03 Mar / Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi [in What Do I Read Next? Multicultural Literature]
Ten-year-old Sookan witnesses first-hand the cruel Japanese occupation of her Korean homeland. But the eventual defeat of the Japanese military is followed by only a brief respite, before the Korean War tears the country apart. Sookan and her family realize they must escape from Pyongyang to Seoul if they are ever to be free.
Although a work of fiction, this novel offers a reasonably historical accurate depiction of the Japanese occupation and war experiences of Koreans. Sookan’s story continues in Choi’s 1993 sequel, Echoes of the White Giraffe.
Review: “Asian American Titles,” What Do I Read Next? Multicultural Literature, Gale Research, 1997
Readers: Middle Grade, Young Adult
Published: 1990