Native Speaker
by Chang-Rae Lee
I can understand some of the ambivalence which surrounds the reception to
this book; more often than not, people love it, but some really dislike
enough of it to give it low ratings. While the author has very studied and
elaborate style, which is actually beautiful at times, maybe people come to
expect too much from the plot and the development of "Parky." The
very graceful, "riddling" prose may make the development of the
story seem unsatisfactory at times. At any rate, people seem intrigued or
perplexed enough to have formed strong opinions about it. As for the
story, I think it would have been too crass for it to have ended in any
other way, given the length of the book and what a brooding and quietly
melancholic character Henry is. I haven't read Lee's successive work, but I
would probably need a break to take in some sunshine and laugh a bit before
I delved into his world again. Mr. Lee's necessary explanation of why
Henry became the man he is seems utterly convincing, drawing at length from
his childhood and the contrasting influences of his family and his adopted
country. Given this, it's probably difficult for people to accept the book
as being anything other than a Korean-American experience novel - but
though for me it somehow isn't; Henry's "sentimentalist," yet
"emotional alien" character defies common logic (and yes I am
Korean, though not Korean-American), and makes the reading of the man's
thoughts via the narrative as intensely interesting as his manner is
surreptitious and secretive. Someone elsewhere wrote that Lee's novels seem
to be "more personal therapy than art," and it seems unlikely to
me that Lee could borrow so deeply and richly from any other personality
than his own. I'll certainly be looking foward to his future works
(after a bit of a break, as I said), but his very unique and accomplished
style makes it unfair for him to be bracketed as just another Korean
-American writer; he should be allowed to stand on his own merits, and be
appreciated as a storyteller of an different order, and not as a voice for
Korean-Amercans. I imagine the scope of any ethnicity's experiences are too
broad to be squeezed into the narrative voice of one author, so let's just
appreciate his work for what it is, and not be disappointed that it isn't
"definitive".
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East to America : Korean American Life Stories
by Elaine H. Kim, Eui-Young Yu, Anna Deavere Smith
I did enjoy this book because of the plentitude of stories contained within
it. The purpose of the authors creating this book was to abolish the Korean
and Korean American stereotype by providing a forum where Koreans could
tell their stories and vocalize their opinions. I think that the authors
were successful in their intent. Even though I am Korean, I often fall prey
to believing the stereotypes of Koreans, and of races in general; it is
human nature. This book has made me want to try to think again; Koreans,
and people of all races, are a hodgepodge of different stories and
therefore have different personalities, interests, and attitudes. I started
to read this book in an attempt to learn more about what others thought of
the Asian American experience but I was often left with a desire to know
more about the people. Maybe the author's next task should be to focus on
one or two stories. We've heard their stories, what about their thoughts
and emotions?
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