Derek Kirk Kim

The first find, an award winning Korean American graphic novelist.


Reading along his blog, you'll find "Apples don't fall far from the tree": his cousin in Korea is a successful graphic novelist and one of her stories is being adopted to a Korean TV drama, and his brother is a graphic novelist, too.

Best known as the author of the following three graphic novels:

• The Same Difference (2004/2005): His first book that brought him glory and fame.
• Good As Lily (2007); I don't know why he didn't illustrate it.
• He worked with Gene Luen Yang, the author of the classic, American Born Chinese and produced  The Eternal Smile: Three stories.

His stories are included in

• Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (2006)
• Superman: Tales of the Bizzaro World (2006)

He is also translating a bunch of Korean Manwhas

• Hanami series
• Shaman Warriors series

His comment on the controversy over 'Hollywood Avata, casting all Caucasian actors to portray Asians characters' shows he stands in the world of Graphic Novels in US.

H1N1 and libraries

While parents and educators are deeply concerned about the epidemics, ALA seems to be quiet on the subject. Libraries and librarians encourage people to share library materials when CDC has confirmed that "people may become infected by touching something – such as a surface or object – with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose." I am wondering if it has been an intentional choice that ALA keeps silence on issues related to the safety of borrowing library materials that have been widely circulated among general public. I believe that the success of my new career as a librarian depends on how "well and good" I will be in helping people with making informed decisions. Here is some information on 2009 H1N1 Flu:

CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) offers well updated and organized information.

NYC Health (Department of Health and Mental Hygiene) send off letters to parents and educators about their "Open School Policy," "Free H1N1 vaccination plan" and basic health information for school aged children on 09/15/2009.

ALA lists some resource links in its Wiki on Pandemic Planning.

Correction: What do Koreans have to do with Ninja?

Ninja is a Japanese term for a killer or an assassin. The term seems to be a conceptual opposite word of the samurai, an honorary term. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles originated in a single issued comic by two young American artists in 1984. About ten years later after the self-published comic book got attentions from general public, a Korean film maker caught between two Koreas (released from North Korea but couldn't return to South Korea) came to US and produced three films, which I mistakenly assumed to be the origin of Ninja comics and films.


1. 3 Ninjas Knuckle Up (1995)
 
             
   
  2.  3 Ninjas Kick Back (1994)

             

3. Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (1998)

             

Wiki states that Sin Sang-ok, a legendary Korean film maker, produced those three films under the pseudonym, Simon Sheen.