Everything Asian, a review
As a fan of Asian cultures, I enjoy reading books that are set in Asian countries/have an Asian point of view. Some of my favorite books are those by Haruki Murakami (who is actually my favorite author, I think). So when I saw Everything Asian by Sung J. Woo, I knew I had to pick it up and read it.
Everything Asian is a novel told (mainly) from the point-of-view of a twelve year-old Korean boy who has just moved to the United States. Dae Joon Kim (who also goes by an English name, David) came to America with his mother, In Young (she takes the name Emma, as the story unfolds), and sister, In Sook (also known as Susan), to meet with their husband/father who moved to the States five years prior for work.
The backbone of the entire story is about how the Kim family tries to fit in; basically being adrift in a whole new world. While I can only relate on a very basic level, it is quite interesting to see this problem from the side of those that are struggling along. It really opened my eyes to the various issues that face immigrants. Since these people are immigrants that come from a country with a vastly different language, their troubles are compounded, at least to me.
David’s sister, Susan, is sullen because she was uprooted from her friends and school in Korea. Mrs. Kim doesn’t speak any English, so she struggles with the language barrier. She also has trouble with the American food. David’s struggle isn’t so much one of someone being in a foreign land, his struggle is with his father. David was young when his father left Korea to seek opportunities in America, so he sees his father (who is known by an English name: Harry) as an utter stranger.
The chapters in the book alternate from a Kim family member (usually David), to another character who works in the strip mall, a place called Peddler’s Square, where the family runs a shop. This change of character point-of-view shows the relationships between the Kims, and other people of different backgrounds.
I enjoyed this novel quite a bit. As I said before, I am eager to learn about different Asian cultures. I know very little about the Korean people and, while this didn’t give me a terribly large amount of insight to them, it did help to “break the ice” and got me much more interested in the Korean people.
Next week, there won’t be a book review per se. I am going to write about something that only happens to me once in a while, me not being able to finish a book. I will talk about the book itself, a bit, and why I couldn’t read it. Until then, see ya!
