The Tiger and the Dried Persimmon

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

“Once upon a time, a big tiger lived deep in the mountains. His roar
was so frightful that any animal who heard it trembled with fear. The
tiger believed he was the king of all that he could see.”

One day the tiger decides to steal an ox from a nearby farm. Just as he
is about to pounce on his helpless prey, he hears a baby crying in the
nearby farmhouse. “Ssssh,” the baby’s mother says. “Be quiet, my
baby, or we might wake up the fierce wolf.” When the baby continues to
cry, the tiger concludes that the baby is not afraid of the wolf.
“Ssssh,” the baby’s mother says. “Be quiet, my baby, or we might
wake up the big black bear.” When the baby still continues to cry, the
tiger concludes that the baby is not afraid of the bear. “Ssssh,”
the baby’s mother says. “Be quiet, my baby, and I will give you a
piece of dried persimmon.” When the baby stops crying, the tiger
concludes that the dried persimmon must be a very frightening animal
indeed. What follows is a hilarious plot of mistaken identities: a thief
jumps on the tiger’s back, and the tiger thinks it must be the dried
persimmon.

On the title page, Janie Jaehyun Park says that she learned this
traditional Korean folk tale from her grandmother. Park, who studied art
at Sheridan College, enhances the basic tale with comical illustrations
featuring a bright orange and dark blue striped tiger with a wonderfully
expressive face. She sets the characters in traditional Korean-art
backgrounds, giving the book a classic appeal. Highly recommended.