Book of the Month: August

I had a hard time selecting this month's book of the month. There were two books that I considered. The graphic novel Corpse de Ballet by Megan Kearney was a top contender. Eve Chung's The Young Will Remember won out for my best book of August. The book is a historical fiction story set in 1950s Korea during the Korean War. The War was fought from 1950 through 1953 but the story takes place just in 1950 and 1951. 

The novel has a main Korean character, Emma, but the real main character is Ellie Chang who was a Chinese American journalist. During a military flight to cover a battle in North Korea, Ellie’s plane crashed. A woman who saw the crash mistook Ellie for her long lost daughter. Emma talked her into walking to Emma’s home for safety. Unfortunately the home was located in the very north of North Korea near the Chinese border. Ellie was stuck there for two years before she was able to enter Hong Kong and return home to California.

Ellie was invited to stay at Emma's home which was actually owned by the Pak family. The Paks were Christians who decided not to flee south as all the other Christians did. Ellie spoke Chinese but not a word of Korean so the family ensured she did not need to speak with any neighbors. If the neighbors discovered the Paks were harboring an American they all would have been executed. During Ellie’s time in North Korea she and Emma walked the length of the country to arrive in Seoul. This was a treacherous journey in winter. A lot happened throughout the story. I think it's an amazing tale of life in North Korea during the war.