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This is a generational family story about a Korean family starting in the early 1900s and going till the late 1900s. The first two-thirds of this book were the strongest - I was really invested in Sunja's struggles as she moved to Japan and had to try and survive there. The last third seemed a little weaker - there were a lot more characters introduced and I felt like not enough time spent on them to make them really engaging. The book was long, but I actually thought it could have been longer in order to spend more time fleshing out some of the character's motivations and backstories, especially in later chapters.
One other criticism I had was that the author had a tendency to gloss over big life events. Often if a character would die or something dramatic happened, it happened off-screen, meaning, between chapters or referenced in passing by another character. I think the book could have been stronger if the reader was able to read about some of these events through the eyes of the main characters.
The book overall was really poignant and clearly well-researched, with memorable characters and a thoughtful plot.
One other criticism I had was that the author had a tendency to gloss over big life events. Often if a character would die or something dramatic happened, it happened off-screen, meaning, between chapters or referenced in passing by another character. I think the book could have been stronger if the reader was able to read about some of these events through the eyes of the main characters.
The book overall was really poignant and clearly well-researched, with memorable characters and a thoughtful plot.