A young boy wakes to find his mother has left for work early but she's also taken the time to leave him a note of encouragement, meant to guide him through his daily chores. Remember to water the plants. Remember to pick the sweetest melons by listening to their heartbeats. On the surface, the note may just look like a series of reminders to help a child navigate a vast and sometimes scary world, but it soon becomes clear that this endearing letter from mother to child is so much more, a reassurance of who'll be home waiting to comfort him after a day's work is through. Based on his childhood in Vietnam, debut talent Dac Trung Tran weaves a charming and whimsical storybook primed for families to read together for years to come. A cubicle-bound office worker by day and illustrator by night, Dac Trung Tran (Trung) specializes in visual storytelling for children, many about Asian folklore and culture, and his books have been published in US, UK, Singapore, Vietnam, and China. He is based in Vietnam. Publishers Weekly October 28, 2024 Remember Dac Trung Tran. Paw Prints, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-223-18868-3 Tran locates home in the embrace of a child's mother in this visually epic epistolary story. Opening, a child awakens alone to find a note: "Dear son, Mom is going to work early today." Spare instructions next offer reminders for the day, and skillfully emotive page-filling illustrations show the youth exploring larger-than-life urban surroundings as the note unfurls. "Remember to find/ the sweetest melons/ by listening to/ their heartbeats," reads text while the child, depicted as comparatively miniature, peeks out from behind a watermelon, presented as magnitudes larger. Later, the kid stands in awe before a shop full of candy, and as the day comes to a close, a rainstorm fills the page with smudgy splotches of color until at last Mom and child joyously reunite again at home-the conclusion to an adventurous day out. An author's note reveals that the story is drawn from memories of childhood days spent wandering his Vietnam hometown. Ages 4-7. (Feb.) Drawing from his own childhood in Vietnam, Tran tells the story of a boy navigating life, bolstered by his mother's words. The young protagonist wakes to find a letter on his nightstand: "Dear son, Mom is going to work early today." The deceptively simple narrative consists of the contents of her missive, paired with illustrations that skillfully chart the boy's emotional journey. Using skewed, exaggerated proportions and splotches of shadow and color, Tran depicts the boy as doll-size-a choice that underscores his vulnerability and demonstrates how large, fantastical, and even frightening the world can appear to a child. When Mom tells the boy, "Remember to speak loudly when ordering breakfast," the accompanying image shows him gazing up at the towering, blue-hued crowd of adults bent over their bowls. The palette switches to warmer tones as the son dutifully waters the plants. Mom's words aren't limited to mere chores, however; she also reminds her son to appreciate life and to show consideration to others-"to find the sweetest melons by listening to their heartbeats," "to walk quietly" to avoid disturbing the slumber of napping rickshaw drivers, and "to feed your mind. And to play." Though the youngster cuts a solitary figure for much of the book, he's never truly alone; as the sky darkens, he heads home, where Mom's waiting with a hug, which brings the tale to a warm and loving close. An elegantly told, compelling glimpse of childhood. (author's note) (Picture book. 4-8) In this brief but beautiful picture book, a mother's reminders are a sign of love. When the mother has to leave early for work, she leaves her son a note with several instructions for the day. The child seems young to be left alone, and he becomes truly tiny

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