From: Christine Hill <chill>
Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2002 09:39:33 -0500

Besides its elegant but simple writing, the thing I most admired about A Single Shard was its bold use of the Hill of the Falling Flowers as its climactic metaphor. Bold, because the act for which it was famous would likely be perceived differently in Korean and American cultures. Thus, Linda Sue Park disdains the facile, "they're just like us" method of writing about another culture and makes masterful use of point of view to show us how Tree Ear perceives it and what it means to him. When the King's concubines leap from the hill to their deaths rather than be captured by the enemy, Tree Ear and his culture view it as an act of great bravery. Suicide is rarely looked on as brave in American culture. Quite the opposite. Yet we are convinced to see it as Tree Ear does by its power in inspiring him to travel on with the single shard. Tree Ear is not an American boy in Korean dress, but a person of his own time and culture. Yet we can also see and celebrate our common humanity through him. Brava! Christine M. Hill Willingboro Public Library One Salem Road Willingboro, NJ 08046 chill at willingboro.org My new book! Ten Hispanic American Authors, Enslow, 2002
Received on Fri 15 Feb 2002 08:39:33 AM CST