Ami Moon and the Galactic Peacekeepers

• A Korean-Canadian author's imagination, blooming under the Toronto night sky, captures the hearts of children worldwide
• Celebrating immigrant pride through a girl who champions 'peace' even when lost in a cosmic maze
• A singular space fantasy crafted by Frances Lee, a tattoo artist turned graphic novelist

Have you ever looked up at the night sky and felt lost? When they first set foot on unfamiliar Canadian soil, the overwhelming uncertainty our parents faced must have felt a lot like being tossed alone into the middle of an endless universe. Yet here is a brilliant Korean-Canadian author who, staying up through Toronto's deep nights, has transformed that uncertainty into a dazzling space adventure. That is tattoo artist and author Frances Lee. Her debut work and the spectacular prelude to a graphic novel trilogy, Ami Moon and the Galactic Peacekeepers (2026), is currently creating a 'cosmic' resonance among North American literary circles and readers.

The protagonist, Ami Moon, is a girl lost in space. However, instead of sitting down and crying, Ami joins a special organization called the 'Galactic Peacekeepers' and carries out missions to protect the peace of the galaxy alongside her unique alien friends, like a shark and a rabbit, keeping the slogan "We come in peace" close to her heart. On the surface, this story is an exciting sci-fi fantasy, but looking deeper, it closely mirrors the lives of us immigrants as we adapt to unfamiliar environments and find our own identities. Ami's dream of eventually reuniting with the mom and dog she left behind on Earth while traversing the corners of the universe certainly overlaps with our own lives—taking root in a new land while holding our precious homeland and family in a corner of our hearts.

The media's response to this book has been nothing short of fervent. The reading community Cannonball Read highly praised it for its "inventive alien world-building," and critics are pouring out reviews highlighting its "breathtakingly beautiful art and vibrant story." In particular, the mere fact that it was chosen by Levine Querido—a relatively new publisher founded in 2019 that receives tremendous acclaim for every book it publishes thanks to the exceptional eye of its founder, Arthur Levine—already proves Frances Lee's caliber as an author. Local media agree that the unique visual sensibility she built as a tattoo artist melts seamlessly onto the pages, creating an original style unseen in conventional graphic novels.

The reason we welcome this book so warmly isn't merely because it's entertaining. It is because the very fact that a second-generation Korean-Canadian author, born and raised in Toronto, is fully unleashing her talent and gaining recognition in the mainstream literary world brings us immense pride. During the day, Frances Lee etched art onto her clients' skin, and at night, she penned her stories while imagining the universe with her son Maverick and her bird 'Dean.' Her life itself has been a challenge, and the result of that challenge is this beautiful book. It feels as though the time our parents spent sweating and working in an unfamiliar Canada to support their children's dreams is now blossoming into wonderful works of art like this.

In the novel, the Galactic Peacekeepers learn how to approach others with an open mind even amidst anger, confusion, and sadness. The author says, 'Peacekeeping is hard, but we will take care of our galactic neighborhood together.' This deeply aligns with the ways our Korean community has presented itself in Canadian society. For we have always strived to help one another, contribute to the local community, and be peaceful, harmonious neighbors. In this way, through the voice of a girl named Ami Moon, the author reminds us that our 'open hearts' and 'spirit of cooperation' are the greatest powers to save the universe.

I believe that second- and third-generation Korean-Canadian children reading this book will dream of becoming the protagonists of their own galaxies as they follow Ami Moon's adventures. And their parents, reading this book hand-in-hand with their children, will be reminded of the 'curiosity' and 'courage' we had when we first arrived in this land. I think Frances Lee has elevated her Korean-Canadian identity not into something to be ashamed of or hidden, but into a source of imagination vast enough to embrace the universe. The reason the media praises her as 'a singular author-illustrator debut' is likely because the respect for diversity and the creative worldview she demonstrates are the values most needed in our times today.

In fact, when you think about the missions Ami Moon carries out in space, they are not so different from the daily missions we immigrants perform: learning an unfamiliar language, understanding a new culture, and sometimes fighting 'space monsters' like discrimination or misunderstanding, yet ultimately maintaining peace. Through Ami Moon, the author whispers to us: "It's okay to get a little lost. You have a great team with you, and a mission of peace in your heart." This message is undeniably a warm comfort and a powerful anthem of encouragement for Koreans living all across Canada.

This work, which is already showing signs of becoming a bestseller and gaining huge popularity on Amazon Canada, is merely the beginning of an upcoming trilogy. The process of the name Frances Lee becoming deeply engraved in the Canadian literary scene is also the process of our Korean immigrant history proudly decorating a page in the vast library of Canada. Her dream of having 'the ability to walk through walls' might have already been realized through her work. For she has walked right through the walls of race, generation, and language into the hearts of readers all over the world. So, I invite you to open this book with your children tonight. You will feel that the very stars Frances Lee saw under the Toronto night sky are also twinkling in the hearts of us Koreans. Ami Moon's cry of "We come in peace" as she roams the galaxy will now sound like our own proud declaration: "We stand here with pride." This work teaches us many things. That no matter where we come from or where we are now, we are all great peacekeepers protecting our own galaxies. I sincerely hope that this dazzling starlight launched by a Korean-Canadian author will brightly illuminate the path ahead for all our Korean immigrant families living on Canadian soil. For our adventure has only just begun.