Linda Sue Park (born March 25, 1960) is a

Korean-American Korean Americans are Americans of Korean ancestry (mostly from South Korea). In 2015, the Korean-American community constituted about 0.56% of the United States population, or about 1.82 million people, and was the fifth-largest Asian Americans ...

author who published her first novel, ''Seesaw Girl'', in 1999. She has written six children's

novels A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

and five

picture books A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The images ...

. Park's work achieved prominence when she received the prestigious 2002

Newbery Medal The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished contr ...

for her novel ''

A Single Shard ''A Single Shard'' is a novel by Linda Sue Park, set in 12th-century Korea. It won the 2002 Newbery Medal, awarded for excellence in children's literature. It also received an honorable mention from the Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature ...

''. She has written the ninth book in ''

The 39 Clues ''The 39 Clues'' is a series of adventure novels written by a collaboration of authors, including Rick Riordan, Gordon Korman, Peter Lerangis, Jude Watson, Patrick Carman, Linda Sue Park, Margaret Peterson Haddix, Roland Smith, David Baldacci, J ...

'', ''

Storm Warning At sea, a storm warning is a warning issued by the National Weather Service of the United States when winds between 48 knots (89 km/h, 55 mph) and 63 knots (117 km/h, 73 mph) are occurring or predicted to occur soon. The wi ...

'', published on May 25, 2010.

Personal life

Linda Sue Park was born on March 25, 1960 in

Urbana, Illinois Urbana ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, Urbana had a population of 38,336. As of the 2010 United States Census, Urbana is the List of municipalities in Illinois, 38th-most pop ...

and was raised outside

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Linda Sue Park's parents immigrated to the United States in the 1950s, for their education. Park has been writing poetry and stories since the age of four. Park published her first poem when she was nine years old for ''Trailblazer'' magazine. Through elementary and high school, she continued to publish poems in magazines for children and young people. She published her first book in 1999, '' Seesaw Girl''. Park competed on the

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...

team at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

and graduated with a high degree in English. She also obtained advanced degrees in literature from

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

in Ireland and also from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

. Before writing her first book, Park worked at many jobs, including

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. P ...

for a major oil firm, food journalism for British magazines and newspapers, and teaching English as a second language to college students. Park lives with her family in

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...

Themes

Park is best known for her

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

. With the exception of three picture books and two novels, all of Park's books center upon

Korean history The Lower Paleolithic era in the Korea, Korean Peninsula and Manchuria began roughly half a million years ago. Christopher J. Norton, "The Current State of Korean Paleoanthropology", (2000), ''Journal of Human Evolution'', 38: 803–825. The e ...

and

Korean culture The traditional culture of Korea is the shared cultural and historical heritage of Korea and southern Manchuria before the division of Korea in 1945. Manchuria refers to the ancient geographical and historical region in Northeast Asia, includ ...

. Her first three novels are set in ancient or medieval

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

. However, her fourth novel, ''

When My Name Was Keoko ''When My Name Was Keoko'' is a 2002 Asian historic fiction novel written by Linda Sue Park. It was first published on March 18, 2002, through Clarion Books. The book is set in Korea during World War II, when Japan conquered Korea and was aiming to ...

'', is about the more recent history of the

Japanese occupation of Korea Between 1910 and 1945, Korea was ruled as a part of the Empire of Japan. Joseon, Joseon Korea had come into the Japanese sphere of influence with the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876; a complex coalition of the Meiji period, Meiji government, military ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. ''Project Mulberry'' occurs in a contemporary setting outside Chicago. Park's book, ''Archer’s Quest'', introduces a historical figure into modern times. Park shares her passion for baseball in her book, ''Keeping Score''. Park's book, ''A Long Walk to Water,'' features family friend Salva Dut and his childhood experience growing up in the Sudan as well as another character, Nya who spends her entire day gathering and transporting water to her family. Park researched her Korean heritage for her books, demonstrated by historical details within the story along with sections for author's notes and bibliographies. Her topics feature characteristic elements of Korean culture, including:

embroidery Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen on c ...

(''Seesaw Girl'');

kite fighting Fighter kites are kites used for the sport of kite fighting. Traditionally most are small, unstable single-line flat kites where line tension alone is used for control, at least part of which is manja, typically glass-coated cotton strands, ...

(''

The Kite Fighters ''The Kite Fighters'' is a 2000 historical children's novel that was written by Linda Sue Park and illustrated by her father Eung Won Park. It was first published on March 20, 2000, through Clarion Books and follows two brothers in Korea during th ...

'');

celadon ''Celadon'' () is a term for pottery denoting both wares glazed in the jade green celadon color, also known as greenware or "green ware" (the term specialists now tend to use), and a type of transparent glaze, often with small cracks, that was ...

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...

(''A Single Shard'');

silkworms The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically imp ...

(''Project Mulberry'');

Korean food Korean cuisine has evolved through centuries of social and political change. Originating from ancient Prehistoric Korea, agricultural and nomadic traditions in Korea and southern Manchuria, Korean cuisine reflects a complex interaction of ...

(''Bee-Bim Bop''); and

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

(''Archer’s Quest''). She also continues to publish poetry.

Works

Novels

* ''Seesaw Girl'' (1999) * ''

'' (2000) **

Junior Library Guild Junior Library Guild, formerly the Junior Literary Guild, is a commercial book club devoted to juvenile literature. It was created in 1929 as one of the enterprises of the Literary Guild, an adult book club created in 1927 by Samuel W. Craig and H ...

Selection, Spring 2000 **Notable Books for a Global Society ** Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year *''

'' (2001) **

2002 **

Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature The Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature (APAAL) are a set of literary awards presented annually by the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA). The APALA was formed in 1980 "to create an organization that would address the n ...

Honorable Mention *''

'' (2002) **

Jane Addams Laura Jane Addams (September 6, 1860 May 21, 1935) was an American settlement activist, reformer, social worker, sociologist, public administrator, and author. She was an important leader in the history of social work and women's suffrage ...

Honor citation **''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' Best Books of the Year **''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'' Best Books of the Year *''Project Mulberry'' (2005) **

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

Young Adult Fiction Award **

, Honorable Mention *''Archer's Quest'' (2006) *'' Click: One novel ten authors'', chapter one (2007) *''Keeping Score'' (2008) *''

'' (2010), 39 Clues series *'' A Long Walk to Water'' (2010) *''The Chronicles of Harris Burdick'' (The Harp, 2011), contributor, Illus. by

Chris Van Allsburg Chris Van Allsburg (born June 18, 1949) is an American illustrator and writer of children's books. He has won two Caldecott Medals for U.S. picture book illustration, for ''Jumanji'' (1981) and ''The Polar Express'' (1985), both of which he al ...

*'' Trust No One'' (2012), 39 Clues series *''Forest of Wonders'' (2016), Wing and Claw trilogy, Illus. by Jennifer Black Reinhardt *''Cavern of Secrets'' (2017), Wing and Claw trilogy, Illus. by Jim Madsen *''Beast of Stone'' (2018), Wing and Claw trilogy, Illus. by Jim Madsen *''Prairie Lotus'' (2020)

Picture books

* ''Mung-Mung: A Foldout Book of Animal Sounds'' (2004), Illus. by Diane Bigda * ''The Firekeeper's Son'' (2004), Illus. by Julie Downing ** Irma S. and James H. Black (ISB) Honor, 2005 **

, Best Illustration in Children's Literature * ''Yum! Yuck! A Foldout Book of People Sounds From Around the World'' (2005), Co-authored by Julia Durango, Illus. by Sue Ramá **

ALA Notable Children's Books American Library Association Notable lists are announced each year in January by various divisions within the American Library Association (ALA). There are six lists, part of the larger list of ALA awards, ALA awards structure. * ''ALA Notable Book ...

, 2006 * ''Bee-bim Bop'' (2005), Illus. by Ho Baek Lee * ''What Does Bunny See? A Book of Colors and Flowers'' (2005), Illus. by Maggie Smith * ''Tap Dancing on the Roof: Sijo Poems'' (2007), Illus. by

Istvan Banyai Istvan Banyai (27 February 1949 – 15 December 2022) was a Hungarian illustrator and animator. He was born in suburban Budapest and received his BFA from Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design. He moved to France in 1973, then to the United St ...

** The Lion and the Unicorn Prize for Excellence in North American Poetry ** ABC Children's Booksellers Choice Award * ''The Third Gift'' (2011), Illus. by

Bagram Ibatoulline Bagram Ibatoulline is a Russian-born artist who has illustrated numerous books for younger readers written by Philip Booth, Kate DiCamillo, Michelle Houts, Stephen Mitchell, Linda Sue Park, Lois Lowry and others. His illustrations have been note ...

* ''Xander's Panda Party'' (2013), Illus. by Matt Phelan * ''Yaks Yak: Animal Word Pairs'' (2016), Illus. by Jennifer Black Reinhardt

Poetry

* "On Meeting a Poet," "Changing the Sheets," "Mobius," " Fourth-Grade Science Project," in ''Avatar Review'' * "Handstand", in ''Atlanta Review'', Spring/Summer 2000 * "Seven Sins: Portrait of an Aristocratic Young Woman," "Irreversible Loyalty," "A Little World," "The Ramparts at Calvi," in ''The Alsop Review'' * "Armchair Journey," "Hyphen," in ''Miller's Pond'', Spring 2002 * "Picturing the Words," "When the Last Panda Died," "Tide Pool," in ''Avatar Review'', Summer 2004

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Linda Sue 1960 births Living people American writers of Korean descent American children's writers American child writers Newbery Medal winners Jeopardy! contestants Stanford University alumni American novelists of Asian descent 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers American women children's writers American women novelists