Official Review: The Korean Word For Butterfly
Posted: 06 Dec 2015, 08:38
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Korean Word For Butterfly" by James Zerndt.]
3 out of 4 stars
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It was the World Cup 2002, the first World Cup held in Asia. While the whole world was focused on the games, two Korean middle school girls were ran over by a US military tank. The Korean Word for Butterfly is a novel by James Zerndt about an American and two Koreans and their journey towards redemption.
Billie, with her boyfriend Joe, came to South Korea to teach in an English school, the Kid’s Inc. Having submitted fake transcript of records, she has been feeling apprehensive as soon as they arrived at the airport and the possibility of being discovered nagged at her the whole time. As if being in a foreign country under false pretenses was not onerous enough, she soon learned that she was pregnant.
Moon, a recovering alcoholic and a former K-Pop band manager, worked at Kid’s Inc. He was from a family of musicians and was a winner of The Golden Disk Awards. Behind Moon’s quiet and authoritative demeanor was an almost unbearable longing for his son and wife and a painful memory of an unforgivable act. Nevertheless, he would not let self-disgust undermine his determination to become a better person and win his family back.
Yun-ji, one of the secretaries of Kid’s Inc., was disgusted at her father for being slave to alcohol and at her mother for allowing herself to be treated like trash. In one moment of rebellion, Yun-ji met with Shaun, an American soldier she met at Youldong Park, and got herself pregnant. Being pregnant without a husband was something. Being pregnant by an American soldier was another. Being pregnant by an American soldier at the time when two young Korean girls were ran over by a US military tank was yet another.
The Korean Word for Butterfly was told from three alternating perspectives with Yun-ji’s and Moon’s in the third person and Billie’s in the first person making her the central character of the book (in my opinion). The story was written, consistently, in a conversational tone making it an easy read all the way through.
The author has a way of vivifying the characters making them so real they seem to be actually talking to you. His narratives were short and concise without unnecessary details that usually lengthens a novel. His plot was realistic not to the point of being predictable but rather believable. Most importantly, he was able to bring out multiple delicate issues like racism, abortion, alcoholism and child abuse, and spun them into a touching novel.
For me, the core of the story was cultural differences which led to prejudice prevalent in the entire novel. How Koreans view Americans. How Americans view Koreans. How people stereotype and easily judge someone by the color of his skin and the shape of his eyes.
Needless to say I find this book a great read. However, I noticed some factors that may influence the opinions of other readers. First of which was the several uses of fragments instead of complete sentences. Those who are particular with sentence structures may find them distracting. Second was the absence of some (I consider) important details like Moon’s designation at Kid’s Inc., what Moon’s award was for and the ages of the characters. Finally, I found myself looking for backstories; how Billie and Joe applied to Kid’s Inc. and managed to get accepted or why Billie hated home so much she would rather venture to a foreign country rather than stay. I take it that it was part of the author’s writing style, that contrary to spoon feeding the author let the readers assume and form conclusions of their own.
In this regard, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars and recommend it to those who are looking for easy read but with serious and intense themes. It is a profound story of love (for country, for family, for self) and resolve to do the right thing.
******
The Korean Word For Butterfly
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3 out of 4 stars
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It was the World Cup 2002, the first World Cup held in Asia. While the whole world was focused on the games, two Korean middle school girls were ran over by a US military tank. The Korean Word for Butterfly is a novel by James Zerndt about an American and two Koreans and their journey towards redemption.
Billie, with her boyfriend Joe, came to South Korea to teach in an English school, the Kid’s Inc. Having submitted fake transcript of records, she has been feeling apprehensive as soon as they arrived at the airport and the possibility of being discovered nagged at her the whole time. As if being in a foreign country under false pretenses was not onerous enough, she soon learned that she was pregnant.
Moon, a recovering alcoholic and a former K-Pop band manager, worked at Kid’s Inc. He was from a family of musicians and was a winner of The Golden Disk Awards. Behind Moon’s quiet and authoritative demeanor was an almost unbearable longing for his son and wife and a painful memory of an unforgivable act. Nevertheless, he would not let self-disgust undermine his determination to become a better person and win his family back.
Yun-ji, one of the secretaries of Kid’s Inc., was disgusted at her father for being slave to alcohol and at her mother for allowing herself to be treated like trash. In one moment of rebellion, Yun-ji met with Shaun, an American soldier she met at Youldong Park, and got herself pregnant. Being pregnant without a husband was something. Being pregnant by an American soldier was another. Being pregnant by an American soldier at the time when two young Korean girls were ran over by a US military tank was yet another.
The Korean Word for Butterfly was told from three alternating perspectives with Yun-ji’s and Moon’s in the third person and Billie’s in the first person making her the central character of the book (in my opinion). The story was written, consistently, in a conversational tone making it an easy read all the way through.
The author has a way of vivifying the characters making them so real they seem to be actually talking to you. His narratives were short and concise without unnecessary details that usually lengthens a novel. His plot was realistic not to the point of being predictable but rather believable. Most importantly, he was able to bring out multiple delicate issues like racism, abortion, alcoholism and child abuse, and spun them into a touching novel.
For me, the core of the story was cultural differences which led to prejudice prevalent in the entire novel. How Koreans view Americans. How Americans view Koreans. How people stereotype and easily judge someone by the color of his skin and the shape of his eyes.
Needless to say I find this book a great read. However, I noticed some factors that may influence the opinions of other readers. First of which was the several uses of fragments instead of complete sentences. Those who are particular with sentence structures may find them distracting. Second was the absence of some (I consider) important details like Moon’s designation at Kid’s Inc., what Moon’s award was for and the ages of the characters. Finally, I found myself looking for backstories; how Billie and Joe applied to Kid’s Inc. and managed to get accepted or why Billie hated home so much she would rather venture to a foreign country rather than stay. I take it that it was part of the author’s writing style, that contrary to spoon feeding the author let the readers assume and form conclusions of their own.
In this regard, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars and recommend it to those who are looking for easy read but with serious and intense themes. It is a profound story of love (for country, for family, for self) and resolve to do the right thing.
******
The Korean Word For Butterfly
View: on Bookshelves
Like kimmyschemy06's review? Post a comment saying so!
