Review by Hester3 -- The Vanished by Pejay Bradley
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Hester3
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Review by Hester3 -- The Vanished by Pejay Bradley
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Vanished" by Pejay Bradley.]
In 1910 Korea was annexed by the empire of Japan, set against this background the story is told from the viewpoint of someone born into Korean royalty during the occupation.
The vanished by Pejay Bradley spans 20 years, from 1912 – 1932, and follows the life of Embon and those who influence his beliefs and decisions. We first encounter Embon shortly after his birth and although the author skips ahead on more than one occasion, this only emphasizes the rapid degree with which the change in Korean beliefs and culture was influenced by the Japanese occupation.
The author gives very rich descriptions, not only of the surroundings and culture but also of the characters. Although born to a doting mother and loving grandfather Embon has his fair share of difficulties to overcome.
A big part of the book focuses on how the Koreas view the occupation, especially highlighted during Embons time spent at Hokkaido University. He makes friends with a group of other Koreans and although they study at a Japanese university, they make no secret of the fact that they don’t agree with the Japanese occupation. This lands all of them in jail, and Embon contracts acute pulmonary tuberculosis during his incarceration.
Because of his disease, Embon almost forgets about his dreams of playing an important role in Korea's liberation from Japanese occupancy. He spends time in the country to recover and allows his mother to make decisions for him, it is purely by chance that he learns about the whereabouts of some of his university friends, and this makes him realise that he wants more from life.
My favorite part of the book has to be the authors’ descriptions. Every seen was easy to picture and even the cultures became vivid and easy to distinguish. Before reading this book, I have never given real thought to the cultural difference between Korea and Japan. It was almost sad to read about how much the Korean culture was forced to change because of the occupancy. It is so easy in life to expect others to live according to your standards, without taking into consideration that everybody’s standard of living is irrevocably connected to their culture and belief system.
I don’t really have a least favorite part, I love history and learning about other cultures. Initially, the author did jump between characters and skipped extended periods of time but the further along one reads, the more everything comes together. After finishing the book, I can honestly say that the book as a whole came together and made me think hard about the way I view people and cultures that are different than my own.
The book is well-edited and I only came across a couple of minor grammatical errors that did not distract from my enjoyment of the book. I gladly rate this book 4 out of 4 and recommend it to anyone who enjoys history or learning about different cultures. There are no graphic descriptions in the book and no foul language, but the book does have a theme of oppression and war so I would not recommend it to younger readers.
******
The Vanished
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
In 1910 Korea was annexed by the empire of Japan, set against this background the story is told from the viewpoint of someone born into Korean royalty during the occupation.
The vanished by Pejay Bradley spans 20 years, from 1912 – 1932, and follows the life of Embon and those who influence his beliefs and decisions. We first encounter Embon shortly after his birth and although the author skips ahead on more than one occasion, this only emphasizes the rapid degree with which the change in Korean beliefs and culture was influenced by the Japanese occupation.
The author gives very rich descriptions, not only of the surroundings and culture but also of the characters. Although born to a doting mother and loving grandfather Embon has his fair share of difficulties to overcome.
A big part of the book focuses on how the Koreas view the occupation, especially highlighted during Embons time spent at Hokkaido University. He makes friends with a group of other Koreans and although they study at a Japanese university, they make no secret of the fact that they don’t agree with the Japanese occupation. This lands all of them in jail, and Embon contracts acute pulmonary tuberculosis during his incarceration.
Because of his disease, Embon almost forgets about his dreams of playing an important role in Korea's liberation from Japanese occupancy. He spends time in the country to recover and allows his mother to make decisions for him, it is purely by chance that he learns about the whereabouts of some of his university friends, and this makes him realise that he wants more from life.
My favorite part of the book has to be the authors’ descriptions. Every seen was easy to picture and even the cultures became vivid and easy to distinguish. Before reading this book, I have never given real thought to the cultural difference between Korea and Japan. It was almost sad to read about how much the Korean culture was forced to change because of the occupancy. It is so easy in life to expect others to live according to your standards, without taking into consideration that everybody’s standard of living is irrevocably connected to their culture and belief system.
I don’t really have a least favorite part, I love history and learning about other cultures. Initially, the author did jump between characters and skipped extended periods of time but the further along one reads, the more everything comes together. After finishing the book, I can honestly say that the book as a whole came together and made me think hard about the way I view people and cultures that are different than my own.
The book is well-edited and I only came across a couple of minor grammatical errors that did not distract from my enjoyment of the book. I gladly rate this book 4 out of 4 and recommend it to anyone who enjoys history or learning about different cultures. There are no graphic descriptions in the book and no foul language, but the book does have a theme of oppression and war so I would not recommend it to younger readers.
******
The Vanished
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Wilderness Cry by Hilary L Hunt M.D.
