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

Korean-American Korean Americans () are Americans of full or partial Korean ethnic descent. While the broader term Overseas Korean in America () may refer to all ethnic Koreans residing in the United States, the specific designation of Korean American impli ...

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

. 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''. She has written the ninth book in '' The 39 Clues'', ''

Storm Warning At sea, a storm warning is a warning issued by the National Weather Service of the United States when winds between are occurring or predicted to occur soon. The winds must not be associated with a tropical cyclone. If the winds are associate ...

'', published on May 25, 2010.

Personal life

Linda Sue Park was born on May 19 1960, in

Urbana, Illinois Urbana ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 census, Urbana had a population of 38,336. It is a principal city of the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, which had 236,000 residents i ...

, and was raised outside

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. 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 group of sport that includes physical exercises requiring Balance (ability), balance, Strength training, strength, Flexibility (anatomy), flexibility, agility, Motor coordination, coordination, artistry and endurance. The movem ...

team at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

and graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in English. She also obtained advanced degrees in literature from Trinity College in Ireland and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

. 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. Pu ...

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 in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

Themes

Park is best known for her

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the Setting (narrative), setting of particular real past events, historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literatur ...

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

Korean history The Lower Paleolithic era on the Korean Peninsula and in 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 earli ...

and

Korean culture The traditional culture of Korea is the shared cultural and historical heritage of Korea before the division of Korea in 1945. Since the mid-20th century, Korea has been split between the North Korean and South Korean sovereign state, stat ...

. Her first three novels are set in ancient or medieval

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

. However, her fourth novel, '' When My Name Was Keoko'', is about the more recent history of the

Japanese occupation of Korea From 1910 to 1945, Korea was ruled by the Empire of Japan under the name Chōsen (), the Japanese reading of "Joseon". Japan first took Korea into its sphere of influence during the late 1800s. Both Korea (Joseon) and Japan had been under polic ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. ''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 art of decorating Textile, fabric or other materials using a Sewing needle, needle to stitch Yarn, thread or yarn. It is one of the oldest forms of Textile arts, textile art, with origins dating back thousands of years across ...

(''Seesaw Girl''); kite fighting ('' The Kite Fighters'');

celadon Celadon () is a term for pottery denoting both wares ceramic glaze, glazed in the jade green Shades of green#Celadon, celadon color, also known as greenware or "green ware" (the term specialists now tend to use), and a type of transparent glaze, ...

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

(''A Single Shard'');

silkworms ''Bombyx mori'', commonly known as the domestic silk moth, is a moth species belonging to the family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of '' Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. Silkworms are the larvae of silk moths. The silkworm is of ...

(''Project Mulberry'');

Korean food Korean cuisine is the set of foods and culinary styles which are associated with Korean culture. This cuisine has evolved through centuries of social and political change. Originating from ancient agricultural and nomadic traditions in K ...

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

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

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

Works

Novels

Source: * ''Seesaw Girl'' (1999) * '' The Kite Fighters'' (2000) **

Junior Library Guild Junior Library Guild, formerly the Junior Literary Guild, is a commercial Book sales club, 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 Samue ...

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

Honorable Mention *'' When My Name Was Keoko'' (2002) **

Jane Addams Laura Jane Addams (September 6, 1860May 21, 1935) was an American Settlement movement, settlement activist, Social reform, reformer, social worker, sociologist, public administrator, philosopher, and author. She was a leader in the history of s ...

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 ...

'' 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, wi ...

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

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

Young Adult Fiction Award **

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

'' (2010),

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 ...

series *''

A Long Walk to Water ''A Long Walk to Water'' (sometimes shortened to ALWTW) is a short novel written by Linda Sue Park and published in 2010. It blends the true story of Water for South Sudan#Salva Dut, Salva Dut whose story is based in 1985, a part of the Dinka p ...

'' (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 writer and illustrator 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),

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

Source: * ''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, 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 * ''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 Sua 1960 births Living people American writers of Korean descent American children's writers American child writers Contestants on American game shows Stanford University alumni American novelists of Asian descent American women 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 Newbery Medal winners