Pachinko By Min Jin Lee
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Web ID: 51117094 stars
PACHINKO by Min Jin Lee This has been sitting on my TBR shelf for two years. I put off reading it because it’s immensely popular and I knew it would be a serious/heavy read. The novel follows four generations of one Korean family’s experience in Japan from 1910 to 1989. Many topics are explored; from identity, to discrimination, prejudice, racism, education, social and cultural issues, religion, marriage, gangs, political beliefs etc. There’s also loads of history to digest and the author doesn't skimp on the details. That said, I very much enjoyed the first half of the book. I loved Sunja’s storyline. I was immediately invested in her relationship with Koh Hansu and Isak. I loved her strength, perseverance and quiet courage as she began a new life in Japan. My attention began to wane toward the end as the story began to feel convoluted. Multiple characters were introduced, years would pass between the end of one chapter to the next. Characters would die at the end of one chapter then are barely acknowledged in the next. Despite all that, this is a richly detailed family saga of love, loyalty, sacrifice and resilience. Historical fiction at its best. Rating: 4/5 ⭐️
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great Book
I could not put this book down. Kept me interested the whole time . I would definitely recommend this book if you have not read it . You definitely need to.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Clear 2023 favourite
This is one of my favourite books so far out of about 30 read in 2023. I'd say 5 out of 5 for theme, 5 out of 5 for plot, and 4 out of 5 for writing style. Loved learning about Korea and Japan in the 20th century, which I did not previously know much about. Although there are many characters, they were introduced bit by bit (and chronologically! contrary to another book I read recently), which made it easy to follow. The characters are compelling and it was super interesting to see how each had a different approach to navigating societal expectations.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Necessary Read
Honestly, if I didn't have a job, I would've never put this book down. I was so sad it was over and I haven't felt that way about a book in a very long time. Wonderful story that flows naturally. This book breaks your heart and puts it back together again. It's very rare for me to say I was shocked by a plot twist but I mean it when I say I never saw the plot twist coming. Love the book and am loving the show on Apple Tv!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
my favorite book of 2022
Min Jin Lee's storytelling in this epic is absolutely incredible. I won't lie I usually lose some momentum and get bored during longer epics like this (unmedicated ADHD lol) but this book had my attention the entire time I was reading. I wish I could reread this book for the first time again. I 100% see this book becoming a modern classic.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Stirring family saga
Beautifully written story across generations and cultures. Steeped in history and universal themes of man’s inhumanity to man and fierce family love
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
The Saga of a Korean Family in Japan
Sunja is the beloved only daughter of a handicapped (club foot and cleft palate) fisherman and his wife, and helps her mother run their boarding house when her father dies. She meets a businessman at the market one day, and this encounter changes her life. He seduces her, and she ends up pregnant. Surprisingly, she refuses his offer to be his Korean mistress, as it turns out that he has a wife and children in Japan. How will her parents live w/ the shame of an unmarried pregnant daughter? Not just anyone will want to marry a woman w/ handicaps in her genetic line... but enter Isak, a sickly Christian pastor on his way to join his brother in Osaka to preach the gospel. Isak offers to marry Sunja, b/c he feels that having a wife will enable him to be taken more seriously as a pastor at the church. She agrees, and thus begins their family's decades-long sojourn in Japan, and thus, this saga. "Pachinko" follows Sunja and Isak to Osaka, where they move in w/ Isak's brother and sister-in-law. Koreans are treated abominably in Japan, as are any foreigners really, but especially Koreans. Koreans are restricted to only certain trades, one of which is running pachinko parlors. Pachinko is a type of pinball machine. The managers of the parlors tinker w/ the machines constantly, insuring that the "house" usually wins in what should be a game of chance. Therefore, operating a pachinko parlor is not an esteemed occupation, and the operators are considered little better than outright gangsters, another career opening for enterprising Koreans. Isak and Sunja have high hopes for "their" son, and Sunja and her sister-in-law work so hard, trying to ensure that Noa, and then Mosazu, have better lives. The Great Depression hits; then WWII; then the Korean peninsula is split and civil war ensues. Will Sunja and her family EVER get to return home? Where is home for them now, as Sunja's children, and then their children, are born in Japan, and thus, nominally Japanese? However, the native Japanese never feel that way about Koreans, forcing them to register as resident foreigners on their 18th birthday. There is a memorable scene when one of the sons has to register. The reader can feel the terror that Sunja feels when her son is treated poorly at the registration office. Is he going to be deported to Korea? Even though he has never lived there? Which side of Korea? I definitely got angry over Japanese xenophobia reading this! The decades pass. The kids grow up and have families of their own. Many tragedies occur, and I really don't get how the women of the family survive some of the tragedies. Their resilience is really admirable. And then... the book just sort of ends, w/o really wrapping up. I mean, there are all sorts of questions. Why did I read such a long book, which covers decades in a family's life, unless there was some sort of overarching moral, other than that the pachinko business was really hard to get out of once in it. ??? This is why it has taken me so long to review the book: I just can't decide what I think of it. I will rate it 3.5+ stars, rounded up to 4. I'm interested to see what the television series does w/ this saga.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Multi-Generational Family Saga - Adapted to Screen
So it has taken me some time to write this review, I have been mentally processing it and anxiously awaiting for the TV mini-series to start on Apple TV. This is another backlist book for me, I had it in my Kindle forever and news of the mini-series prompted be to finally tackle it. I was not disappointed! This was a beautifully emotional and heart wrenching novel about a Korean family and the struggles they experienced in their immigration to Japan. The story is a multi-generational family saga and at the center is the story of a young girl, Sunja. She grows into a strong woman, who tries to do the best for her family while trying to keep them together. The story has elements of love, struggle, and sacrifice. I found the storyline very interesting and it definitely kept my attention. I started with an audio version of the book, the narration was great. But by Part III of the book, I became anxious to finish the book and see how it ended, so I returned to the e-book. Very thankful I didn’t realize that the physical copy of the book was almost 500 pages, I am very intimidated by long novels. The pacing of the storyline was great, I kept wanting to read on and find out what was in store for the next generation of the family. There was a climactic event in the later part of the story that I did not see coming. To be honest, I did not look into the symbolism of Pachinko as it related to Sunja’s family’s life. In reading other reviews, I see possible correlation of tinkering with a Pachinko machine to alter it’s outcome (usually not in the player’s favor). What initially drew my attention to the book was the cover of the Pachinko machine, I grew up with a toy Pachinko machine and could play with it for hours. I have an aunt in Japan that thoroughly enjoys visiting Pachinko parlors as a past time in her retirement. For me, Pachinko reminded me very much of The Joy Luck Club, one of my favorite novels. Update on Mini-Series: I have begun watching the Pachinko Mini-Series on Apple TV+ and it is amazing. The acting is phenomenal. It is different from the book in that it is a non-linear timeline, but it does not distract from the story. I anticipate that the show will be multiple seasons, since they have not introduced a key character yet in the story. I do recommend reading the book prior to watching the show, you will get the true depth, complexity, and compassion of the story.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com