Frances Park

I loved this book because it is a great story, but I also really loved how the authors told the story and how the pictures enhanced the story. They described the surroundings and the setting so well that even without the pictures, I could envision what the character was seeing. The story is based off of their mother’s journey from North Korea to South Korea before the war and even though I, and possibly a lot of other readers, can’t personally relate to the characters and their situation, I and many others could relate to feeling scared about the unknown. The story is told in English, but the characters do speak a little Korean to each other and at the top of each page there are Korean symbols. There is also a page at the beginning of the book with all these symbols and their English translation, which is a great way for the authors to expose the reader to the language.… (mehr)

I like this book for three reasons. First, I like the plot of the story. There were lots of great tension as the mom and Sue wait for the father’s news after he left to go to South Korea and during Sue’s journey to South Korea. They were constantly hiding from soldiers and nearly die having to cross the river that separated North and South Korea. Second, I like the bigger issue the author wants her readers to obtain from reading the book. The idea of crossing the broader is not as easy as it sounds and most of the time, it caused death. Lastly, I like the illustration of the book. Before the idea of going to South Korea was introduced, the colors were bright and warm but after the idea was introduced, the color changed to be dark and cool. All of the different components of the book adds to the bigger issue the author wants her readers to obtain from reading.… (mehr)

"My Freedom Trip" by Frances Park and Ginger Park is about a child's escape from the oppressive North Korea. I liked this book because it portrays a child's thoughts and perspective on escaping North Korea. It is in first person point of view, from the eyes of the little girl. It is historic. The language displays an unknown to the child, Soo. First her father left and she didn't understand "danger" She did not understand everything that was going on, but she obeyed the man taking her over the border. The writing is suspenseful and very engaging. The main purpose of this story is to show the stress and difficulty of escaping oppression in the middle of the night.… (mehr)