Monday, November 29, 2010
When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park
Like the author's first three novels, this is historical fiction set in Korea. This time the period is World War II, during the Japanese occupation. Told alternately by a young girl, Sun-hee, and her older brother, Tae-yul, the story traces the gradual suppression of every aspect of Korean culture by the occupying forces and the effects of these changes on Sun-hee and Tae-yul and their family. Their beloved uncle is secretly involved in the Resistance movement, and when Sun-hee misunderstands and relays a cryptic warning given by a Japanese schoolmate, Uncle disappears into hiding. Tae-yul is fascinated with airplanes and enlists in the Japanese army, leaving Sun-hee the responsibility of "reading between the lines" of his heavily censored letters. His assignment as a kamikaze pilot and his reported death are a shocking plot twist that leads despite all to a hopeful ending, as the Japanese surrender brings the war to a close. Dramatic, suspenseful, and thoroughly researched, this is an ambitious piece of storytelling that illuminates an aspect of this war unfamiliar to most American young people.*
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1) "We can't little cricket. It's against the law to fly this flag--even to put up a picture of it. Korea is part of the Japanese Empire now. But someday this will be our own country once more. Your own country."
ReplyDelete2) Tae-yul/Nobuo is an important character because he helps out his uncle. Him and Sun-hee/Keoko suspect something weird is going on with uncle, so they try to figure out what. Tae-yul also has to be strong, because he has to help his family in the tough times during the war.
3) The setting is in Japan, around the 1940's . Some places so far in the book, are Uncle's shop, their house, and their school .
4) Reasons why it's a historical Fiction text . ?
- This is when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.
- Japan did take over Korea to get to one of their bordering countries.
- The Japanese changed Korean names to Japanese ones, and made them honor Japan, not Korea. Koreans were forbidden of honoring anything that had to do with the Korean culture.
1. I agree with that because during world war two they took over other countries and made them learn their culture and language.
ReplyDelete2. The quote Uncle becoming a chin-il-pa is what worries Abuji? The chin-il-pa do everything they can to please the Japanese Patriotic Koreans those who work for independence from Japan hate the chin-il-pa. Sometimes the patriots wreck shops and homes. There are rumors that chi-il-pa get beaten,even killed. Abuji’s face always goes dark when he hears those rumors. Koreans killing Koreans, he once said it’s worse than anything the Japanese can do to us. And thats when Tae-yul gets suspicious
3. I agree that their house and their school is an important setting in the book but I don’t think there uncles shop is one because there aren’t big scenes in it.
4. In world war two they took over other countries and made them learn their culture and how two speak Japanese, but now every can believe what they want.
Tae-yul crossed the courtyard to the sitting room and turned on the radio. The transmission was static riddled and somewhat garbled, but we could still make out some words: “. . .spectacular victory . . . Pearl Harbor . . . Hawaii . . . important military base . . . enemy completely taken by surprise . . . heavy damage . . .”
ReplyDelete2. Tae-yul is an important character because he gets suspicious because his uncle and father are gettin mad at each other and his uncle is coming home after work
3. I think their house and their schools are important settings because most scenes are there.
4. This is a historical fiction book because in world war two they took over alot of countries and the author listed some.
And The Japanese bombed Perl Harbor to threaten America because the Japanese wanted more land.
The other countries Japan took over made the people learn there language and culture/
1) I agree with the quote, because in the 1940s Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, and they were taken by surprise.
ReplyDelete2) He is an important character. He gets suspicious, and so does Sun-hee.
3) I agree with you, because important parts happen in their house and their school.
4) Japan did want more land; That's why they took over most of Korea, because they were trying to get to a bordering country.
1. I think the story will end with Japan losing the war and Tae-yul coming home unharmed and there uncle will come back around the end of the book. There uncle went missing and Tae-yul is going to war.
ReplyDelete2. The current problem is that Tae-yul is going to war to support his family and they don’t think he should go to war, and Sun-hee is angry at him for volunteering for the war.
3. Sun-hee is an important character because she’s explaining what’s happening at schools in Korea like the invasion drills and how the Japanese just pick people to work for themv
" Suddenly, Jung-Sin gasped. Her older sister, Hee-won, had just been pulled from the line. Hee-won immediately dropped to a bow before Buntaro-San She started to say something, but he was already shouting at her. 'Get up! Go join the others!' Hee-Won rose with a whimper and stumbled toward the front. But when she got there, the principal looked at her and frowned. HE shook his head and sent her back to her place in line. 'Not that one,' he said to Buntaro-San. 'Choose another.' "(pg 97)
ReplyDeleteThis quote tells that this book is HF, because Japan needed Factory workers to make uniforms for soliders. One day at school, they asked the older girls to volunteer. Some did, but not enough. Buntaro-San picked girls by himself. Once he picked Hee-won, the principal sent her back in line, because her dad is a chin-il-pa.
" The next night after dinner, I spoke to Abuji. 'I would like to learn Hangul,' I said. 'Would you teach me?'
Abuji looked surprised for a brief moment. Then his eyelids dropped quickly and his expression grew blank. 'The teaching of Hangul is illegal,' he said quietly.
'Yes, Abuji,' I bowed my head respectfully. 'Illegal in school, but I was wondering--' I chose my next words carefully. 'Does that mean it is also illegal in someone's house where nobody else could see or hear?' " (Pg. 93)
This quote tells that this book is NF because Koreans weren't allowed to talk, write, or do anything Korean. But since Sun-hee wants to keep a journal, she wants to be able to write in Korean, not Japanese.
1) I also think Japan will lose the war, and Uncle will come home safely, as well as Tae-Yul.
2) To be honest, I'm kind of behind where we're supposed to be ..
So the current problem where I am, is that Tae-Yul is telling his family he enlisted in the Army, and that he leaves tomorrow. His family, especially Abuji, is VERY mad at him.
3) The most important character is Sun-Hee because she knows a lot that is going on with Uncle. She sees most of what's going on at school. Also, when a plane flew by, it was an American Plane. The plane dropped a ton of 'leaflets' on the ground. They were in Korean, so when she was to go outside to see what happened, she snuck one in her pocket so Abuji could read it.
Quotes from Monday ?
ReplyDelete"Suddenly, Jung-Sin gasped. Her older sister, Hee-won, had just been pulled from the line. Hee-won immediately dropped to a bow before Buntaro-San She started to say something, but he was already shouting at her. 'Get up! Go join the others!' Hee-Won rose with a whimper and stumbled toward the front. But when she got there, the principal looked at her and frowned. HE shook his head and sent her back to her place in line. 'Not that one,' he said to Buntaro-San. 'Choose another.'"(pg 97)
This quote tells that this book is HF, because Japan needed Factory workers to make uniforms for soliders. One day at school, they asked the older girls to volunteer. Some did, but not enough. Buntaro-San picked girls by himself. Once he picked Hee-won, the principal sent her back in line, because her dad is a chinilpa.
"The next night after dinner, I spoke to Abuji. 'I would like to learn Hangul,' I said. 'Would you teach me?'
Abuji looked surprised for a brief moment. Then his eyelids dropped quickly and his expression grew blank. 'The teaching of Hangul is illegal,' he said quietly.
'Yes, Abuji,' I bowed my head respectfully. 'Illegal in school, but I was wondering--' I chose my next words carefully. 'Does that mean it is also illegal in someone's house where nobody else could see or hear?'" (Pg. 93)
This quote tells that this book is NF because Koreans weren't allowed to talk, write, or do anything Korean. But since Sun-hee wants to keep a journal, she wants to be able to write in Korean, not Japanese.
1) I agree with you. I also think the Japanese will lose the war, and Tae-Yul and Uncle will come home safely.
ReplyDelete2) The current problem is that Tae-Yul inlisted in the Army, and that he leaves tomorrow. His family is very upset with him.
3) The most important character is Sun-Hee because she knows a lot that is going on with Uncle. She sees most of what's going on at school. Also, when a plane flew by, it was an American Plane. The plane dropped a ton of 'leaflets' on the ground. They were in Korean, so when she was to go outside to see what happened, she snuck one in her pocket so Abuji could read it.
Here are the quotes from Monday
ReplyDeleteOne day at school, there’s an announcement, an exciting one. The Japanese are going to build and airstrip just outside of town! On page 85.
This quote is Historical Fiction because the other countries they took over they built airstrips there two.
At last he looked up and spoke slowly. “Sun-hee, it is not the right time. There are too many eyes around us just now”. Pause. “But I promise one day to teach you Hangul. On page 93
This quote is historical fiction because kids in other countries that Japan took over if they were little kids they didn’t know how to speak there language our anything about there culture.
1. I agree that with you that the Japanese are going to lose the war and that Tae-yul and there Uncle is going to come home.
ReplyDelete2. I agree with what your saying about Tae-yul enlisting in the army but I think Sun-hee is mad at Tae-yul's decision more than Abuji.
3. I agree that Sun-hee is an important character because if anything happened at school she would talk about it with her brother because he's working on the airstrip.
1) The main problem in the book was that Korea was being taken over by Japan, which was in a war. Tae-Yul's family was in need, so he went to the war. I don't really know how it was solved..
ReplyDelete2) I was right about the Japanese losing the war. What I never expected is that Tae-Yul would be a Kamikaze, and fly. I though he would come home safely, but he had died ...
3) The book was sad because
-The struggles that the family had to go through. And also when they found out that Tae-Yul had died, it was really sad to read the letter he had written to him.
The book was intense sometimes because
-When the guards would search their house, they would tear everything apart. Also, when they would hide something, (like Sun-Hee/Keoko's journal) they would find it and burn it.
The book was thrilling because
- It was interesting to read about what the children were forced to do at school. It was also thrilling because a lot of the characters took risks. (Especially Tae-Yul, because he had no choice but to die.)
1. The main problem was that Japan was fighting a lot of countries and they took over the countries that bordered the ones they were fighting. It was solved by the Americans bombing Japan and the Emperor surrendering to the Americans and the Americans helped the countries Japan took over by giving them food and other supplies.
ReplyDelete2.My prediction was kind of right because Japan did lose and Tae-yul came home but Uncle is on his way home and got stuck in north Korea because they thought they could go to Japan and make them suffer for what they did.
3. I thought that the book was alright but I didn’t exactly like it that much because most of the books I like have more action and the part with the most suspense was when Tae-yul was on his mission to destroy a U.S ship also This book wasn’t really interesting it only revolved around The Japanese taking over Korea and most of the books I read have more problems than that. so I didn’t really enjoy this book.
1) "I knew right away that something unusual was happening, because the block leader didn't ask us to count off. He simply waited until enough people had gathered, then made his announcement. Not in Japanese. In Korean. The war was over. The Emperor had surrendered to the United States. Korea was free." (Pg 169-170)
ReplyDelete2) It wasn't exactly my favorite book .. but I would recommend it to my sister? I would recommend it to her because she also is interested in History, so she would enjoy this book. I agree with you, because this book didn't exactly have many interesting parts, but there were sooooomee.
(December 10th)
*2) was wrong for me. His family thought he had died, but he actually hadn't flown his mission. He had gotten thrown in jail, and he had come home safely. So I think my prediction was correct. (:
1. I agree that the main problem is that the Japanese took over Korea but I think that another problem is that Sun-hee and her parents received a letter saying Tae-yul was dead and the way they felt after that like nothing mattered because Tae-yul and uncle were gone.
ReplyDelete2. My prediction was that the Japanese would lose the warand that Tae-yul would come home but I never thought that uncle would get stuck in north Korea.
3. I disagree that the book was thrilling because they always had the same problem throughout the book either the Japanese wanted something or the Japanese made them do something they didn't want to.