Hanna Cha invites readers into magical world of discovery, inspiration

Reading Julie Leung’s manuscript for “The Truth About Dragons” for the first time, Hanna Cha found herself moved to tears.

A few lines from the story -- “Inside your heart is where the two forests meet. Both journeys are yours to take. Both worlds are yours to discover” -- struck the Cha, 30, on a deeply personal level.

This year, Cha became the first Korean American picture book writer-illustrator to receive the prestigious Caldecott Honor.

“I actually cried when I first read it,” said Cha in an interview with The Korea Herald on Sunday. “I wish I had heard it when I was younger. I was thinking how it would have been such a relief to realize earlier that I didn't need to choose anything. Just imagining a young me or even anyone younger hearing that they don't need to choose a direction, I wanted that for other kids.”

“The Truth About Dragons” follows a young child on a magical quest into two very different forests as his two grandmothers guide him to discover truths about dragons -- one reflecting Western traditions and the other based on dragons as they are depicted in Asian mythology and culture.

“Western dragons are fearsome, fire-breathing and protect treasure. Usually, the hero has to slay them to claim the reward,” Cha explained. “There is also another dragon. Eastern dragons are usually revered as gods and they reward you.”

Capturing these stark contrasts was an artistic challenge. Cha illustrated each dragon and its respective world using distinct illustration techniques.

For the red dragon of the West, she used ink pens and Western watercolor brushes, which created even strokes and allowed for a more polished and detailed look. She focused on intricate details like the dragon's horns and scales, and added ornate borders around the edges of the pages to evoke the antique feel of classic Western fairy tales.

“For the Eastern blue dragon,” Cha said, “I used only minhwa or calligraphy brushes. These brushes, with their sharp points and thick ends make waves of lines that can capture the dragon’s dynamic, twisting gestures.”

The attention to detail extended beyond the dragons. Cha hid visual surprises throughout the book, rewarding keen-eyed readers with new discoveries at each reread.

“For me, it was about putting in a lot of details so that the kids could see (different things) because the text is so beautiful and simple,” said Cha. “I feel like simpler books can sometimes be read once and forgotten. But when you add layers, kids have something to rediscover every time they pick it up. This was my first fantasy book, and because I’m a maximalist I hid a lot of things and had so much fun.”

Perhaps not surprisingly, kids notice those little details that often escape adult readers, which is rewarding for Cha. For example, for the book's hero, Cha used both ink pens and calligraphy brushes to indicate his place in both worlds. The spirits and hobgoblins flit freely in and out of the borders because they are very spiritual and “ready to whisk you away into mystery.”

'The House Before Falling into the Sea'

“The House Before Falling into the Sea” written by Ann Suk Wang, came to her "like fate," Cha said.

Set in Busan, the story revolves around a young girl named Kyung and her family, who take in refugees during the Korean War.

“It’s her story trying to understand why she needs to go through all this. And about how, by opening their house, they have changed a lot of people's lives,” said Cha. “Despite all the horrors of war, you can still have hope. I included warplanes in the background to show that the pain and reality don’t disappear. But amidst all that, there’s still hope and the promise of a better future.”

The one thing that was really magical for Cha was a surprising discovery about her own family -- that her grandmother was a refugee who had fled to Busan.

When Cha asked her grandmother about her childhood, the revelation came almost casually.

“She said, ‘Oh, yes, I was one of them,’ very nonchalantly. ‘Wait, you never told me about this!’” Cha recalled. “She’s the most positive and happy person I know. You’d never guess she had gone through something so traumatic.”

The discovery led to deeper conversations between Cha and her grandmother, strengthening their already close bond.

“One thing that really stood out to me was how short her painful memories were compared to her happy ones. She mostly remembered the good parts, like how lucky she felt to be able to go to school in Busan.” (The city operated refugee schools during wartime.)

“There were very rare moments when she would grow quiet as painful memories surfaced. I don’t know if I could fully comprehend them, but she would never bring them up again.”

Through the conversation, Cha said she realized that a child’s memory can be fragmented, filled with disjointed pieces of experiences because children often lack a full understanding of what’s happening around them. Cha sought to capture this fragmented perspective in her illustrations.

“I usually love doing two-page spreads, but I limited that preference to very crucial moments for Kyung. For the other memories, I depicted them as fragments. I used watercolor and poster color to add rough textures, and wanted to give it a Korean aesthetic.”

The most challenging part, however, was making sure she did justice to the story.

“It’s not often that a picture book about the Korean War is made. It was harder than I thought because there aren’t many photos left, especially ones taken by Koreans. I had to do a lot of research making sure it’s accurate because my biggest fear was not doing it justice.”

'Service to children'

Debuting with "Tiny Feet Between the Mountains," a college graduation project inspired by Korean folktales, Cha said she never thought she would become a picture book artist.

"I was very introverted in my school years, scared to talk to people or express myself. But then I met art. And because I want to explain my art I got better at speaking and expressing myself and explaining my art."

Her next book of illustrations, “Tea is Love,” written by Adib Khorram, is set to hit the shelves in the fall of 2025.

Cha is also working on her own series of stories and illustrations, featuring “little friends and their journey to making the most beautiful garden.”

When Cha received her Caldecott Medal, a few words on the award caught her attention.

"I saw that at the top it said ‘service to children,’ and I had never seen it written out like that before and really loved that. They didn’t choose my book because the pictures were pretty; they chose it because they thought it benefited children," she said.

"It made it clear to me that, as a picture book artist, I want my books to be a service to children. I want to be as honest as possible because kids know when you’re being fake or trying to be something bigger than you are. They're just really sharp. So I need to be honest, always aware, and constantly studying because that’s how they view the world."