Where to Begin?

Does the extent of your knowledge about 20th century Korea come from MASH reruns? Did you minor in east Asian history in college? Or, does your exposure lie somewhere in between? In any case, I would recommend two books that will help you and your students know more about modern Korea.

The first is Lost Names:Scenes from a Korean Boyhood by Richard Kim.

This novel fictionalizes the period of the Japanese occupation of Korea unitl the end of World War II. I have used this book the past few years in my junior AP English class. The students really identify with this book because it is told through the eyes of a young Korean boy. It is a great starting point for reading about Korea.


The second book is by one of my hosts in LA, Helie Lee. She helped to found the Korea Academy for Educators (KAFE).  Her book is called Still Life with Rice.

Through the voice of her grandmother, Lee basically tells the history of 20th century Korea. Her grandmother was born about the turn of the century and had an arranged marriage. She survived the Japanese occupation, World War II, and the violent split of the two Koreas. Eventually, she immigrated to America with the rest of her family. It is a very engaging and often times horrific story.

I am scheduled to meet Miss Lee and her parents my first night in LA and eat a home cooked Korean meal with them. I will also receive a copy of her second book about how her family rescued nine relatives from North Korea. I am sure I will write more about that in the future.

For reference, here is Helie Lee's website: http://www.helielee.com/

Finally, I am going to include a link to an NPR article that aired about two weeks ago. It talks about the recent increase in Korean students in California. I see some parallels between those students and our own Koreans. Many good points for thought and discussion.

http://www.npr.org/2012/07/11/156377938/korean-families-chase-their-dreams-in-the-u-s

See you in LA!