＂A master of one liner, Shin Dal-ja begins another remarkable volume of verse, Bukchon, with two one-liners, and no stanza break. Adopting this simple yet hard-to-master technique, she achieves uncommon concentration and musicality. The village called Bukchon is depicted as a regional utopia. Therein are multitudes of beautiful things: age-old trees, artwork traditional and modern, totally Korean-style houses and buildings, and most of all, lovable fellow citizens who breathe together the living past in present. This is the authentic identity of the poet and her village, ultimately of her country Korea. Shin’s verse is a pleasure to the eye, a transformative force to the mind. To top it all, her lyrical strength, with ample display of subtle wit, often shines beyond imagination＂--