{"id":496,"date":"2025-09-09T20:42:05","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T12:42:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/?p=496"},"modified":"2025-09-09T21:07:06","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T13:07:06","slug":"baek_hee-na_2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/2025\/09\/09\/baek_hee-na_2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Cross\u00ading the Peak and Start\u00ading a New Chap\u00adter: Baek Hee-na\u2019s Warm \u201cMicro\u00adcosm\u201d and Growth Fable"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When I was invit\u00aded to write book reviews for Baek Hee-na\u2019s three lat\u00adest pic\u00adture books (How to Make Mag\u00adic Sug\u00adar Balls, The Mag\u00adic Wardrobe, and The Swal\u00adlow and the Wil\u00adlow Boy), I could\u00adn\u2019t help but review the words I had writ\u00adten for her and her works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

It was first writ\u00adten on Jan\u00adu\u00adary 5, 2007 for her debut album \u201cCloud Bread\u201d.<\/a>Because of cloud bread, they lived hap\u00adpi\u00adly ever after\u2026<\/a>;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On August 23, 2016, after near\u00adly a decade of inex\u00adplic\u00ada\u00adble silence, she came to Bei\u00adjing with her new book, The Fairy in the Bath\u00adhouse, to meet Chi\u00adnese read\u00aders. I had the hon\u00ador of host\u00ading that meet\u00ading.<\/a>She also shared the sto\u00adry behind her cre\u00adation on Wei\u00adbo that day.<\/a>;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lat\u00ader, when her works were pub\u00adlished in a col\u00adlec\u00adtion, I wrote a review on Sep\u00adtem\u00adber 1, 2019.<\/a>Search\u00ading for an Ide\u00adal Home in the World of Pic\u00adture Books<\/a>;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One year lat\u00ader, on August 4, 2020, I was fin\u00adish\u00ading<\/a>A Brief His\u00adto\u00adry of Pic\u00adture Books<\/a>I wrote a sup\u00adple\u00admen\u00adtary arti\u00adcle, \u201cBaek Hee-na: Ris\u00ading from the Lows to Soar\u00ading to the Top,\u201d as a grand finale to that fas\u00adci\u00adnat\u00ading sto\u00adry\u00adtelling his\u00adto\u00adry of the genre. That year, she had just won the Inter\u00adna\u00adtion\u00adal Lind\u00adgren Memo\u00adr\u00adi\u00adal Award (a prize of 5 mil\u00adlion Swedish kro\u00adnor, approx\u00adi\u00admate\u00adly 4 mil\u00adlion RMB), becom\u00ading the first female Asian pic\u00adture book artist to win the high\u00adest inter\u00adna\u00adtion\u00adal chil\u00addren\u2019s book award! Actu\u00adal\u00adly, I also had a per\u00adson\u00adal motive. She is my con\u00adtem\u00adpo\u00adrary, and her tire\u00adless strug\u00adgle and growth sto\u00adry are par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly inspir\u00ading and moti\u00advat\u00ading to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Brief His\u00adto\u00adry of Pic\u00adture Books<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Pre\u00adcise\u00adly because of my long-stand\u00ading inter\u00adest in her work, I could\u00adn\u2019t help but feel a surge of excite\u00adment when I read her three new works. I could\u00adn\u2019t resist email\u00ading my edi\u00adtor to express my heart\u00adfelt admi\u00adra\u00adtion and con\u00adgrat\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtions. I know that it\u2019s tru\u00adly remark\u00adable for some\u00adone to con\u00adtin\u00adue to grow after achiev\u00ading top acco\u00adlades. These three works not only main\u00adtain the artist\u2019s orig\u00adi\u00adnal stan\u00addards but also seem to offer some break\u00adthroughs. They also appro\u00adpri\u00adate\u00adly bor\u00adrow ele\u00adments from her past and pos\u00adsess a touch of humor (a rare achieve\u00adment for a rel\u00ada\u00adtive\u00adly reserved East\u00adern artist). Why? Let me explain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A unique artis\u00adtic imprint: a cul\u00admi\u00adna\u00adtion of minia\u00adture the\u00adatre and sen\u00adso\u00adry feast<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Baek Hee-na\u2019s pic\u00adture books are inter\u00adna\u00adtion\u00adal\u00adly renowned for their unique artis\u00adtic expres\u00adsion. She com\u00adbines hand\u00admade pup\u00adpets with pho\u00adto\u00adre\u00adal\u00adis\u00adtic mod\u00adel pho\u00adtog\u00adra\u00adphy to cre\u00adate a sig\u00adna\u00adture \u201cminia\u00adture the\u00adater\u201d effect. This mul\u00adti-media aes\u00adthet\u00adic per\u00adme\u00adates near\u00adly all of her work, and is fur\u00adther enhanced and inno\u00advat\u00aded in her new works. With the metic\u00adu\u00adlous atten\u00adtion to detail of an ani\u00admat\u00aded film, she per\u00adson\u00adal\u00adly crafts every char\u00adac\u00adter, prop, and setting\u2014from the tan\u00adgi\u00adble bread of \u201cCloud Bread,\u201d the authen\u00adtic bath\u00adhouse back\u00addrop and nude details of \u201cFairies in the Bath\u00adhouse,\u201d to the metic\u00adu\u00adlous\u00adly sewn minia\u00adture cos\u00adtumes and props of \u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe.\u201d This cre\u00adative approach, which blends diverse tech\u00adniques such as clay mod\u00adel\u00ading, paper sculp\u00adture, fab\u00adric col\u00adlage, and pho\u00adtog\u00adra\u00adphy, imbues her images with a rich, hand\u00admade tex\u00adture and cin\u00ade\u00admat\u00adic inten\u00adsi\u00adty, estab\u00adlish\u00ading the artist\u2019s dis\u00adtinc\u00adtive and instant\u00adly rec\u00adog\u00adniz\u00adable style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cov\u00ader of \u201cSwal\u00adlow and Wil\u00adlow Boy\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Inside page of \u201cSwal\u00adlow and Wil\u00adlow Boy\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To cap\u00adture the ide\u00adal snowy land\u00adscape in \u201cSwal\u00adlow and the Wil\u00adlow Boy,\u201d she per\u00adson\u00adal\u00adly trav\u00adeled to the moun\u00adtains of Gang\u00adwon Province and near Seoul, South Korea, cap\u00adtur\u00ading images of the snowy land\u00adscape with a bluish-pur\u00adple hue, cre\u00adat\u00ading a chill\u00ading atmos\u00adphere. The char\u00adac\u00adter\u00adi\u00adza\u00adtion of Swal\u00adlow\u2019s face, with its frost-cracked, red\u00addened skin and fine hairs, is clear\u00adly vis\u00adi\u00adble. The old wom\u00adan\u2019s features\u2014deep wrin\u00adkles, promi\u00adnent cheek\u00adbones, and down\u00adturned mouth\u2014demonstrate a harsh and cru\u00adel char\u00adac\u00adter. The wil\u00adlow boy and Swal\u00adlow, a boy and a girl, yet their \u201ctwin\u201d appear\u00adances sug\u00adgest a deep inner con\u00adnec\u00adtion. She even bold\u00adly and direct\u00adly depicts the cru\u00adel\u00adty of the old woman set\u00adting fire to the wil\u00adlow boy, reduc\u00ading the cave to ash. This unabashed por\u00adtray\u00adal of the dark side height\u00adens the sto\u00adry\u2019s ten\u00adsion and emo\u00adtion\u00adal impact. These sub\u00adtle visu\u00adal ele\u00adments allow the images them\u00adselves to vivid\u00adly con\u00advey the char\u00adac\u00adters, the sto\u00adry\u2019s con\u00adflicts, and the emo\u00adtion\u00adal dynam\u00adics, achiev\u00ading the effect of \u201csilence speaks loud\u00ader than words.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Inside page of \u201cMag\u00adic Sug\u00adar Ball Mak\u00ading Method\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In \u201cHow to Make Mag\u00adic Can\u00addy Balls,\u201d the use of light and shad\u00adow is cru\u00adcial. An old man makes can\u00addy balls on a star\u00adry night, col\u00adlect\u00ading the starlight in a pot of water and con\u00addens\u00ading dreamy col\u00adors with bub\u00adbles blown from a straw. Light itself becomes part of the plot, sym\u00adbol\u00adiz\u00ading spir\u00adi\u00adtu\u00adal puri\u00adty and the light of hope. The pre\u00adcise depic\u00adtion of cloth\u00ading col\u00adors and tex\u00adtures in \u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe\u201d cre\u00adates a high\u00adly syn\u00ader\u00adgis\u00adtic effect between image and text. The exquis\u00adite coor\u00addi\u00adna\u00adtion of cos\u00adtumes and char\u00adac\u00adters demon\u00adstrates a lev\u00adel of skill and taste com\u00adpa\u00adra\u00adble to that of a pro\u00adfes\u00adsion\u00adal fash\u00adion design\u00ader! Baek Hee-na\u2019s obses\u00adsion with pre\u00adci\u00adsion is almost para\u00adnoid. For exam\u00adple, the cov\u00ader of \u201cThe Fairy in the Bath\u00adhouse\u201d fea\u00adtures a flawed fin\u00adger, the length of which caused her to con\u00adsid\u00ader scrap\u00adping and remak\u00ading it. It is this metic\u00adu\u00adlous atten\u00adtion to detail that makes her work such a mem\u00ado\u00adrable visu\u00adal feast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sub\u00adli\u00adma\u00adtion of the theme: Awak\u00aden\u00ading of inner strength<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If all of Baek Hee-na\u2019s works always con\u00adtain the main col\u00adors of warmth and hope, then these three new works have achieved a sig\u00adnif\u00adi\u00adcant sub\u00adli\u00adma\u00adtion in the depth of the theme. They are mod\u00adern fables that par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly empha\u00adsize \u201cthe awak\u00aden\u00ading of inner strength\u201d and \u201cself-heal\u00ading.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cov\u00ader of \u201cRed Bean Por\u00adridge Granny\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Ear\u00adly in her career, Baek Hee-na col\u00adlab\u00ado\u00adrat\u00aded on adap\u00adta\u00adtions of folk tales like \u201cThe Red Bean Por\u00adridge Granny,\u201d large\u00adly adher\u00ading to the tra\u00addi\u00adtion\u00adal frame\u00adwork of \u201cweak forces work\u00ading togeth\u00ader to over\u00adcome the strong.\u201d In \u201cSwal\u00adlow and the Wil\u00adlow Boy,\u201d she skill\u00adful\u00adly reframes the theme of a tra\u00addi\u00adtion\u00adal Kore\u00adan folk tale. The sto\u00adry tran\u00adscends a sim\u00adple admo\u00adni\u00adtion to good and pun\u00adish\u00adment for evil, or a Cin\u00adderel\u00adla-esque sto\u00adry of pas\u00adsive\u00adly await\u00ading a bene\u00adfac\u00adtor, becom\u00ading a pure fairy tale of self-growth and over\u00adcom\u00ading inner fears. She blurs the stereo\u00adtype of the tra\u00addi\u00adtion\u00adal step\u00admoth\u00ader, recast\u00ading her as an \u201cold woman\u201d who can be embody\u00ading any dif\u00adfi\u00adcul\u00adty or oppres\u00adsion that hin\u00adders the pro\u00adtag\u00ado\u00adnist\u2019s growth. The wil\u00adlow boy is also rede\u00adfined as a fig\u00adure resem\u00adbling Swal\u00adlow, sym\u00adbol\u00adiz\u00ading Swal\u00adlow\u2019s \u201cinner mas\u00adculin\u00adi\u00adty\u201d or \u201calter ego,\u201d the embod\u00adi\u00adment of his inner strength. Thus, Swal\u00adlow\u2019s plight isn\u2019t res\u00adcued by exter\u00adnal forces, but rather, through an encounter with this \u201calter ego,\u201d a hid\u00adden courage and inde\u00adpen\u00addence unleashed with\u00adin her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enlarged image of the inner page of \u201cSwal\u00adlow and Wil\u00adlow Boy\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The end\u00ading of the sto\u00adry is par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly inter\u00adest\u00ading. The old woman \u201cmay\u201d sim\u00adply grow old and lone\u00adly with the pass\u00ading of time. This approach eschews \u201crevenge\u201d and instead embod\u00adies a kind of for\u00adgive\u00adness or tran\u00adscen\u00addence of evil. Yan\u2019er over\u00adcomes the bit\u00adter cold and dark\u00adness with her own courage and per\u00adse\u00adver\u00adance, ulti\u00admate\u00adly ush\u00ader\u00ading in spring, mak\u00ading it a \u201cpure com\u00ading-of-age fairy tale.\u201d Notably, Baek Hee-na her\u00adself revealed that dur\u00ading a dif\u00adfi\u00adcult peri\u00adod in her life, she drew immense com\u00adfort and courage from the orig\u00adi\u00adnal folk tale, which sparked the idea for this book. Yan\u2019er\u2019s courage may reflect the author\u2019s own expe\u00adri\u00adence over\u00adcom\u00ading the harsh win\u00adters of life and main\u00adtain\u00ading a strong momen\u00adtum for growth, enhanc\u00ading the work\u2019s emo\u00adtion\u00adal depth and heal\u00ading pow\u00ader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Inside page of The Mag\u00adic Wardrobe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe\u201d fur\u00adther focus\u00ades on indi\u00advid\u00adual emo\u00adtion\u00adal heal\u00ading and self-care. The sto\u00adry revolves around Banana, a zebra girl who is depressed and stays at home. The \u201ceye mask\u201d she wears may be a sign of social anx\u00adi\u00adety or avoid\u00adance, or it can be seen as a \u201chorse rac\u00ading eye mask\u201d, sug\u00adgest\u00ading the state of mod\u00adern peo\u00adple exces\u00adsive\u00adly pur\u00adsu\u00ading goals and neglect\u00ading their inner needs. The mag\u00adic wardrobe is not an overnight anti\u00addote, but a tran\u00adsi\u00adtion\u00adal method to help her gain dif\u00adfer\u00adent life expe\u00adri\u00adences. It encour\u00adages Banana to grad\u00adu\u00adal\u00adly achieve inner change and emo\u00adtion\u00adal repair through dai\u00adly changes of clothes, tidy\u00ading up the room, going out, inter\u00adact\u00ading with oth\u00aders, and immers\u00ading her\u00adself in nature\u2026 and ulti\u00admate\u00adly learn to accept her true self. The work empha\u00adsizes that dai\u00adly self-care is the real mag\u00adic. Baek Hee-na wants to con\u00advey: \u201cTomor\u00adrow when you can start over is a beau\u00adti\u00adful gift.\u201d She encour\u00adages read\u00aders (and prob\u00ada\u00adbly her\u00adself): \u201cCher\u00adish every day and cher\u00adish your unique self.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inside page of The Mag\u00adic Wardrobe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The orig\u00adi\u00adnal title of \u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe\u201d was actu\u00adal\u00adly \u201cHap\u00adpy Birth\u00adday.\u201d The sto\u00adry cul\u00admi\u00adnates on Banana\u2019s birth\u00adday, where the plot takes a sur\u00adpris\u00ading turn: the once enchant\u00aded wardrobe sud\u00adden\u00adly con\u00adtains only a birth\u00adday hat! How\u00adev\u00ader, dri\u00adven by a pow\u00ader\u00adful wish, Banana trans\u00adforms into a soar\u00ading uni\u00adcorn (a long-held dream, as evi\u00addenced by her wall murals and phone screen back\u00adgrounds). Only to be shat\u00adtered by a sud\u00adden down\u00adpour. This inge\u00adnious plot arrange\u00adment pro\u00advides a com\u00adplete emo\u00adtion\u00adal jour\u00adney, tran\u00adsi\u00adtion\u00ading from day\u00addreamy mag\u00adi\u00adcal imag\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtion to the real\u00adi\u00adty of every\u00adday life. While there\u2019s a touch of self-dep\u00adre\u00adca\u00adtion, there\u2019s no sense of dejec\u00adtion or offense. After regain\u00ading some warmth in real\u00adi\u00adty, Banana sud\u00adden\u00adly \u201cremem\u00adbers her old, yet pre\u00adcious, and com\u00adfort\u00adable ice skates\u201d and drifts off to sleep\u2026 Wak\u00ading up, the sun will rise again tomor\u00adrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inside page of \u201cMag\u00adic Sug\u00adar Ball Mak\u00ading Method\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHow to Make Mag\u00adic Sug\u00adar Balls\u201d is a clear sequel to \u201cSug\u00adar Balls,\u201d explor\u00ading the inner pow\u00ader of inter\u00adper\u00adson\u00adal under\u00adstand\u00ading and empa\u00adthy. It fur\u00adther delves into the phi\u00adlos\u00ado\u00adphy behind the mag\u00adic sug\u00adar balls, which \u201ccan hear the voice of the heart,\u201d and empha\u00adsizes the true mean\u00ading of a \u201cpure mind\u201d\u2014transparency, clean\u00adli\u00adness, light\u00adness, and sin\u00adcer\u00adi\u00adty. Only with a clear mind can one tru\u00adly per\u00adceive the world, dis\u00adcov\u00ader their true selves, and pos\u00adsess the courage and wis\u00addom to lis\u00adten and express their true feel\u00adings. The square-spec\u00adta\u00adcled old man in the sta\u00adtionery store in \u201cSug\u00adar Balls\u201d is revealed to be a hid\u00adden yoga mas\u00adter and a guide with extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adnary pow\u00aders and wis\u00addom, offer\u00ading com\u00adfort to trou\u00adbled chil\u00addren. This humor\u00adous \u201cextra\u201d sketch con\u00adtains wis\u00addom about self-cul\u00adti\u00adva\u00adtion, which may require \u201cwait\u00ading until age 67 to revis\u00adit it\u201d to tru\u00adly under\u00adstand!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nar\u00adra\u00adtive Inno\u00adva\u00adtion: Build\u00ading an Inter\u00adcon\u00adnect\u00aded \u201cBaishi\u00adna Uni\u00adverse\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Judg\u00ading from Baek Hee-na\u2019s new works, she is no longer sat\u00adis\u00adfied with improv\u00ading a sin\u00adgle sto\u00adry, but is more will\u00ading to clev\u00ader\u00adly con\u00adstruct an inter\u00adcon\u00adnect\u00aded \u201cBaek Hee-na Uni\u00adverse\u201d, link\u00ading mul\u00adti\u00adple works through a unique \u201cderiv\u00ada\u00adtive char\u00adac\u00adter per\u00adspec\u00adtive to expand the sto\u00adry\u201d strat\u00ade\u00adgy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The old man in \u201cSug\u00adar Ball\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Dong\u00addong and the pup\u00adpy in \u201cI am a Dog\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For exam\u00adple, \u201cMag\u00adic Can\u00addy Ball Mak\u00ading,\u201d \u201cCan\u00addy Ball,\u201d and \u201cI Am a Dog\u201d togeth\u00ader form the warm and fan\u00adtas\u00adti\u00adcal \u201cCan\u00addy Ball Uni\u00adverse.\u201d The pre\u00adquel, \u201cI Am a Dog,\u201d tells the first-per\u00adson per\u00adspec\u00adtive of the pup\u00adpy Zhuzhu, describ\u00ading her dai\u00adly life after arriv\u00ading at Dong\u00addong\u2019s home. While devoid of fan\u00adta\u00adsy ele\u00adments, it uses humor and warmth to cap\u00adture the human-pet friend\u00adship and the mean\u00ading of com\u00adpan\u00adion\u00adship. The sub\u00adse\u00adquent \u201cCan\u00addy Ball\u201d picks up where Zhuzhu left off, depict\u00ading Dong\u00addong con\u00adnect\u00ading with his sur\u00adround\u00adings through mag\u00adic can\u00addy balls. \u201cMag\u00adic Can\u00addy Ball Mak\u00ading,\u201d a side sto\u00adry, reveals the mag\u00adic can\u00addy ball mak\u00ading process and the grand\u00adfa\u00adther\u2019s \u201ctrue\u201d iden\u00adti\u00adty, fur\u00adther strength\u00aden\u00ading and enrich\u00ading the char\u00adac\u00adter rela\u00adtion\u00adships through\u00adout the series. This con\u00adtrast\u00ading plot pro\u00advides read\u00aders with moments of sud\u00adden real\u00adiza\u00adtion, adding depth and warmth to the orig\u00adi\u00adnal sto\u00adry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The apart\u00adment res\u00adi\u00addents of \u201cLast Night\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Friends group in The Mag\u00adic Wardrobe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Sim\u00adi\u00adlar\u00adly, \u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe\u201d shares close ties with \u201cLast Night,\u201d orig\u00adi\u00adnal\u00adly pub\u00adlished in 2010. The pro\u00adtag\u00ado\u00adnist, Ban Na, is the res\u00adi\u00addent of Apart\u00adment 501 in \u201cLast Night.\u201d Per\u00adhaps \u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe\u201d can be con\u00adsid\u00adered the begin\u00adning of the \u201cApart\u00adment Series.\u201d At the Sil\u00adver Plate Tea House where Ban Na goes for after\u00adnoon tea, Yuna the Duck is like\u00adly the Duck Lady from Apart\u00adment 304; the black cat who once deliv\u00adered choco\u00adlate cake to Apart\u00adment 701 still works at the Sil\u00adver Plate Tea House; and among the friends group Ban Na post\u00aded about her birth\u00adday par\u00adty, most are clear\u00adly neigh\u00adbors of the same apart\u00adment build\u00ading (inter\u00adest\u00aded read\u00aders can com\u00adpare them one by one). The inter\u00adplay of char\u00adac\u00adters and set\u00adtings offers read\u00aders famil\u00adiar with her work a kind of \u201cseries East\u00ader egg\u201d-like dis\u00adcov\u00adery. This method of pre\u00adsent\u00ading sto\u00adries from dif\u00adfer\u00adent per\u00adspec\u00adtives with\u00adin a famil\u00adiar set\u00adting demon\u00adstrates Bai Xina\u2019s inno\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive and ground\u00adbreak\u00ading nar\u00adra\u00adtive struc\u00adture. We can expect to read more of these expand\u00aded sto\u00adries in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Baek Hee-na\u2019s three new books, \u201cHow to Make Mag\u00adic Can\u00addy Balls,\u201d \u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe,\u201d and \u201cThe Swal\u00adlow and the Wil\u00adlow Boy,\u201d once again demon\u00adstrate her unique inge\u00adnu\u00adity in sto\u00adry\u00adtelling, the\u00admat\u00adic con\u00adcep\u00adtion, and visu\u00adal artistry. With her strik\u00ading mul\u00adti\u00adme\u00addia aes\u00adthet\u00adic, mod\u00adern inter\u00adpre\u00adta\u00adtions of tra\u00addi\u00adtion\u00adal sto\u00adries, and pro\u00adfound insights into the inner world of indi\u00advid\u00adu\u00adals, she con\u00adtin\u00adues to push the bound\u00adaries of pic\u00adture books. She demon\u00adstrates that it is pos\u00adsi\u00adble to bal\u00adance fideli\u00adty and cre\u00adativ\u00adi\u00adty. Her works are not only a bril\u00adliant com\u00admen\u00adtary on her own cre\u00adative path, but also a pow\u00ader\u00adful exam\u00adple of how tra\u00addi\u00adtion\u00adal sto\u00adries can be revi\u00adtal\u00adized in the mod\u00adern era. The sto\u00adries with\u00adin and beyond her books also remind us that in the cold win\u00adter of life, by fac\u00ading our fears and tap\u00adping into our inner poten\u00adtial, we can ush\u00ader in our own spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ajia, Writ\u00adten in Bei\u00adjing on July 31, 2025<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Book reviews of Bai Xina\u2019s three pic\u00adture books: \u201cHow to Make Mag\u00adic Can\u00addy Balls\u201d, \u201cThe Mag\u00adic Wardrobe\u201d, and \u201cThe Swal\u00adlow and the Wil\u00adlow Boy\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":514,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,12],"tags":[8,5,6],"class_list":["post-496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-review","category-ajia-review","tag-8","tag-5","tag-6"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300cly1i57hqgkb5xj20rs0fmjvb.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=496"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":516,"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496\/revisions\/516"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=496"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=496"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=496"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}