Still Life With Rice

Rating:
Summary: Enlightened
Review: The book made me wish that I could ask my own grandmother to recall her experiences because I am sure they would be equally interesting. Makes me appreciate the lives of elders who live through so much.

Rating:
Summary: Preachy. Awkward. Koreanized Amy Tan.
Review: There's little to no indication of literary talent here. But it was an interesting story, and certainly not the worst novel I ever read, so I give it two stars.

Rating:
Summary: Cross-Cultural Insight
Review: This book has been recommended to me by numerous expats here in Korea, and all of them have loved it. Americans who have lived here for 20 or more years and who thought they had seen everything have gained insight from it. I think the criticisms it's drawing, such as historical "fuzziness," stilted dialogue, and a simplified view of history are more culturally-bound that literary. Don't forget that what Ms. Lee is doing is thinking in Korean and writing in English; the story she tells is through a Korean's eyes, and this is going to reflect how the story is told. Even through my limited Korean ability, I could pick up turns of phrases and translated expressions that may sound strange in English, but were distinctly Korean and familiar. Similarly, Ms. Lee's seemingly simple grasp of history also reflects the psyche of many Koreans I know: they simply don't fret over things as much as we Westerners do, and they don't always have to know the cause of things like we do. If you have no rice, you don't hunt out the political root of the problem, you get more rice. This is how they deal with problems. You see this even today: one could go mad trying to predict the next move of the North. We live here on the brink of annihilation, but if you think about it all day, you'll get nothing done. You just continue, and I think that's a lot of what Still Life With Rice is all about.

Rating:
Summary: Riveting, and triumphant chronicle of a survivalist's life
Review: This book is a soulful tribute to a grandmother, a mother, a woman who survived the horrors of a sad, unexplainable war between brothers, who lived through all sufferings known to woman, and who lived a life questioning and learning one's own answers to the virtues and the moralities of society, marriage, motherhood and womanhood.

Rating:
Summary: Discovering a heritage removed.
Review: This book is well written and painfully acurate. I am an Korean-American and as I read what the author was discribing I felt an instant connection. This a great book to gain an insight into Korean sociology as well as the psyche of an Korean-American. If you don't care about the sociology then read it for the great stories.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting story; Annoying characters
Review: This book provides an interesting glimpse into the extreme circumstances of Hongyong Baek's life. But I was annoyed from the beginning after reading the self-congratulatory preface. The actual story about her grandmother was fascinating. But the author was clearly VERY proud of her grandmother, which seemed to make the character arrogant and hypocritical. And when she writes about herself but in her grandmother's voice, it's just a shameful, distracting mess. The events though were interesting enough for me to grudgingly finish the book.

Rating:
Summary: If you want a college students opinion?
Review: This book was a reading assignment in one of my college classes, and the teacher had warned us that once you start reading this book, you won't want to stop. She couldn't have been more right. Not only does this give you a close up look at what war is like, it also shows the feelings that a daughter, mother and grandmother goes through. The most incredible thing about this book is that it is a true story. I would love to get the chance to meet the author and her family whom she wrote about. I thought the book was well written for a 22 year old author.

Rating:
Summary: a must read
Review: this is my all time favorite book! for anyone who has ever felt out of place while in their own shoes, Helie Lee can tell you what she did about it....you must read this book!

Rating:
Summary: AMAZING! Could not put it down!
Review: This is one of the most memorable books I have ever read. The story reaches out and touches your soul in multiple ways.

Rating:
Summary: The story is better than the storytelling
Review: This novel is based on the true story of how a woman survived the first half of the twentieth century in Korea. Along the way, the reader learns about the history of that tumultuous period, and the difficulties which arose when Korea transitioned into a modern society. The author, however, does not have a good ear for writing believable dialogue. In addition, the abrupt plot transitions feel unrealistic. For instance, the protagonist's rapid conversion to Christianity did not ring true. Nonetheless, the undeniably remarkable story of this woman's life made the novel worth reading.