Description "No! I don't want to! I'll do it myself! Mom just doesn't understand!" Is there a mother out there who hasn't heard these words while raising a child? What exactly don't they like? Why won't they do it? What do they think they can do? To a parent's eyes, it often just looks like stubborn complaining. That sweet, angelic child who was once so precious you couldn't bear to let them out of your sight suddenly starts talking back like a rebellious teenager, testing your patience at every turn. That age is seven — often called the "terrible sevens." But is that really fair? ■ A Gift of Pure Self-Confidence from a Seven-Year-Old Daughter This book began with the author's second daughter. Having grown up surrounded by picture books from a very young age, she came across the word "real" (or "true") in one of her books and fell in love with it. From then on, she attached the word "real" to everything, often making people laugh. For example, someone might ask, "Did you eat breakfast?" and she would answer, "I ate something, but not a real breakfast yet." To her, a "real breakfast" meant a proper meal with soup, grilled fish, kimchi, and seaweed. When upset with her family, she'd declare, "I don't think we're a real family." One day, while flipping through a notebook filled with her daughter's offhand remarks, the author had an idea: What would happen if you combined this beloved word "real" with the self-important age of seven? A flood of amusing ideas followed. She then asked other seven-year-olds around her what a "real seven-year-old" was like. The answers were vivid and delightful: "The age you go fishing with your dad," "The age you know grown-ups make mistakes too," "The age you don't wear your shoes on the wrong feet," "The age you don't rinse the spice off your kimchi." And so, A Real Seven-Year-Old was born. There are countless seven-year-olds in this world, as many as stars in the sky or flowers in a field. But real seven-year-olds? Not so many. ■ Is It Okay to Be This Cool at Seven? A Picture Book That Makes Both Kids and Parents Smile We often casually call it the "terrible sevens," but that phrase really reflects the bewilderment and wonder adults feel watching a child begin to fully sense, express, and assert their own identity. And the ultimate expression of that wonder is A Real Seven-Year-Old. This is a child bursting with self-confidence, who believes that after seven whole years on this earth, they should be able to handle things on their own — without doubt or cowardice. Losing a front tooth isn't embarrassing; it's simply what happens when you're seven. Not running away from a shot is true courage. And when you don't get the gift you wanted, understanding that grown-ups make mistakes too — that's what it means to be a real seven-year-old. Page by page, readers can't help but smile and marvel: could seven really be such an amazing age? All that stubbornness and back-talk might actually be a child's earnest struggle to grow into their own independent person. What is a real breakfast? What should a real family look like? This is a treasure of a book, born from a seven-year-old's search for the true meaning of the word "real" — and perhaps a reminder that no matter our age, we're all striving to become our truest selves. Reading it with your child is bound to fill the room with laughter and warmth. "This is a book that children visiting the library especially love. Every line gets such an enthusiastic, whole-body reaction that I find myself reading it again and again." — Jeong Bong-nam, Director, Suncheon Miracle Library ■ Shout It Out — "Real!" — and Watch Your Confidence Soar! Published in 2011, A Real Seven-Year-Old continues to be beloved by children and adults alike. As author Heo Eun-mi has said, the book was born from careful observation of and deep empathy with children's words and actions. Before she was a writer, she was a mother who loved her child — and that love shines through in every page, drawing out genuine warmth and connection. Illustrator Oh Jeong-taek's artwork brings plenty of laughter throughout the book as well. As the child earnestly searches for the true meaning of being...