Scan barcode
A review by nini23
Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
3.75
Beasts of a Little Land is a sweeping Korean historical fiction saga by debut author Juhea Kim. Covering the period of 1917 to 1965, those acquainted with Korean history will know these were turbulent chaotic times under Japanese occupation and imperialism (Japan annexed Korea in 1910), the Korean Independence movement and later the breakup of the country by American and Russian forces. The novel opens in 1917 in PyongAhn where an experienced hunter is tracking a leopard which turns out to be a tigerling instead. This hunter (later his name is revealed - Nam KyungSoo) is known by the moniker PyongAhn Tiger and was a soldier in the Korean Imperial Army. He saves a group of Japanese soldiers from a tiger attack which has repercussions for many of the characters years later. One of the Japanese soldiers Yamada Genzo gives the hunter a cigarette case as a gesture of gratitude for saving their lives.
The title of the book refers to something Yamada says later We don't have such ferocious beasts in Japan, and we're a far bigger country. How such beasts have flourished in such a little land is incomprehensible. At the time, large wild animals like tigers, leopards, bears and elephants roamed throughout the Korean peninsula; sadly they've been hunted/killed to near extinction and the book notes that the Siberian tiger is marked as officially extinct in Korea. Currently, in one of those unintended ironic effects of human activity, wild animal life is making a surprising comeback in the DMZ. Juhea Kim is donating part of the proceeds of her book to conservation efforts of Siberian tigers and Amur leopards in the Russian Far East. The tiger is an important recurring symbol of resilience and resistance in the story and features prominently on the book cover. Later, the only time these rare wild animals can be seen is at the ChangGeong Palace Zoo in Seoul (other than as animal pelts), the zoo animals are poisoned by the Japanese when it's obvious their side is losing to prevent them from rampaging the city when the bombs fall. Their loss is keenly felt.
Jade remembered the long-ago nights in her village. The darkness had resounded with the cries of hungry animals, and on some snowy mornings she'd woken up to paw prints circling their cottage. But wild beasts had never frightened her - it was the humans who terrified her with their savegery.
Jade is a young girl sold by her family to a giseang house initially as a maid but through circumstance as a courtesan apprentice under Madame Silver in 1918. She grows up training with Silver's two daughters Lotus and Luna. I was initially wary when reading 'courtesan school' but this part, like the whole book, is well-reseached and respectful. I liked the details like the plays they performed in (The Story of ChunYang, The Story of ShimChung) and the traditional Korean instruments (gayageum, dageum, drums), recitation of poetry by Huang Jini (famed Josean era courtesan), traditional songs they learn in their training as part of the five arts. As with most courtesans of that time, they still need powerful wealthy patrons and backers so Madame Silver has one, as does Dani, the other famous courtesan that the girls are sent to later in Seoul to continue their training with.
The concept that twines throughout the book linking the fate of the characters is 인연 in-yeon. In-yeon is the thread of destiny and connection between people; be it between spouses, siblings, friends even people with enmity. Jade, Dani, Silver, Lotus, Luna are linked by in-yeon but also entangled with that of Nam JungHo (son of the hunter) who comes to Seoul to make a living. Initially living as a street urchin, he later becomes a protection money thug and then gets heavily involved with the Korean Resistance movement. JungHo falls in love with Jade during a courtesan parade. The other parties to this tangled skein of in-yeon are Kim SungSoo (past flame of Dani's, capitalist, future employer of Jung-ho), Lee Myungbo (one of the leaders of the Korean resistance movement), two Japanese army officers Yamada Genzo and Ito. Both the cigarette case and silver ring (that Silver gave to the hunter) passed down to JungHo are the physical manifestations of the in-yeon interconnection.
I liked the first half of the novel more than the later half. Lee Myungbo's appearance heralded a lot of interesting historical facts such as the provisional Korean government and Koryo Communist Party germinating in Shanghai, the involvement of Primorski and Manchuria in resistance efforts and going even further back "Primorski was just the Russian word for Yuenhaejoo, a frosty northern land that horse-riding Koreans conquered two thousand years ago." Within Korea, the independence movement involved uniting factions of Nationalists, Communists, Cheondists, Buddhists, Christians for a unanimous declaration of independence - fascinating. I'm puzzled by the absence of any mention of Korean comfort women, since this is a major part of the damage inflicted on the Korean psyche and a point of contention between the two countries even today.
In the later half of the novel, it felt like the characters were molded to fit historical events, they seemed to lose both personality and agency, the rest was detracted by The Great War Love Story, love unrequited, cinematic grand love. I can just see the billing - love between a rickshaw driver in a rags to riches story, supported by a courtesan that his family will never accept while the resistance fighter waits for her faithfully .... Also, General Ito tells Jade "I'm leaving on Friday so this is the last time we're seeing each other...Fuck war and fuck loneliness. Stay alive." Huh?! This is such a jarring anachronism - it is simply inconceivable and inconsistent given Ito's past disdain and cruelty toward Koreans to give Jade food and money at this crucial period but as a Japanese Imperial army member in 1944 to utter such American modern speech in Japanese just sticks out so incongruously. Likewise, I find that the author's depiction of the 'villains' ' motivations and inner thoughts to be weak, that of SungSoo, Ito and Yamada. Lastly, it's not easy to cover such a wide area of important national events within characters' lives through forty plus years, I did find some of the time skips and chronological transitions not quite smooth.
The title of the book refers to something Yamada says later We don't have such ferocious beasts in Japan, and we're a far bigger country. How such beasts have flourished in such a little land is incomprehensible. At the time, large wild animals like tigers, leopards, bears and elephants roamed throughout the Korean peninsula; sadly they've been hunted/killed to near extinction and the book notes that the Siberian tiger is marked as officially extinct in Korea. Currently, in one of those unintended ironic effects of human activity, wild animal life is making a surprising comeback in the DMZ. Juhea Kim is donating part of the proceeds of her book to conservation efforts of Siberian tigers and Amur leopards in the Russian Far East. The tiger is an important recurring symbol of resilience and resistance in the story and features prominently on the book cover. Later, the only time these rare wild animals can be seen is at the ChangGeong Palace Zoo in Seoul (other than as animal pelts), the zoo animals are poisoned by the Japanese when it's obvious their side is losing to prevent them from rampaging the city when the bombs fall. Their loss is keenly felt.
Jade remembered the long-ago nights in her village. The darkness had resounded with the cries of hungry animals, and on some snowy mornings she'd woken up to paw prints circling their cottage. But wild beasts had never frightened her - it was the humans who terrified her with their savegery.
Jade is a young girl sold by her family to a giseang house initially as a maid but through circumstance as a courtesan apprentice under Madame Silver in 1918. She grows up training with Silver's two daughters Lotus and Luna. I was initially wary when reading 'courtesan school' but this part, like the whole book, is well-reseached and respectful. I liked the details like the plays they performed in (The Story of ChunYang, The Story of ShimChung) and the traditional Korean instruments (gayageum, dageum, drums), recitation of poetry by Huang Jini (famed Josean era courtesan), traditional songs they learn in their training as part of the five arts. As with most courtesans of that time, they still need powerful wealthy patrons and backers so Madame Silver has one, as does Dani, the other famous courtesan that the girls are sent to later in Seoul to continue their training with.
The concept that twines throughout the book linking the fate of the characters is 인연 in-yeon. In-yeon is the thread of destiny and connection between people; be it between spouses, siblings, friends even people with enmity. Jade, Dani, Silver, Lotus, Luna are linked by in-yeon but also entangled with that of Nam JungHo (son of the hunter) who comes to Seoul to make a living. Initially living as a street urchin, he later becomes a protection money thug and then gets heavily involved with the Korean Resistance movement. JungHo falls in love with Jade during a courtesan parade. The other parties to this tangled skein of in-yeon are Kim SungSoo (past flame of Dani's, capitalist, future employer of Jung-ho), Lee Myungbo (one of the leaders of the Korean resistance movement), two Japanese army officers Yamada Genzo and Ito. Both the cigarette case and silver ring (that Silver gave to the hunter) passed down to JungHo are the physical manifestations of the in-yeon interconnection.
I liked the first half of the novel more than the later half. Lee Myungbo's appearance heralded a lot of interesting historical facts such as the provisional Korean government and Koryo Communist Party germinating in Shanghai, the involvement of Primorski and Manchuria in resistance efforts and going even further back "Primorski was just the Russian word for Yuenhaejoo, a frosty northern land that horse-riding Koreans conquered two thousand years ago." Within Korea, the independence movement involved uniting factions of Nationalists, Communists, Cheondists, Buddhists, Christians for a unanimous declaration of independence - fascinating. I'm puzzled by the absence of any mention of Korean comfort women, since this is a major part of the damage inflicted on the Korean psyche and a point of contention between the two countries even today.
In the later half of the novel, it felt like the characters were molded to fit historical events, they seemed to lose both personality and agency, the rest was detracted by The Great War Love Story, love unrequited, cinematic grand love. I can just see the billing - love between a rickshaw driver in a rags to riches story, supported by a courtesan that his family will never accept while the resistance fighter waits for her faithfully .... Also, General Ito tells Jade "I'm leaving on Friday so this is the last time we're seeing each other...Fuck war and fuck loneliness. Stay alive." Huh?! This is such a jarring anachronism - it is simply inconceivable and inconsistent given Ito's past disdain and cruelty toward Koreans to give Jade food and money at this crucial period but as a Japanese Imperial army member in 1944 to utter such American modern speech in Japanese just sticks out so incongruously. Likewise, I find that the author's depiction of the 'villains' ' motivations and inner thoughts to be weak, that of SungSoo, Ito and Yamada. Lastly, it's not easy to cover such a wide area of important national events within characters' lives through forty plus years, I did find some of the time skips and chronological transitions not quite smooth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Rape