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This is a difficult historical fiction book to read. The story of two sisters across time get confusing at times. As both sisters perspectives change times sometimes. The horrors of war, in simplest terms, from when Japan invaded Korea and raped girls in order to “win” their battles. Constant abuse, looking for a way home from one. The other is still searching for her sister. Heart wrenching story.
Pg: 289

I was not prepared for the amount of violence and rape. Although I learned about haenyeo in Lisa See‘s book, I didn‘t know about “comfort women”; the two books have a different focus.I often like one storyline more than the other in these dual timeline books, but although Hana‘s story is the more jarring and powerful of the two (I often “like” those better), I think Emi‘s story gave me a bit of a break from Hana‘s abuse. Cont in comments...

March #Roll100. Goal is to get at least one of the three read and off my kindle.

A story of two Korean sisters split apart by war, the eldest forced into being a “comfort woman” for Japanese soldiers. It is a harrowing story, very unpleasant to read at times, yet done with care, and uplifting in parts. An important period in history to be told. Yet something just didn‘t grip me or make me feel as strongly as I felt I should. I have read other books dealing with this period/subject and think I was comparing perhaps.

• TBR since 2019

Korea 1943: Hana, a Korean sea diver, has lived her entire life under Japanese occupation, enjoying an independence few other Koreans can claim. But when she saves her little sister from a Japanese soldier, she is transported to Manchuria and forced to become a “comfort woman”.

South Korea 2011: Emi has spent more than sixty years trying to forget the sacrifice her sister made, but she must confront the past to discover peace.

Have you ever picked at sore so much that it never heals? That is how I am feeling at the moment - my heart begins to scab and then Hana or Emi gets hurt or shares another memory and that freshly scabbed wound is ripped open. Over and over. Trigger Warning for torture and rape. A sad example of occupying armies using women as a weapon to dehumanize.

#ReadingAsia #SouthKorea #Mongolia @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB

We went to The Dollar Tree for a new broom because ours broke. We left with a few other things because of who I am as a person.

I love learning about history through personal stories, fictional or nonfictional. I enjoyed this story set during the Japanese occupation of Korea.

#LilithJuly
White chrysanthemums symbolize loyalty & devoted love & in Korea they are a symbol of grief & mourning so I think they are like a #WhiteFlag of sorts & fit todays song pick. This book is a tough but beautifully written story of two Korean sisters separated by war when one is taken away by a Japanese soldier as a ‘comfort woman‘ while the younger one is left behind with survivor‘s guilt, wondering what happened to her sister.

Book 2 of my #12booksofsummer challenge isn‘t one I would revisit or recommend. A gruelling tale of a young Korean woman kidnapped by Japanese soldiers who enslave her as a “comfort woman” and her sister left behind to endure even more horrors of war. Whilst the story is important, I didn‘t like this book or the writing and found the plot too implausible.

Deals with important themes but not a winner for me.

#kindledeals #kindledeal #ebooksale

4/5
A brilliant debut novel on a difficult but important subject. It was a very good read but quite harrowing in some parts. I did cry my way through the last few chapters.
I would definitely recommend this book.

(a book with a plant in the title or cover for #popsugarchallenge and a book with an elderly character for #aroundtheyearin52books)

#whatireadin2019 #fiction #historicalfiction #pop19 #aroundtheyearin52books

Book 31: Two strong characters, one horrifying moment is history. Yet this book manages to find flickers of compassion within the horror. A moving read based on true accounts and an important author's note that we must not forget the stories of these women that were silenced for too long.

The beginning was so hard to read, gut wrenching scenes about Hana being abducted and forced to become a comfort woman, servicing Japanese soldiers. Yet it was Emi, the sister left behind who wrestles with survivor‘s guilt, whose storyline really resonated with me. I hated the ending enough so that this was almost a so-so for me but I haven‘t been able to stop thinking about this book since I finished it a few nights ago.

This book is about a very tough subject, and it was hard to read, but I just kept thinking how important it is for the world to know this happened. Historical fiction does a good job of making the worst parts of human history real for those of us who weren't aware. I am glad my book club picked this because otherwise I may not have read it.

This book brought out all the emotions in me. So much of heartache. So much pain. War has brought upon so much of pain to people, and have taken away loved ones, breaking ones‘ spirit and soul in the process. One book I will treasure for a really long time.

Heart wrenching book about “comfort women”. I knew nothing on this subject. Just goes to show, you learn something new every day. 💜💜💜

These are the books up for grabs for the #LitWorld2018GB (Literary Voyage Around the World Reading Challenge). Never too late to sign up. Here is the April-June linky: https://gatheringbooks.org/april-june-2018-linky/ - winners will be announced by July. Open internationally. Don‘t forget to link up your reviews to be eligible for book prizes!
More details here: https://gatheringbooks.org/literary-voyage-around-the-world-reading-challenge-20...

This was such a difficult and devastating read. It's an eye opener about lesser talked about WW2 horrors, the war crimes the Japanese have committed against Koreans, particularly the young girls and women who were kidnapped to become sex slaves for the Japanese army. It makes you think about horrors women suffer in wars, even today.
The parts with the younger sister who was spared that fate but suffered the burden were especially heartbreaking.

An exemplary read that speaks to the many, many often forgotten casualties of war. A heart-wrenching novel but one necessary to enriching an understanding of the human experience.

So that Summer Shandy went down A LOT faster than the last few pages of this book! Oops! 😂😂😂😂

I really liked this one. It's WWII historical fiction about Korean girls stolen from their families by the Japanese to serve as comfort women in brothels near the fighting in Manchuria.

#NetGalley #ARC

Started this last night, on page 38, and already I can tell it‘s going to be brutal. 😢

Very hard to read book - but so worth the effort. I didn‘t know anything about Japanese/Korean relationship until Pachinko. This adds a bit more as the focus is on ‘comfort woman‘ used during WW2 by Japanese soldiers. It‘s horrible to read about and the fact that similar abuse continues across every conflict is hard to accept.

Starting to hear some mention of this. Going to see if it‘s worth talking about. Happy Tuesday, friends! 🌸🌺🌷🌼

Just a few of the awesome historical fiction books being realeased this year!!!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
https://media.bookbub.com/blog/2018/01/03/preview-best-historical-fiction-2018/

#Koreanhistory and story of Korean comfort women as told from perspective of 2 sisters separated by #worldwarII. UPDATE: This was a really hard read. Brutal, really. But necessary. Time to read some kid lit.

I found this debut novel very "readable" and it told about a time in history that I know very little of. In the afterword the author talks about giving each of the main characters the ending that she wished they would have, rather than what would have been their historical fate. That was my issue with this novel. I wish that the author had been brave enough to let the sisters story end in the logical and more historically accurate way.

A moving story of the plight of comfort women in Japanese occupied Korea during World War II. Two sisters experience perseverance, courage, redemption, and forgiveness throughout this ordeal. A moving, emotional story

I need to stop listening to audiobooks that make me 😢in public places. I was caught up in this WWII historical fiction about two Korean sisters. Hana sacrifices herself to save her younger sister Emi from Japanese soldiers & is taken away & forced to be a 'comfort woman' in a Japanese brothel. Hard to listen to but a good story & ultimately satisfying. Paired with a favorite tea-decaf chocolate-coconut & afternoon snack nuts. #MarchMunchies #tea

My current library audiobook is quite heart wrenching & offers a Korean perspective on WWII. Sisters Hana & Emi are separated when Hana, protecting Emi from Japanese soldiers, is captured & sent to Manchuria as a 'comfort woman' in a Japanese military brothel. The sisters' experienced are told in both. past & modern day. I'm only about 5 chapters in but it has me intrigued & wanting to listen to more. With my latest snack 'addiction' & iced tea.😋

A brutal and sad read. Set in Korea during WWII, one sister, Hana, sacrifices herself to save her younger sister, Emi. Hana becomes a sex slave (“comfort woman”) to Japanese soldiers in Manchuria while Emi tries to survive both WWII and the Korean War as well as the lingering guilt about her sister‘s disappearance. Told from alternating points of views, from two different points in time, you feel the loss and trauma of both sides.

🍭🍭🍭🍭🍭 Y‘all this book is amazing! Read my review here https://reecaspieces.com/2018/02/06/white-chrysanthemum-by-mary-lynn-bracht/

Well! I finished. I read four complete books, one on audible. Finished two which were previously started before the #readathon and 6hours into another audio book. I may have to take a break from reading for a while. However it maybe a book hangover from #whitechrysanthemums one of the best books ever! #24in48 #audiblebookssavedtheday #readathon #goingtobednow #havechorestomorrow

Y‘all this book! It‘s killing me! They were called “comfort girls”. The Japanese stole them and used them to “service”their men. She was just 16

Enjoying this wonderful sunshine! #socksunday #24in48 #readathon #sunshine #amreading #18hoursin

Ok! Life is interrupting for a few hours. Y‘all this book is amazing! I hate to stop! Lulu doesn‘t much care. #24in48 #readathon #lulu

This is a sad story of two sisters who are separated when Hana is taken by a Japanese soldier to be a "comfort woman". Hana living in horror as a sex slave and Emi living with the guilt that Hanna sacrificed herself in order to save her from capture. It did move slowly at times and the brutality is abundant as with any war story, but these women are strong characters and their story is compelling.

While uneven in places, overall this is a powerful book about 2 Korean women in 1943 and 2011. It explores both women‘s experience in WWII, including military sexual slavery, domestic violence, and the importance of family. Make no mistake, this is a brutal, graphic book, but it is riveting and important. I definitely recommend.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A time a place I know nothing about rave reviews love historical fiction ,excited to start reading.

Starting this today. I love historical fiction. Especially when it's about a place and time I don't know much about.