Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

History failed us but no matter.

THAT is the opening line of the book Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. I could not agree nor disagree that in history books, we seldom read about the poor people, the ordinary citizens who suffer the wages of war. The reason is that I have not read that many history books. The ones that I have read, I could not recall anymore.

Pachinko is about a family saga of Korean generations who left their homeland in search for a better life. Before reading this book, I have no knowledge of Japanese-Korean relationship during the world war II and it was a surprise that Koreans were treated harshly by the Japanese. Which is one thing I want to understand better as I only read from a Korean point of view. It makes me wonder how this book was received by the Japanese readers.

It started with Hoonie and Yangjin, a husband and wife who owned a boarding house in the village of Yeongdo in Korea. They had a child named Sunja who was later impregnated by Koh Han Su, a Korean man who was adopted by a Japanese family when he was a child.

In Order to Live by Yeonmi Park

I'M ONLY in Chapter 6 of this book and I’ve already learned so much. I wasn’t really interested in the relationship between South and North Korea but as I read through the pages of this book, I am starting to become curious about their culture and politics– especially about political structure and agenda of North Korea.

So far, I’ve learned that it was external forces during the Cold War that pushed this one nation to separate. I picture twin sisters who have been ripped apart by some dysfunctional families who wanted to own them but left them neglected in the end. It is so heartbreaking.⁣

Korean Literature

Because of Han Kang, I am now interested in Korean literature. Here are some gems I found in the internet:

Korean Literature

Korean Literature Now - Youtube