Family drama
19th/20th century
Japan
Pachinko is a multigenerational saga about a family of Koreans in
the early 20th century who have to move to Japan because Korea is occupied, the
economy is tanking, and the best way to make a living is to emigrate to the
land of their occupiers.
Initially, Sunja, the beloved daughter of two older parents (older in that
they were early 20s when she was born in the early 20th century), gets pregnant
out of wedlock. Her lover, she discovers after it’s too late, already has a
wife in Japan. Sunja, who has her pride, has zero intention of being his
mistress and sends him on his way. One of the boarders at her parents’
boardinghouse, a preacher with tuberculosis and who is traveling to his new
church, offers to marry her and raise her child as his own. She accepts and
goes with him to make a new life in Japan. Together, they raise their sons in Japan and
the story follows four generations of their family, navigating through wars,
cultural upheaval, and constantly being viewed as outsiders. Throughout, they are
haunted by shadows of their past that they cannot outrun, for better or worse.
It’s been a really interesting read, though I am discovering that I’m
apparently not generally a fan of multigenerational narratives. Not in a single
book, anyway. This started out strong and then got rushed near the end, as
though there are too many stories, too many characters, and too much to say to
give attention to any one of them. I think doing multigenerational sagas over
several books is a better way to go.
That said, this was an excellent read, especially the first half, and I
learned a ton about Korean culture that I had no idea about before. I didn’t
know so many Koreans had moved to Japan, nor that Japan had occupied Korea. My
education failed me! The way some of the people felt like they had to “pass” as
Japanese just to be allowed to live in peace and make a life for themselves was
so sad.
Overall, I had my quibbles with it, but I thoroughly enjoyed Pachinko and would recommend it as an
excellent and eye-opening read.
© Kristen
McQuinn
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