Hazel and Twig

A delightful debut about two sisters with big dreams provides a charming introduction to the doljabi, a Korean first birthday tradition.

Twig’s first birthday is coming up, and her whole family — especially her older sister, Hazel — is eager to see what she will choose at her doljabi. Whatever item Twig chooses will tell her fortune: Will she pick a hammer and grow up to be a builder? Will she pick a lute and grow up to be a musician? Hazel is hoping that Twig will choose the yarn, just like she did when she was Twig’s age. When the big day arrives and Twig makes an unexpected choice, will Hazel be able to help figure out what the future might hold for her little sister? Sweet, serious Hazel and the adorable Twig are certain to win the hearts of readers, who will long to enter their cozy woodland world.

Brenna Burns Yu has an MFA from the fiber department of Cranbook Academy of Art. She won a New Voices in Children’s Literature: Tassy Walden Award for an early version of Hazel and Twig: The Birthday Fortune, her first book, which was inspired by her own children’s doljabis. Brenna Burns Yu lives in Connecticut with her family.