BIBLIOGRAPHY
Park, Linda Sue. 2007. Tap Dancing on the Roof Sijo (Poems). Ill. by Istvan Banyi, New York, NY: Clarion Books. ISBN-10: 0-618-23483-7 ISBN-13: 978-0-618-23483-7
PLOT SUMMARY
Tap Dancing on the Roof Sijo (Poems) is Linda Sue Park first book of Korean poetry. Sijo poems are similar to Haiku but the ending always has humor, irony or a joke for the ending. It is a fun play with words. There are 27 poems with different themes - months, math, school, weather, birds, plants and more. Enjoy!
CRITICAL ANALYSIS (INCLUDING CULTURAL MARKERS)
Sijo poems have been the most popular Korean poetry for over 500 years. Sijo (see-szo or she-szo with the J pronounced as the French pronounce Jacques) was originally sung by Confucian scholars, royal court and the common people. Its cousin, Haiku, has been around for over 1000 years and does not have the flexibility that Sijo offers. With Sijo poetry there isn’t the formality seen in Haiku, allowing the writer to include feelings, emotions, lyrical features (which makes it easy for them to be sung), and they end with a play of words or joking. Sijo has 3 short lines or 6 long lines. Unlike haiku which focuses on nature themes, sijo can be about any theme with the unforeseen twist of the last line.
Here are a couple of fun examples from Linda Sue Park’s book Tap Dancing on the Roof Sijo (Poems):
Tennis
When the professionals play,
it’s like watching a metronome:
Racquet to racquet and back again,
the ball keeps a perfect, steady beat.
When I’m on the court with my friends,
we improvise: jazz, hip-hop.
School Lunch
Each food plopped by tongs of spatula
into its own little space----
square pizza here, square brownie there;
milk carton cube, rectangle tray.
My snack at home after school?
Anything without corners.
I did not see many cultural markers of Korea in this book. Some of the children did have short legs and round heads. There were a couple of children with shaded skin but the eyes were not almond shaped and the pictures were more fun and whimsical. These poems will make you think, especially the mathematical ones. I feel this book is most appropriate for children of ages 8 and up.
Linda Sue Park has written a wonderful book of Sijo poetry for children and adults. Sijo is not usually introduced when teaching a poetry lesson and I feel it should be included, because they are interesting and funny to read. Linda Sue Park explains what Korean sijo poetry is and she gives advice on how to write them. Enjoy, laugh and have fun with these poems.
Istvan Banyai, who illustrated Tap Dancing on the Roof Sijo (Poems), must have had a lot of fun with these pictures. You can feel the laughter, wind blowing the girls hair in October, stretching of the pants in November, and the rest of the poems. Banyai used mostly shades of greys, blacks, whites with a splash of color like lime green or pink. He really captured the whimsical, silly, fun, mathematical, nature, etc. of these fun and witty poems. The illustrations were executed digitally. The text was set in 12.5-point ITC Century Schoolbook Condensed.
REVIEW EXCERPTS
"Fresh and collegial, this offering stands out." Kirkus Reviews, Starred
Banyai's illustrations enhance the collection with an extra element of wit and imaginative freedom.
Horn Book
Park wants readers to try sijo for themselves, and in an extensive author's note she offers history, advice and encouragement.
Publishers Weekly
A smart and appealing introduction to an overlooked poetic form.
School Library Journal, Starred
With this lighthearted collection of her own sijo, the form will take a flying leap into the consciousness of both children and teachers.
Booklist, ALA, Starred Review
AWARDS/HONORS
2008 The Lion and the Unicorn Prize for Excellence in North American Poetry
2008 ALA Notable Book for Children
2007 Book Sense Award Finalist
2007 Horn Book Fanfare Selection
2007 ABC Children's Booksellers Choice Award
CONNECTIONS
Sijo poetry would be a great extension after teaching Haiku poetry. It would be fun to introduce Sijo and then let the students have fun writing their own poems adding their play on words on the last line. Be sure and have the children also illustrate their poems. These would be fun to display around the school or in the library to show Sijo poetry which a lot of people have never heard of.
Linda Sue Park Website
http://www.lspark.com/index.html
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