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ashleyirving 's review for:
Daughters of the Dragon
by William Andrews
Jae-Hee's story was worth telling and worth reading, but the writing did not do it justice, and came dangerously close to ruining it. Anna Carlson, the protagonist granddaughter, is a completely undeveloped character, and the author's attempt at her modern voice ("so like, you know what I mean? Like, right?") was such a distraction. A few elements that should be cultural markers but were used lazily really make things unbelievable or take you out of the story every few chapters.
With Anna's story (all the pieces were there and just wasted - orphaned, culturally and historically removed, but curious, lonely, grieving, but also strong), it reads like an older white man's attempt at thinking and sounding like a young woman, but without nuance or depth or benefit of the doubt. You never forget it's William Andrews telling the story the way you might have if it had a more authentic voice behind it.
A constant pain point in the story is that Anna never really responds or reacts to her grandmother's story in a realistic way. While you as a reader are emotionally pulled into her kitchen, the camps, the farm, the government, the bar, the rich history and drama, you are inevitably disappointed and unsatisfied by Anna's complete lack of realistic, instinctive response (and would someone who traveled as far she did to find her roots really be so detached from emotion when hearing about the horrors of them?). The story would have been much stronger had it just been Jae-Hee's.
Final pain point: the dragon comb was overused and over-referenced. It had significance to Jae-Hee, and is a touch of magic, but its impact was lost because its image was summoned every other page, instead of focusing on the moment or action at hand in more depth.
All aside, Anna and her non-story, the comb, the very "tell, not show" language could be forgiven if you tried hard enough to stay rooted in Jae-Hee's story. Anyone unfamiliar with World War II, the Korean War, the development and internal workings of North and South Korea, will find jewels and fascinating, heartbreaking experiences here. Jae-Hee's truth is a history that deserves recognition no matter what, who, or how.
With Anna's story (all the pieces were there and just wasted - orphaned, culturally and historically removed, but curious, lonely, grieving, but also strong), it reads like an older white man's attempt at thinking and sounding like a young woman, but without nuance or depth or benefit of the doubt. You never forget it's William Andrews telling the story the way you might have if it had a more authentic voice behind it.
A constant pain point in the story is that Anna never really responds or reacts to her grandmother's story in a realistic way. While you as a reader are emotionally pulled into her kitchen, the camps, the farm, the government, the bar, the rich history and drama, you are inevitably disappointed and unsatisfied by Anna's complete lack of realistic, instinctive response (and would someone who traveled as far she did to find her roots really be so detached from emotion when hearing about the horrors of them?). The story would have been much stronger had it just been Jae-Hee's.
Final pain point: the dragon comb was overused and over-referenced. It had significance to Jae-Hee, and is a touch of magic, but its impact was lost because its image was summoned every other page, instead of focusing on the moment or action at hand in more depth.
All aside, Anna and her non-story, the comb, the very "tell, not show" language could be forgiven if you tried hard enough to stay rooted in Jae-Hee's story. Anyone unfamiliar with World War II, the Korean War, the development and internal workings of North and South Korea, will find jewels and fascinating, heartbreaking experiences here. Jae-Hee's truth is a history that deserves recognition no matter what, who, or how.