[This Week's Children's Books] "Minecraft Zombie 3" and More

Minecraft Zombie 3

This is a children's novel series published by Mojang, the developer of Minecraft, in collaboration with world-renowned fantasy authors. It is the final installment of the Minecraft Zombie trilogy. The story centers on the protagonist Bobby, whose beloved neighbors and family have all turned into zombies. In the first volume, Bobby's village is attacked by a zombie army led by Logan, and he embarks on an adventure with the adventurer Ben to find a cure for his younger brother Johnny, who has become a zombie. The second volume follows Bobby and his friends as they struggle to stop the villain Logan, who leads the zombie army and tries to defeat Overlord, where the strongest adventurers have gathered, and to vanquish the legendary hero Pigstep Peggy. The final third volume begins with Bobby and his friends pursuing the Wither, who is destroying the Overworld, and the zombie army in an attempt to stop them. (Written by Nick Eliopulos | Jejeje's Forest)

10 Minutes a Day: Elementary Economics Class

This book introduces economic knowledge that can help children navigate an increasingly complex world shaped by advances in digital technology and financial engineering, using the latest newspaper articles. The author, a current journalist and children's economics educator, explains vivid economic concepts in a way that is easy for elementary students to understand. Covering topics that children are likely to find interesting, such as "Do you know what bankruptcy ping is?", "Is pork belly really 20,000 won per serving?", and "Are you a carrot? The growing secondhand market," the book also delves into deeper issues like "jeonse fraud," "pet ownership tax," and "flying taxis (UAM)." (Written by Park Jia | Cheoeum Books)

Economics Beyond the Classroom for Teens

Inflation, exchange rates, tariffs, stocks, cryptocurrencies, real estate... Although these topics may seem difficult, a closer look reveals that they are connected to children's everyday lives. The author, a current middle school teacher, expresses regret that the topics in textbooks do not adequately reflect real-world economic stories and addresses this in the book. The content is presented in an easy-to-understand way, with questions such as "Why do we keep making impulse purchases?", "Why did the price of cup noodles at convenience stores go up?", "Why does the United States want to increase tariffs?", and "What makes Bitcoin risky?" (Written by Seo Jaemin | Dolbegae)

Why Can't I Stop Watching Shorts?

This is a media literacy book about the media culture of children and teenagers. It introduces knowledge to help young readers wisely cope with the rapidly changing media environment. For example, it addresses questions such as "How can I escape shorts addiction?" and "Is it okay to seek advice from artificial intelligence?" The book explores why watching five shorts is more exhausting than watching one long video of the same total length, whether there are risks in consulting with conversational AI, and the background behind the emergence of virtual idols. It covers issues that teenagers experience in daily life but may not have considered in terms of their meaning and problems. (Written by Kim Ami | Changbi)

Small and Beautiful: Chagall's Art Class

This book weaves the real lives of great masters into rich stories. The author, both a novelist and a painter, turns the deep and moving artistic world of a world-renowned artist into a touching fairy tale. The strength of this book is that it helps readers understand art from a humanities perspective through art history. It emphasizes that appreciating and contemplating art is not a privilege reserved for a select few, but a cultural literacy everyone should possess. By highlighting the original works of masters, their related stories, and the artists' lives, the book explores how artworks have carried meaning from the societies of their time to the present day. (Written by Kim Mijin | Yeollimwon Children)

I Am Dust That Saves the Earth!

This is a science picture book that poetically describes the impact of dust on Earth's ecosystem. Focusing on dust as the main character, the book spans from the Sahara Desert to the Amazon rainforest, highlighting the organic interactions dust has within Earth's ecosystem. While dust is often seen as a mere inconvenience, the author introduces the fact that every winter, the strong and dry wind known as "Harmattan" in Africa's Sahel region carries dust all the way to the Amazon rainforest, supplying essential phosphorus for plant growth. The book goes beyond simple "environmental protection" to provide detailed background knowledge. It was selected last year as a "Notable Children's Book" by the American Library Association. (Written by Jillian Hoffman | Komamungchi)