up book workshop for children ages 6 to 8 on Saturday, Oct. 24, at 4 p.m. The free workshop reached capacity on the day registration opened, and on Nov. 5 the center will release pop-up book templates free of charge for use at home and in classrooms. The author will also give readings at bookstores around New York, beginning in Queens on Oct. 18.
A turtle sets out to find a rabbit's liver to cure the Dragon King's illness, and the rabbit uses his wits to escape the Dragon Palace. "The Rabbit's Tale," which every Korean child knows, is now an English picture book that will meet young New Yorkers. The Korean Cultural Center New York (Director Lee Jung-mi) will hold "Story Time & Pop-Up Book Workshop with Author Aram Kim" for children ages 6 to 8 on Saturday, Oct. 24, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the center at 122 E. 32nd St. in Manhattan.
The workshop is based on Kim's new picture book "Tokki's Trick" (Macmillan Publishers, 2026), a modern retelling of "The Rabbit's Tale." The children will listen to the author read the book in English, then cut and paste characters and scenes from the story and fill in speech bubbles to make their own mini pop-up books. It is a drop-off class for children only, no art or bookmaking experience is required, and the center will provide all materials. Participation is free.
Registration opened on the center's website at 10 a.m. on Oct. 7, and because of limited space, it closed within a few hours. Instead, starting Nov. 5, the center plans to make the "Tokki's Trick" pop-up book templates available to download free from its website for use at home and in classrooms.
A Child Who Won't Eat Kimchi, a Child Heading to Taekwondo: An Author Who Brings Korean Sensibility to Her Books
Aram Kim is a picture book author and illustrator who works between Korea and the United States. Her books turn distinctly Korean subjects into universal children's stories, including "No Kimchi for Me!," about a child who dislikes kimchi; "Tomorrow Is New Year's Day," about the morning of Lunar New Year; "Let's Go to Taekwondo!"; and "Cat on the Bus." They have been selected for honors such as the Junior Library Guild Gold Standard and Bank Street College Best Children's Books of the Year. She says her habit as a child of filling notebooks with stories and drawings led to the work she does today, and "The Rabbit's Tale" is her favorite Korean folktale.
Separately from this workshop, the center will also run school visit programs with the author at the United Nations International School (UNIS) and P.S. 32 in Queens, both attended by children learning Korean, on Oct. 28 and Nov. 6.
Bookstore Reading Schedule
Families who miss the workshop can attend one of the author's bookstore events. Details such as dates and locations are available on the author's website (AramKim.com/events). Kim will later appear at bookstores and book fairs in California, and at the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) annual convention in Philadelphia on Nov. 20–21, where she will take part in a discussion on the theme "stories before K-pop."