A Single Shard

A Single Shard	Yearling Book
Written by Linda Sue Park	2003
Historical Fiction	148 pages
Reading Level ages 9-12	Newberry Award

Summary

Tree-ear lives under a bridge with Crane-man, who has a crippled leg. They survive by storing through the village garbage heaps and scrounging in the woods for mushrooms and edible plants. Tree-ear has been watching the master potter Min at his wheel for weeks. It’s like magic to see the clay form something in the master’s hands. Tree-ear is curious and ventures closer, picking up a box with four other boxes nestled inside of it. He is startled as the master returns and drops the lid he was holding. He begs forgiveness and had to work nine days for the three it took Min to make the masterpiece that is ruined. Tree-ear is so excited. He will become an apprentice and learn how to form the clay. For the next nine days, he chops wood far from the village and carts it back and stacks it at the kiln entrance. He is happy to work, because he is given food for lunch and saves half for Crane-man to eat when he returned to the bridge each night. Min’s wife found his hiding place for his half eaten bowl and would fill it full each day. Tree-ear learns how to cut the clay into brick and takes it to the straining area to be slid through three, four almost five times before Min accepts the consistency. He returns home tired with aching muscles and blisters but happy with the prospect of making his own pot one day. He asked when he would try his hand at the wheel. Min refuses; Tree-ear is not his son. The tradition was to pass it down to the son with all the secrets, and Min’s son had died. Tree-ear keeps working for Min, but the joy seemed to disappear from it. He found that pottery isn’t all wheel work. He began to keep a ball of clay in his pocket that he would work on in his spare time. He traded his finished petal to one of Min’s petal pot and could not see the different. An emissary came to give a potter a commission to work for the emperor. One potter used different slips but was impatient and didn’t have a perfect pot under the fine work. Min works long hours to recreate the same effect on his perfect pot, but the firing of the pots gave off the dreaded brown spots on the clear green surface. The emissary says that he would be in the capital if by some chance Min could deliver samples of his work there. Tree-ear offers to take the finished pieces there. Crane-man makes a straw carrying case and gives him advice for the road. Tree-ear gives Crane-man the small clay monkey he worked on. Crane-man immediately ties it to his belt. Tree-ear sets off and when he is almost there, he is waylaid by robbers. They steal the last of his coin and break the vases maliciously. Tree-ear found a shard that still had the detail work on it and decides to still take it to the capital. At the gate, he demands to see the emissary and presents the small piece. The emissary sees the detail and gives the commission to Min. When he returns, Tree-ear tells Min the news and is off to tell Crane-man when he is told by Min that Crane-man was killed. Min and his wife adopt Tree-ear and Min starts to teach him how to spin clay.

Reaction

I enjoyed reading this book. It had an interesting plot and was well researched about the pottery process and the different steps Tree-ear learned.

Potential Problems

There is prejudice against Tree-ear because he is an orphan and the village people avoid him. Also, Tree-ear was poor but he had strong morals and worked hard for his food.

Recommendations

I would recommend this book to students who enjoy learning about other cultures and times. Also, this would be a good introduction to an art unit in pottery.