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A review by emergencily
Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim
challenging
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Historical fiction novel set during Japanese colonization & occupation of Korea spanning multiple decades, through the aftermath of WWII.
The book follows a few different characters' lives, with a central focus on two. One is a young girl sent to train in a courtesan house by her impoverished family. The other is the young son of a hunter from Pyongyang. Because the book weaves so many characters' stories together, it can sometimes feel all over the place and disjointed, especially so in the first half of the book. By the end, the author does a great job connecting everything in ways you wouldn't expect. Throughout the book, the author is setting up these connections. I loved the concept of "inyeon" in the book -- the threads that tie us to people in explicable ways over the course of our lives, and keep drawing us together in unexpected ways.
I also liked how the book engaged so strongly with the politics of the time period and focused so much on the Korean independence movement and resistance against colonization. It pays attention to the multiple different actors across political divisions: communists & leftists, Korean collaborators with the colonial government, rightists clamoring for American intervention. The scene where people come pouring out into the streets cheering when the Japanese surrender and finally begin to leave Korea moved me to tears.
It reminded me a bit of Pachinko because of the multi-decade, multi-character narratives and the similar time period.
The book follows a few different characters' lives, with a central focus on two. One is a young girl sent to train in a courtesan house by her impoverished family. The other is the young son of a hunter from Pyongyang. Because the book weaves so many characters' stories together, it can sometimes feel all over the place and disjointed, especially so in the first half of the book. By the end, the author does a great job connecting everything in ways you wouldn't expect. Throughout the book, the author is setting up these connections. I loved the concept of "inyeon" in the book -- the threads that tie us to people in explicable ways over the course of our lives, and keep drawing us together in unexpected ways.
I also liked how the book engaged so strongly with the politics of the time period and focused so much on the Korean independence movement and resistance against colonization. It pays attention to the multiple different actors across political divisions: communists & leftists, Korean collaborators with the colonial government, rightists clamoring for American intervention. The scene where people come pouring out into the streets cheering when the Japanese surrender and finally begin to leave Korea moved me to tears.
It reminded me a bit of Pachinko because of the multi-decade, multi-character narratives and the similar time period.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Colonisation, and War