A Single Shard

Average Rating:
4.87805
41 Reviews
Categories: , , , , , .
TitleA Single Shard
Publication TypeBook
Year of Publication2001
AuthorsPark, Linda Sue
Number of Pages148
PublisherClarion Books
CityNew York
ISBN0-395-97827-0 (hardcover)
Abstract

Park (Seesaw Girl) molds a moving tribute to perseverance and creativity in this finely etched novel set in mid- to late 12th-century Korea. In Ch'ul'po, a potter's village, Crane-man (so called because of one shriveled leg) raises 10-year-old orphan Tree Ear (named for a mushroom that grows "without benefit of "parent-seed"). Though the pair reside under a bridge, surviving on cast-off rubbish and fallen grains of rice, they believe "stealing and begging... made a man no better than a dog." From afar, Tree Ear admires the work of the potters until he accidentally destroys a piece by Min, the most talented of the town's craftsmen, and pays his debt in servitude for nine days. Park convincingly conveys how a community of artists works (chopping wood for a communal kiln, cutting clay to be thrown, etc.) and effectively builds the relationships between characters through their actions (e.g., Tree Ear hides half his lunch each day for Crane-man, and Min's soft-hearted wife surreptitiously fills the bowl). She charts Tree Ear's transformation from apprentice to artist and portrays his selflessness during a pilgrimage to Songdo to show Min's work to the royal court he faithfully continues even after robbers shatter the work and he has only a single shard to show.
URLhttp://www.amazon.com/Single-Shard-Linda-Sue-Park/dp/0440418518/

Supplemental Contributions

Members of the community have contributed the following materials as supplements to A Single Shard.

Title Attached Files Contributed By Contributed On Link

Ceramics Unit for A Single Shard

Unit for art teachers by Malia Bennett in two files, Trinity Area High School (Pittsburgh site)

 2 Malia Bennett 11/8/11

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A Single Shard/summary and activities

summary and a variety of activities for multiple grade levels

 1 Katherine Hoffer 9/29/10

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Average Rating:
4.87805
41 Reviews

Reviews for A Single Shard

5

Posted By: Ann C Tarafas

Posted On: January 21, 2019

I am a 7th special educator in an urban district with a student population that is almost 80% Hispanic. As I started to read A Single Shard, in the back of my mind I thought that my students would not appreciate this. I thought it started out a little slowly, but now realize that is part of the aura of the book. The writer weaves a tale that would hold a reader's interest. The dynamic of Crane-man and Tree-ear is one of interdependence; they needed each other, but they also loved each other. Crane-man did an awesome job raising Tree-ear, as he is a very polite and honest child, as evidenced by how honest he is when he finds the rice; his honesty is rewarded when the man lets him keep what he has found. We see further evidence of Tree-ears devotion to Crane-man when he goes to work for Min, and Ajima (Min's wife) begins feeding him. I won't ruin the plot point as to what Tree-ear does, but it is sweet. By the middle of the book,I was invested in these characters and shed a tear or two, both happy and sad. When I finished, I came to the conclusion that even my students would appreciate the story; that being said, A Single Shard is the perfect title, representative of more than, I think, the pottery. It's a reflection of what a single act of kindness, charity or good will can do in one's life. I loved, loved, loved this book.

5

Posted By: Bethany Roses

Posted On: January 21, 2019

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park is a must read! Before reading this book, I knew very little about the Asian culture. Through reading this book, the author embeds so many Asian traditions, so the reader can seamlessly follow along. The reader learns about the value of fine quality pottery through the work of Tree-Ear's apprenticeship with Min. Also, the reader learns the value of paying it forward, as it relates to Asian culture through the relationship between Tree-Ear's relationship with both Crane-Man and Min's wife. After reading this, I have a greater appreciation for the pottery work done during this time period and how seriously it was taken by the local potters. Thank you to Linda Sue Park for opening the world's eyes to this beautiful culture and time in history.

5

Posted By: April Smith

Posted On: January 7, 2019

A Single Shard is in the genre of historical fiction. In my opinion this was an endearing story about a homeless Korean orphan named Tree -ear. He was named this by his care taker, Crane-man. Crane-man was also homeless, and had a bad leg. Hence his name Crane-man. The story goes that a child was intended to be brought to the monks in the coast village in the mid 1100s. However, the monastery was closed, so the child was left with the homeless man under the bridge. No one ever came to retrieve him, so Crane-man raised him. He called him Tree Ear because he reminded him of the solitary fungi that grow on old tree trunks.

The village of Ch’ulp’o was well known in ancient Korea for its pottery. The story begins as Tree-ear secretly watches the master potter Min throw his clay and form beautiful vases in Min’s backyard. One day Tree-ear was discovered by Min because he was startled and broke several pieces. At that time, Tree-ear agreed to work for Min to pay for the pottery he broke. This was very hard work chopping the wood to fire the kilns in the village, but Tree-ear soon became accustomed to it. The potter’s wife also feed him. He was very grateful. He took food home for Crane-man too. He was hired to stay on for food for over a year.

The climax of the story happens when the royal emissary comes from the palace to hire a potter on commission to the Emperor. A rival potter discovers how to create a new design with inlay on the pottery. Tree-ear discovers this, but out of honor does not tell Min. However, after the rival’s wares are shown the secret is out. Min begins to make this same design but with more care and intricate detail. Min has a disaster when his pottery does not come out of the kiln correctly and is ruined. He fears that he will never get the commission. All the while, Tree-ear dreams of being a master potter like Min. But Min refuses to train him because Tree-ear is an orphan and Min’s son died.

Tree-ear convinces Min to make another vase, and he (Tree-ear) will take it to the Emperor’s man. This is a long journey. He makes it almost to the capital city when he is accosted by thieves. They rob him and throw the vases off the cliff. Tree-ear searches until he finds a good-sized shard that shows Min’s beautiful design inlaid. He takes this to the Emperor’s man. The trip is successful! The Emperor hires Min, and Min invites Tree-ear to be his student and learn the craft. The potter’s wife renames Tree-ear Hyung-pil which has a syllable of the deceased son. He was very honored. However, there was a sad aspect of the story. When Tree-ear returned from the big city with his good news, he learns that his friend Crane-man has died. Apparently, he was on the bridge. There was an accident where Crane-man was knocked off the bridge into the water and died. Tree-ear was very sad. He was invited to stay with Min and his wife.

The story has a bittersweet ending with Tree-ear finally finding a home and learning a trade. It is told that there is a beautiful vase that still exists today in a museum in Japan. The ancient vase has flying cranes on it. It was from this time period. The author unknown… could this be Tree-ear’s work…

I would love to read this story in my class as a read aloud. The students could draw beautiful vases with different designs. We could also research how to make pottery.

0

Posted By: Anna Pruden

Posted On: December 3, 2018

The Single Shard, a book written by Linda Sue Park, is a wonderful tale of a boy, Tree-ear and his journey on becoming a master potter. This story beautifully explains how Korean Celedon pottery is created by hand by the earth itself. There is something really beautiful about the character Tree-ear, his respect for the elderly, the reverence for the craft, and the self-lessness he displays with his friend, Crane-man, who together they live under a bridge.

This book would be used for 5th graders, but to used in direct relation to making pottery. This book would create in my students a sense of appreciation and wonder. It would show my students the rich history of how pottery was used, how it was valued, and how it was created in the mid-late 12th century.
For young grades, 3rd-4th, I would read this book aloud each week before we started working on our pottery projects, spending 9 weeks on this book.

5

Posted By: Crickett Fisher

Posted On: November 27, 2018

This is a wonderful book that examines the Buddhist religion and Confucianism belief systems. Tree-ear lives in a Buddhist culture where monks aid the poor and summon prayer by ringing bells. Roles of authority are clearly indicated when Tree-ear addresses Min’s wife, and the respect he shows his elders. The story demonstrates Confucianism in the role of relationships. Ruler to subject; husband to wife; father to son; teacher to student and friend to friend. By the encouragement of Crane-man, Tree-ear had developed the Confucian mindset by the age of ten; “Scholars read the great words of the world, but you and I must learn to read the world itself”. One could use this book to explore the values and morals of Confucianism and Buddhism.

I was thinking that one could use the book to have students explore East Asian religion and beliefs. Because I am an art teacher, I wanted to add some twists like the yin and yang concept. Students could explore what animal he or she would be in his or her next life; as if they were Buddhists, just as Crane-man wondered what animal he would be in the next life. Students could explore the meanings of different animals and the morals related to each animal. As an interesting project, students could combine aspects of their personalities and moral values, determine the animal associated with each aspect or value and create fictional combined animals. Students could create a drawing like the yin and yang symbol showing the movement of how their personality exists within themselves.

I really enjoyed the story and recommend this for students from fourth grade through middle school age.