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amberwallace2012's review against another edition
5.0
A beautiful story. I had a roller-coaster of emotions reading this novel.
whitneysederberg's review against another edition
5.0
when i made my first asian friend in elementary school, i was really excited to tell my mom, since we were pretty isolated within an all white community. however, when i told her that my new friend was japanese, my mom said that i should be careful and not trust her. Pachinko gives a much more complex perspective on this dynamic, and i learned a lot even though i’m pretty well versed in korean/japanese cultures. i really really love all of the characters and the omniscient empathy made me feel like i was part of the family. i would highly highly recommend this to anyone interested in east asian identity!
hannahwintersreads's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
icy_lightning's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
mollpie's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
rubaiya_imam's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
halthemonarch's review against another edition
5.0
At first I was wondering where the story would go. It seemed to zoom past Hoonie and Yangjin’s life together in Osaka, and then into Sunja’s affair with Hansu. I started to realize this was a story about a whole family on a journey, and then Noa and Mozasu were born and named after the prophets and holy men Yoseb and Isak learned about in church. The same feeling evoked when I read If I Had Your Face and Crazy Rich Asians wells in me now about how American and certain Asian countries, and likely many more countries around the world believe that a woman’s life is suffering; that such a thing might be wrong and unfair but it is undoubtedly the way things are— The same goes for men who believe in honor and sovereignty, that the government is out to get you, that you’re either the colonizer or the colonized, and that war and capitalism fucks us all. I thought I knew my world history but I didn’t know the width of how people suffered in Korea under Japan’s occupation.
I read in another review that this is a book that they read slowly because every part of it felt like it needed to be sat with, and I absolutely agree. The chapters are linear and have gulps of time between them. In the first breath of the book we are Yangjin and Hoonie. In the second breath we are Sunja and Isak, Kyunghee and Yoseb, and Hansu (the adulterous pedophile) behind them all at a distance. Us as readers see how hard Sunja worked to provide for her sons, Noa and Mozasu, and how anxious they were about money, and then we see her boys growing into men in their own rites. At times, the whole family is together and the quote on the cover comes to mind: “[Pachinko is] A powerful meditation on what immigrants sacrifice in order to achieve a home in the world.”
Thinking of the way this book was written, I don’t favor this character over that one or lament his or her passed decisions. Every scene is so richly packed with visuals and emotional language that leaves me with an understanding of everyone's character and intent. The war happened around them all, tragedy sometimes struck, and they were always doing their best to get by and keep hold of dignity. The quiet and resilient pridefulness Sunja inherits from Yangjin is what bonds the family together. That and —barf—Hansu’s money. I loved the part about Mozasu and Ume being childhood that might one day live in the United states, and I gasped when she died. was tickled at the fact that Mozasu's childhood friend Haruki and his wife Ayame were part of the gsm (even when I'm not actively seeking lgbt+ books, the alphabet mafia will always find me ❤) Culturally, there seems to be a lot of stock in being "a good Korean", a man who doesn't let his wife work, a person who doesn't partake in shameful things; that a man must have a job and not be lazy or worthless. Such things are baldly said and not just implied, and these characters from Yangjin all the way down to Mozsazu’s children go through great pains to belong-- facing the pressures of being denied empathy for things they cannot control. Sunja never really reconciled with how she let Hansu into her life, Ayame was ashamed of who she was, Noa was shamed by his parentage, Haruki was even considering suicide in his situation, and on it goes. By the end, I mourned all that Sunja lost and respected why she continued on. Each death and dramatic turn was resonant and gripping in a way that won’t soon leave my mind. I’m glad I own a physical copy so I can reread it whenever I want :)
I gotta say I still have no idea how the game of Pachinko works, or that (until the end of the novel) it’s actually a *Japanese* game that’s apparently so degenerate it’s associated with “shady Koreans” in its own homeland? The chasm between colonizer and colonized is demonstrated in simply the name of the game.
I read in another review that this is a book that they read slowly because every part of it felt like it needed to be sat with, and I absolutely agree. The chapters are linear and have gulps of time between them. In the first breath of the book we are Yangjin and Hoonie. In the second breath we are Sunja and Isak, Kyunghee and Yoseb, and Hansu (the adulterous pedophile) behind them all at a distance. Us as readers see how hard Sunja worked to provide for her sons, Noa and Mozasu, and how anxious they were about money, and then we see her boys growing into men in their own rites. At times, the whole family is together and the quote on the cover comes to mind: “[Pachinko is] A powerful meditation on what immigrants sacrifice in order to achieve a home in the world.”
Thinking of the way this book was written, I don’t favor this character over that one or lament his or her passed decisions. Every scene is so richly packed with visuals and emotional language that leaves me with an understanding of everyone's character and intent. The war happened around them all, tragedy sometimes struck, and they were always doing their best to get by and keep hold of dignity. The quiet and resilient pridefulness Sunja inherits from Yangjin is what bonds the family together. That and —barf—Hansu’s money. I loved the part about Mozasu and Ume being childhood that might one day live in the United states, and I gasped when she died. was tickled at the fact that Mozasu's childhood friend Haruki and his wife Ayame were part of the gsm (even when I'm not actively seeking lgbt+ books, the alphabet mafia will always find me ❤) Culturally, there seems to be a lot of stock in being "a good Korean", a man who doesn't let his wife work, a person who doesn't partake in shameful things; that a man must have a job and not be lazy or worthless. Such things are baldly said and not just implied, and these characters from Yangjin all the way down to Mozsazu’s children go through great pains to belong-- facing the pressures of being denied empathy for things they cannot control. Sunja never really reconciled with how she let Hansu into her life, Ayame was ashamed of who she was, Noa was shamed by his parentage, Haruki was even considering suicide in his situation, and on it goes. By the end, I mourned all that Sunja lost and respected why she continued on. Each death and dramatic turn was resonant and gripping in a way that won’t soon leave my mind. I’m glad I own a physical copy so I can reread it whenever I want :)
I gotta say I still have no idea how the game of Pachinko works, or that (until the end of the novel) it’s actually a *Japanese* game that’s apparently so degenerate it’s associated with “shady Koreans” in its own homeland? The chasm between colonizer and colonized is demonstrated in simply the name of the game.
rachelalittle's review against another edition
4.5
Read on the cruise. Glad I read it quickly, enjoyed it. The story is long and I think momentum helps with that, and momentum helps with remembering the names of all the characters. It was a lovely story and I would recommend, if the size of the novel doesn't intimidate.
itsbecksmidwest's review against another edition
Didn’t follow “show, don’t tell.” Writing was choppy.
2catmom's review against another edition
5.0
I started to read the book but couldn’t get into it. I watched the Apple TV, mini drama, and it was incredible. Restarted reading the book and the book zipped by.
Covering four generations of Koreans from the start of Japanese occupation through World War II through the modern age.
Heartbreaking and poignant. A woman’s lot in life is to suffer and die.
Seeing racism from another lens outside of American racism shows how ugly the human spirit can be. The cruelty of war is just heartbreaking and the wish to just work hard to get out of your situation can still lead to absolutely nothing. The irony of past is what allows for the family to survive this difficult time, the challenge of living for one’s ideals versus living to live versus living for others shows stark contrast between many of the characters in the book.
This is just incredible and so beautiful and an amazing
Covering four generations of Koreans from the start of Japanese occupation through World War II through the modern age.
Heartbreaking and poignant. A woman’s lot in life is to suffer and die.
Seeing racism from another lens outside of American racism shows how ugly the human spirit can be. The cruelty of war is just heartbreaking and the wish to just work hard to get out of your situation can still lead to absolutely nothing. The irony of past is what allows for the family to survive this difficult time, the challenge of living for one’s ideals versus living to live versus living for others shows stark contrast between many of the characters in the book.
This is just incredible and so beautiful and an amazing