Звери малой земли

by Juhea Kim, Чухе Ким, Кирилл Батыгин (Translator)

1917 год. Корея - японская колония. Крестьянская семья в отчаянном положении продаёт в школу куртизанок десятилетнюю дочь по имени Яшма. Её единственным близким другом становится мальчик-сирота Чонхо, попрошайка с улиц Сеула.
Повзрослев, Чонхо оказывается вовлечён в революционную борьбу за независимость страны, а Яшма станет востребованной артисткой.
Куда только не заносит судьба персонажей Чухе Ким: от фешенебельных кафе Сеула до заснеженных лесов Маньчжурии, а где-то между страниц затаился тигр.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Asia, Literary Fiction, War, Audiobook

544 pages, Hardcover

First published December 7, 2021

About the author

Juhea Kim's internationally bestselling debut novel, Beasts of a Little Land, was a finalist for the 2022 Dayton Literary Peace Prize. It won the 2024 Yasnaya Polyana Award, Russia's biggest annual literary prize awarded by the Leo Tolstoy Estate-Museum. Juhea is donating the entire prize money to Siberian tiger and Amur leopard conservation. Beasts of a Little Land has been published in 13 countries to date and a TV series adaptation is currently in development. She donates a portion of the worldwide proceeds of Beasts of a Little Land to tiger and leopard conservation.
Juhea's second novel, City of Night Birds, is forthcoming in November 2024. She donates a portion of the proceeds of City of Night Birds to Caritas Somalia, a development and emergency aid NGO.

Her writing has been published in Granta, Slice, Zyzzyva, Catapult, Guernica, Shenandoah, Times Literary Supplement, Joyland, Sierra Magazine, The Independent, Portland Monthly, The Massachusetts Review, and Dispatches from Annares anthology, among others. Her translation of Yi Sang Award-winning author Choi In-Ho was published in Granta.

She has given lectures and workshops at Arizona State University, Seoul National University, Yonsei University, the University of São Paulo, Seoul International Book Fair, and more.

In addition to writing fiction, Juhea also works with essays and narrative journalism focusing on the environment. She serves as a goodwill ambassador for the Korean Tiger Leopard Conservation Fund. She graduated from Princeton University with a degree in Art and Archaeology. She lives in London. Follow Juhea on Instagram @juhea_writes.

Profile photo © Bitna Chung

Reviews

[Juhea Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beasts of a Little Land is my debut novel, and after years of hard work I'm incredibly thrilled to see it out in the world very soon! I love it very much (biased!) and I hope it resonates with readers, too.

[jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

oh wow. this is not a happy book. its honest and raw and shows how life doesnt always work out the way we might want it to.

and its because of that, because nothing happened the way i wanted it to, it made for such an infuriating and heartbreaking story. but thats life. its messy and complicated and doesnt always result in a happy ending. and this story showcases perfectly the specific challenges and difficulties the people in koreas history had to face.

and even though im walking away from this disappointed, its only because of how invested and connected to the characters i felt and how differently i wish their lives had been. im going to be thinking about them for quite some time.

↠ 4.5 stars

[s.penkevich [hiatus-will return-miss you all] · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Everyone dreams, but only some people are dreamers.’

The 20th century was a whirlwind of change in Korea, from being annexed as a Japanese colony in 1910, to American occupation post-WWII and the Korean war and division along the 38th parallel in the 1950s. Beasts of a Little Land, the stunning debut from Juhea Kim, is a sweeping epic that takes us from 1917 to 1965 as it follows the lives and loves of many characters such as Jade, a young courtesan, and her childhood friend and potential love, Nam JungHo as their lives harmonize across the timeline and endure the whirlwind of history. Though this is less a romantic love story and more about the concept of inyeon (인연), the ties that bind people throughout their lives, Juhea Kim harnesses these interconnected fates to take us on a moving saga where fighting for freedom and survival seems a continuous struggle in the ever changing political landscapes. Deeply moving and with a rich historical context that propels the narrative and sends lives into action or disarray, this is a gorgeous meditation on fate, freedom and the ties that bind us and make life the bittersweet, emotional journey that it is.

‘Now that I’m older I know that life is not about what keeps you safe, but what you keep safe, and that’s what matters the most.’

I love a sweeping epic, and the criss-crossing lives of exceptional people during exceptional times of revolution and strife and decades of history culminating into important moments of love has a flair to it akin to Les Misérables or even Doctor Zhivago. The novel begins with an important lesson: ‘never kill a tiger unless you have to…. And that’s only when the tiger tries to kill you first.’ This comes as hunter Nam Kyunsoo is stirred into a moment of bravery where he saves the life of the occupying Japanese officers from a tiger who in turn allow him to live. This moment reverberates through the whole novel with these characters returning and their interconnected fates playing out over the course of history. Years later the ‘observant, intelligent, and hardworking’ Jade is sold by her family into the life of a courtesan and becomes fast friends with the ‘spirited, disarming, and confident’ Lotus, a friendship that redirects their lives as it intersects with the hunter’s now orphaned son, Nam Jungho as he arrives in town with nothing but a few personal effects of his late father. While just children, the stirrings of revolution can be felt around them.

‘Life is only bearable because time makes you forget everything. But life is worthwhile because love makes you remember everything.’

The coming-of-age stories, with Jade making headway into the world of courtesans and her education and Jungho organizing a band of orphans into a bit of a low-level organized crime ring, are mixed into a rather textured political drama that sees revolutionaries and local merchants butting heads or begrudgingly working together (jealousy of one another of a woman being a large impetus in one pivotal scene). Juhea Kim details a complex and varied political discourse of the times, with many factions disputing or trying to coalition build with the aim of Korean independence helping them set aside their ideological differences:

‘ It tied together groups from all points of the political spectrum under the one banner of independence: the Anarchists, the Communists, the Nationalists, the Christians, the Buddhists, and the Cheondoists. He was one of the senior leaders of the Communists, but among their ranks there were those who saw the struggle as primarily between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, the rich and the poor, and not between Japan and Korea, as MyungBo had always believed. The Anarchist credo was that any social order was destructive and oppressive. The Nationalists were the conservatives and some of them put more faith in America than in Korea itself. They also opposed the Communists almost as often as they fought the Japanese. Then some of the Christians were Pacifists, although a few of them had gladly assassinated Japanese generals and governors before putting a gun to their own heads.
All the groups believed that Japan would send every Korean man to the mines and every Korean woman to the military brothels rather than admit defeat; their opinions diverged on what they could do to implode Japan from within before that point.’

There are scenes of violent uprising, brutal prison sentences that later give way into scenes of war as freedom is paid for in blood over the decades. Characters are courted by various ideological members, threatening to tear apart friendships and lives.

‘Everywhere around them, life was happening without their knowing, and their lives were also happening in the presence of all else. All existences were touching lightly as air and leaving invisible fingerprints.’

There is a great deal of symbolism present in this book that intersperses well with the attention of Korean mythology and folklore. The aforementioned tiger is brought up at various moments, a symbol of strength but also something elusive, symbolizing the idea of a united and free Korea. The cigarette case kept by Jungoho, given to his father by the Japanese officer Yamada, is a foreboding symbol that hints at the destruction of foreign forces and reappears late in the novel to close a fate. The image of a divided country comes alive in the many divided pairs that exist within the novel, such as rich vs poor, divided siblings, warring ideologies of capitalism and communism, and most notably, Japan and Korea.

The class divide is particularly investigated, and there is a parallel of Jade being on both ends at different points of relationships thwarted by one party being of a social standing that would defile the reputation of the other. Much of this novel is heartbreaking, with lives pulled apart, yet there is the bittersweet romance of two souls ricocheting across history and continuously returning to each other's orbit. ‘The only thing she felt sure of was the firm grip of JungHo’s hand,’ Juhea Kim writes, ‘not letting go.’ The ground beneath these characters, both socially and politically is endlessly unstable and they feel like pieces on a gameboard where national identity and freedom are the stakes.

The historical framework functions well to give context and weight to these characters experiences, but the author herself cautions against reading historical fiction for a history lesson and reminds us the narrative is the purpose. In an excellent article she wrote for LitHub, Juhea Kim questions why authors of color are expected to be a history lesson in a standard that seems less expected of white authorssuch as how she notices reviews seem to expect this book to be a dynamic history lesson of 20th century Korea in a way not asked of, say, Lauren Groff’s (quite wonderful) Matrix to be a working education of 12th century France. She writes ‘authors who write a non-white book must brace themselves for some serious othering,’ adding that ‘Asian female characters in a historical era can pigeonhole a book into a weirdly salacious mould and label it primarily as Asian Historical Fiction rather than Literary Fiction, with profound critical and commercial consequences.’ It should be noted that this is less a book about history and more an testament to humanity in the face of history and the emotional resonance far outpaces the historical lessons. The latter is the stage for which the performance takes place, but don’t overlook the actors for the scenery.

‘Death was such a small price to pay for life.’

This is a gorgeous novel that covers a lot of territory. It can be a bit dense and plodding at times, and it does unfortunately tend to tell more than show through the storytelling. That said, the prose is beautiful and cuts straight to the heart. This is a sweeping epic that lets you feel the weight of history and the passing of decades to paint a moving collage of lives caught up in the timeline of major events. Juhea Kim has delivered an impressive debut, bound in quite delightful cover art, and I look forward to anything she will write.

3.75/5

‘There are just two things in the world that give you true confidence. One is overcoming difficulties on your own, and the other is being deeply loved. If you experience both, then you will be confident for the rest of your life.’

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars for an epic story of unrequited love, desperate poverty, and the brutality of the Japanese occupation of Korea. There are descriptions of graphic violence and rape for anyone who avoids such books. The characters are believable. They include murderous Japanese soldiers, Korean courtesans, Korean Independence activists, and homeless street kids among others. If you read The Island of Sea Women you will enjoy this book. I read it in 2 days, although it is 416 pages.
Two quotes: "The sky was white and the earth was black, like at the beginning of time before the first sunrise. Clouds left their realm and descended so low that they seemed to touch the ground."
" Her imagination ran its circular course inside familiarities--a fountain rather than a river, particularly when it came to thinking about her own life. "
Thanks to Ecco for sending me this eARC through NetGalley. #BeastsofaLittleLand #NetGalley.
Pub. date Dec. 7,2021

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I’m reading historical fiction, I want it to teach me something. This book does that in spades. I was aware that Japan had annexed Korea at the start of the 20th century, but unaware of the various attempts by Koreans to free themselves of this tyrannical rule. This book begins in 1918 and really ramps up in 1919, when the March 1st Movement began. It continues through 1965.
The two main characters are a young courtesan in training and a young beggar boy who meet and become friends.
Kim does a great job of giving us a solid sense of the time and place (although she occasionally slips up using contemporary language). She manages to sneak in enough facts to explain what’s happening in a “big picture sense” without disrupting the story.
The story is told from multiple perspectives - in addition to the main characters, there is an older courtesan, two sisters who are also training as courtesans, a rich Korean, one of the rebels and two Japanese majors. This keeps the story moving at a nice, steady pace. While the story was very plot rich, at times, it came across as flat. It didn’t grab me emotionally, although it totally interested me intellectually. Surprisingly, for all the unrequited loves and affairs, it’s the romantic parts of the book that fell the flattest. In some ways, the book reminded me of Dr. Zhivago - a romance spread across the history of a country in turmoil. But, don’t get your hopes up too high. This doesn’t come close to living up to that epic romance. Still, I recommend this for those looking to learn about Korea.
My thanks to NetGalley and Ecco for an advance copy of this book.

[Jaidee · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 "I just can't read this anymore..." star !!!

Sorry Trish !

This book feels tedious, superficial and wooden and I just can't do it anymore....stopping at 44%

This is how it makes me feel

[Jenny Lawson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweeping historical fiction that covers decades in Korea. Often brutal and gory but also fascinating and made me realize just how little I knew about Korea's Independence movement. Nothing like a good book to make you realize how stupid you are.

I can usually read two books a day but this one took me two days alone so if you're looking for a long epic with lots of characters it's a good read.

[Jenna ❤ ❀ ❤ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note to self: Recently published historical fiction is almost always thinly disguised romance. Don't bother.

This could have been a good story if there wasn't so much drivel weren't so many romantic feelings saturating the text. On and on, her feelings for him and his feelings for her and his feelings for someone else, etc.


(Image: Melissa McCarthy rolling her head back saying, "Oh my God, Well that's... I am balls deep in boredom.")

There are several characters and I think all of them were in love with someone or other. Yes, in real life, most people do fall in love at least once (though not everyone is hetero like in most novels). However, I don't want to read about it. I simply don't care about most fictional characters' feelings of love and lust and longing.

And I certainly didn't care about the characters' feelings in this book because I never felt like I got to know them, in spite of all the emotions. I don't know if it was just me or something to do with the writing but these characters failed to leap off the page.

The writing was decent but stilted, and then there was stuff like "her high-waisted trousers riding up her firm, heart-shaped ass" that had me rolling my eyes. Really, her firm, heart-shaped ass? 🙄

The dialogue was anachronistic and unbelievable. If you're going to write period fiction, please write the voices as though the characters are in that period and not in the present. And please make the characters sound different from each other. I had trouble keeping track of the characters because they all sounded the same (in print, perhaps the audiobook uses different voices which would at least make them more distinguishable).

I appreciated learning about Korea's recent (twentieth century) history, so there was that and it's the only reason I'm giving this two-and-half rounded up to three stars instead of one.

If you like romance in your historical fiction, 1) you're lucky because that's about all that's published anymore, and 2) you'll like this more than I did.

I won't bother writing what it's about. The blurb is enticing so check it out if you're interested. To be fair, it does mention romance in the blurb but I only read the first sentence before reading the book.

[Alwynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

The debut novel of Korean American writer Juhea Kim is a saga charting the lives of a group of individuals tied together by destiny, linked by the red thread of fate, which may stretch but never breaks. Inspired by her family’s past, Kim’s is a broad sweep narrative covering the colonial era and the brutal Japanese occupation of Korea, running through from 1917 to independence in 1945 and beyond. Its vast array of characters includes Jade, ten when the book opens, who becomes an apprentice to a courtesan. When Jade's sent to Seoul with the courtesan’s daughters, she meets an orphaned boy JungHo, the start of a fateful relationship that will last a lifetime. Alongside central Korean figures, we have Yamada a Japanese official and his associates, including the vain, sadistic Ito who will play a part in Jade’s future survival.

It’s a richly-detailed piece, perhaps too detailed, which manages to incorporate elements of everything from Korean myth and legend, Seoul’s café society in the 1920s, through to resistance group factions, post-independence partition, and even the beginnings of the car industry, finally reaching the 1960s and the early years of Park’s military dictatorship. The result’s a well-researched and, in its early stages, fairly involving story. The prose is uneven, competent, even lyrical at times, at others clunky and clumsy. Kim’s characters are sketchily drawn, with a tendency towards cliché – the Japanese military are almost cartoonish in their villainy - and there’s more than a dash of sentimentality and melodrama. Even so it’s very readable novel, at least until the half-way point when the action rapidly speeds up, shifting back and forth between characters at an almost bewildering pace. In its later stages it’s increasingly fragmented as Kim fast forwards through entire years and sequences of years, many skipped over altogether. I didn’t dislike the novel and I was fascinated by the depiction of key moments in Korea’s traumatic history but the style and episodic plot didn’t quite work for me. Although I think fans of Lisa See, Jin Min Lee or sageuk k-drama should find plenty that appeals here.

Thanks to Edelweiss plus and publisher HarperCollins for an arc

[Emily Coffee and Commentary · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://www.instagram.com/p/Csv6M8GL2...

A sweeping novel of friendship and forgiveness against the backdrop of Korea in its fight for independence. Passionate and all-encompassing, the characters struggle to find their place in a world filled with betrayal, violence, and unrequited love. But ultimately, forgiveness and new beginnings prevail, complete with an achingly bittersweet finale. This is a story in which its characters gracefully mirror the changing tides of their nation; their journeys are compelling, emotional, and filled with thought-provoking dynamics regarding rebellion, class, and desire. A beautiful debut that is as wild and free as the forests where beasts roam.

[David]

Finished Part 1 and setting this aside. The writing is a bit heavy handed and exposition heavy for my taste. May pick it up again at a later point.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yet another popular book that I didn't like. I have no idea how it has so many 5 star ratings. The beginning started off well, but then it ceased to be about Korean courtesans and was just filled with boring characters that I had trouble distinguishing between. The frequent time jumps just made it worse as some people you wouldn't even hear from again until many years later. I had trouble feeling attached to anyone. Even the main character felt wooden to me. I really didn't care about any of them at all. I'm not even sure why I finished it, except I thought it might get better.

[Bkwmlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

When I finished reading Juhea Kim’s debut novel Beasts of a Little Land , the first thought that came into my head was that this did not read like a debut at all. From the story structure to the development of the characters, to the historical details as well as the various themes and motifs incorporated into the narrative, the writing flowed so well and so seamlessly that I was completely immersed in this epic story from beginning to end.

The story spans a time period from 1917 to 1965 — a half century that bears witness to Korea’s evolution over the years, as a Japanese-occupied territory up through World War II, and later divided into the North and South Korea that we are more familiar with in modern times. Against this backdrop, we are introduced to two characters whose fates become inexplicably intertwined — JungHo, an orphan who roams the streets as a beggar, later becoming a revolutionary fighter for Korea’s independence, and Jade, a peasant girl sold by her family to a courtesan school who later becomes one of the most sought after actresses in Korea. As Jade and JungHo come of age amongst the changing landscape of their country, they experience moments both glorious and harrowing, but all have a profound impact on them in some way. This is a story where all the supporting characters play vital roles in the narrative, but not only that, all of the characters – whether good or bad, endearing or despiscable – are all equally unforgettable. One of the things I love most about this story is the complexity of the characters and the mixed feelings that evoked – for example, with the Japanese generals Ito and Yamada, they are supposed to be the enemy and majority of their actions are indeed abhorrent, but then, at certain points, they reveal their humanity through certain acts of kindness or a redeeming factor that made it hard to despise them completely. By the same token, there were also moments where I found it hard to root for some of the “good” characters, even with the understanding that some of the morally questionable actions they take are out of a need for survival. I also found it interesting the way nearly all the characters that appear in the story are connected in some way, whether directly or indirectly, that is apparent to the reader, but not necessarily to the characters themselves. This aspect, coupled with the atmospheric nature of the historical setting and time period, made for a truly immersive reading experience.

With all that said, my one complaint would probably be that, given the epic nature of the story, I was expecting more emotional depth, which I felt was a bit lacking in this instance (hence the reason why I rated this 4.5 stars instead of 5). Nevertheless, this was absolutely a worthwhile read, especially for historical fiction fans. In addition to learning a lot about Korea that I didn’t know before, I also appreciated the time period being one that isn’t commonly covered in many historical fiction works. I definitely recommend this book and at the same time, look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

Received ARC from Ecco via NetGalley and BookBrowse First Impressions program.

[Trish · Rating 5 out of 5]

❝ I tried to get rid of her but her soul clung to me by a thread. It’s an uncanny thing—inyeon. If it’s not meant to be, you can’t hold on to people no matter how hard you try. Some people you love deeply will turn into a stranger in an instant, if the inyeon has run its course. And sometimes people will be attached to you forever despite all likelihood.

——

❝ Jungho didn’t understand much of what was said, but he saw around him the rapturous faces, many wet with tears, and was surprised by the hotness welling up in his own eyes. […] What he now understood was that the world was a desperately dark place, not just for his family and for the beggar boys, but for everyone standing there. Their shared pain reverberated through his body like a common heartbeat.

——

— Do you love me?
— Yes, I love you. I really do.
— Why? Since when?
— Why? Because you were you, standing there, and I was also standing there… It’s that simple and that complicated. But it couldn’t have been otherwise.

——

❝ Everyone dreams, but only some people are dreamers.

——

❝ Death was such a small price to pay for life.

——

❝ There are just two things in the world that give you true confidence. One is overcoming difficulties on your own, and the other is being deeply loved. If you experience both, then you will be confident for the rest of your life.

——

❝ Life is only bearable because time makes you forget everything. But life is worthwhile because love makes you remember everything.

——

There is a Korean idiom that (roughly translated) says: even if two people, in passing each other, only brush their coat collars, it is karma.

This idea is the heart of Beasts and 인연 inyeon — human thread — the belief that “connections and encounters between people are preordained,” is the driving force.

What results is an epic saga in which every encounter between two people is meaningful and significant, eventually revealing its true purpose in shaping the characters’ lives.

Beasts is a dazzling and captivating novel that had my heart in its grip from the prologue all the way to the last page of the epilogue. I absolutely loved it. 🐅

——————

Midway Impressions:

I’m a visual reader - the kind that casts the characters and watches the plot play out like a movie in my head as I read - and this book is a cinematic experience.

From the very beginning, I was drawn in by the dramatic and captivating encounter between a Korean hunter, a Japanese military group and a tiger in the dark, snowy mountains.

And though the prologue itself sounds like a climactic episode, it aptly sets the tone and foundation for the political, societal and romantic tensions that follow in the rest of the novel.

Something I particularly noticed (and appreciate) is how Kim shows us her characters’ vulnerabilities soon after we meet them. Within a few pages, I feel like I know a character’s central motivations, flaws and virtues. This is significant because as I turn each page and begin new chapters, I’m constantly afraid of what fate might have in store for these people I’ve grown to care for — an attachment and feeling that was distinctly lacking when I read Pachinko. Whether I’ve known a character for a few pages or a hundred, Beasts makes me feel like any character’s death would be a great injustice.

If you loved Pachinko, get this book. If, like me, you found Pachinko lacking in certain qualities but still crave Korean historical fiction, GET THIS BOOK ASAP. The legends, dialogues, social etiquettes and nuances that Kim describes highlight Korean culture and mannerisms in a beautiful and subtle way. It’s the little things like hearts “fluttering” and not pouring one’s own soju when with company that makes this book so incredibly immersive.

[Sujoya - theoverbookedbibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Juhea Kim's expansive and emotional epic , Beasts of a Little Land , is a beautiful work of historical fiction.

The two prime characters are Jade , a young girl of ten who is sold to a courtesan house for money that would help her poor family and JungHo , an orphan living off the streets , struggling to survive with nothing but few mementos left to him by his late father , a former soldier with the Korean Imperial Army , skilled hunter and tenant farmer who once saved a Japanese officer from being killed by a tiger on a hunting expedition. The lives of Jade and JungHo and the people they meet in the course of their lives takes us on a journey spanning almost 5 decaded (1917-1965) in Japan occupied Korea . The evolution of this nation from being a Japanese colony to fighting for and winning its independance only to be divided into two nations by drawing a "a hasty line at the thirty-eighth parallel" is told through the interwoven stories of Japanese colonizers, freedom fighters, self serving businessmen, street children and courtesans.

The author's use of folklore and storytelling within the main story gives us a deeper understanding of the history and culture of the country and its people. With themes of lifelong friendships and betrayals, sacrifice , patriotism, love (unrequited in some cases) and survival in times of extreme hardship and political unrest this is an exquisitely written debut . At the heart of the novel is the human thread - 'inyeon' that connects the interwoven lives of the different characters in this novel- people who were destined to be a part of eachother's stories . Vivid descriptions of the hardships faced during Korea's struggle for independance and the brutality of the colonizers is hard to read but central to how the story progresses. The plot does have some gaps wherein I was left wondering about the fate of an important character or about what events/circumstances could have led to that moment. I suppose that with a story with many characters and much ground to cover this does happen. But ultimately that this is an impressive debut novel goes without saying.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ecco Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This sweeping saga tells of the lives of a young girl sold to a courtesan and the son of a poor hunter in Korea from 1917 to the 1960s. Annexed by Japan in 1910, life is becoming more difficult for the Koreans as their land is given to Japanese migrants, their taxes are raised, most of the rice harvest is sent to Japan and it is impossible to find enough to feed their families.

Jade considers herself lucky to be sold to a courtesan who has several pupils she clothes and feeds and educates her in the arts and music they will need as courtesans. Her ability to act and dance will later see her playing starring roles in silent movies and leaving her profession of courtesan behind her. While still children, Jade meets orphan boy, JungHo, son of a peasant farmer and hunter, outside her house in Seoul where he makes his living as leader of a street gang of child thieves and pick pockets. He will later become swept up in the Korean movement for independence.

Juhea Kim’s debut novel and epic tale is a fascinating look at Korea under the brutality of Japanese rule. The history is well researched and blends in well with the lives of the characters. I never felt particularly invested in any of the characters and their relationships which seemed to lack emotional depth, perhaps because there was so much story to be told in one novel. However, it is an immersive and satisfying read, particularly if you enjoy historical novels.

With thanks to Oneworld Publications and Netgalley for a copy to read

[John Mauro · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beasts of a Little Land is beautifully written but ultimately collapses under its own weight.

Beasts of a Little Land checks all the boxes of an historical epic. Somehow I feel like I've read this same story a hundred times already. Other than the meticulously researched setting, I don't feel like Beasts of a Little Land is bringing anything new to the genre.

The story is marred by wooden dialogue that makes the characters seem indistinguishable. There is also a distinct lack of focus that makes the plot seem like a genre box-checking exercise.

I really wanted to like this book, but unfortunately it just fell flat.

[Richard Derus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review tomorrow.
Rating: 5* of five

The Publisher Says: An epic story of love, war, and redemption set against the backdrop of the Korean independence movement, following the intertwined fates of a young girl sold to a courtesan school and the penniless son of a hunter

In 1917, deep in the snowy mountains of occupied Korea, an impoverished local hunter on the brink of starvation saves a young Japanese officer from an attacking tiger. In an instant, their fates are connected—and from this encounter unfolds a saga that spans half a century.

In the aftermath, a young girl named Jade is sold by her family to Miss Silver’s courtesan school, an act of desperation that will cement her place in the lowest social status. When she befriends an orphan boy named JungHo, who scrapes together a living begging on the streets of Seoul, they form a deep friendship. As they come of age, JungHo is swept up in the revolutionary fight for independence, and Jade becomes a sought-after performer with a new romantic prospect of noble birth. Soon Jade must decide whether she will risk everything for the one who would do the same for her.

From the perfumed chambers of a courtesan school in Pyongyang to the glamorous cafes of a modernizing Seoul and the boreal forests of Manchuria, where battles rage, Juhea Kim’s unforgettable characters forge their own destinies as they wager their nation’s. Immersive and elegant, Beasts of a Little Land unveils a world where friends become enemies, enemies become saviors, heroes are persecuted, and beasts take many shapes.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.

My Review: Starting an historical novel with a hunting scene is pretty much a statement of intent: We're heading into conflict! There's nothing about this going to be smooth and easy!

It isn't, for the characters at least. The value of self to family, to society; the value of individuation, personal or political; the value of loyalty, fidelity, honor: All strands in this novel's braid. What keeps these weighty themes from becoming burdensome to follow is the resonant writing.

It appeared to him that no matter how much he gave, he would always have more than enough. As he grew older, he even relished the struggles brought on by his sacrifices. There was a soaring awareness that illuminated his soul whenever he did the right thing, which also cost him something. This euphoria, however, was balanced by the utter terror he felt when he looked around and saw so many others to whom this consciousness was not only absent, but unknowable and abhorrent. Most people, MyungBo realized, were made of a different material than his, and it was not something that could shift, as from coldness to warmth, but an elemental and fundamental difference, like wood from metal.

This is, in my reading ear, the musing of a smart man on an immutable truth that does not ever appear the same way from person to person preceiving it; and, in his musing, retaining that awareness. I rang like a bell to this soft hammer striking me.

Current event make this read all the more trenchant. The world has never lacked people or peoples hard done by, consigned to lesser states of being than is their natural right by some standard or quality invented, "discovered," or detected without evidence of its relevance or importance. This passage in history, well, if I really need to spell it out for you I don't want to. This novel has a thriving culture that is suddenly deemed inferior, much to their mass outraged disbelief; this invented inferiority excuses a colonial oppression that has as its purpose eradicating a people's soul to be replaced with their oppressors' vision of perfect slaves.

And that, I expect you already know, is a hateful, criminal enterprise with many, many collaborators inside the edifice being created, as well as...much more terribly...many times more outside. When the day arrives that the false and ill-fitting, ramshackle and improvised, structure collapses, things brak and shatter and split and buckle in random-seeming shapes without patterns. Lives and loves and entire branches of family history jumble in lethal chaos, not every deat physical.

It might be the psychological ones that cause the most suffering.

What Juhea Kim has done for us is map that chaos onto one family of highly effective people who still can't save their lives, their loves, their lands without unthinkable suffering rippling out from the Korean nation's convulsive death-agonies, its multiplicity of death-agonies, and find in that chaos the undetected in the time of crisis pattern that supports random bits of the past just enough to provide the seeds for pearls to come, yet to come.

In 2024, this rread, beautiful for and in itself, means so much more than it did when it came out in 2021. It can speak its truth of betrayal and cruelty into a landscape more like itself; more like the one that needs to hear that truth said without rage or outrage or plangent pleading blame-shoving. I'd love for everyone I know, everyone I can reach, to at the least try this lovely flower's powerful fruit.

Please.

[Britany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow- I don't think I'll forget about this novel for a long time.

You know how you are always searching for a hidden gem that will be so great, but you haven't heard much about (if anything) about it? THAT is the feeling I got with this book. I read it because I needed a book with a tiger on the cover, and this book promptly sucked me in and broke me.

I would describe this as a mix of Memoirs of a Geisha and Pachinko. We follow Jade Ahn as she's sold as a gisaeng when she's a small girl to save her family from starving to death. She then is traded away to Seoul where she is raised and groomed up with two sisters- Lotus and Luna. As we follow these women, other characters are introduced, political unrest unravels between Korea and Japan and a man that is able to flee from a tiger in the snowy mountains ties every single thread together. Kim does such a brilliant job of crafting these well defined characters- ones that tug at your heart, that pour into your psyche to the point where I dreamed about them, and they consumed my thoughts during the day until I could revisit their lives again in the pages. Kim perfectly threads the needle and executes this novel in a way that is unbelievable for a debut.

My ideal historical novel teaches me something, makes me want to research events, and leaves me wanting so much more from these characters. I ended up finishing the novel as tears rolled down my face. I can gush on and on about this one, but instead I'm pushing it into your hands and onto your TBR.

[Paul Fulcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everything about Jejudo is different from the mainland, starting from the sea. It is light turquoise near a sandy beach, and deepens to emerald-green and sapphire-blue farther from the shore. In some places where the black volcanic rock dashes off to a sudden bluff, the indigo waves look like they’re reflecting the night sky even when it’s sunny and bright. In midwinter the camellia trees with their glossy green leaves were in full bloom, and when the wind blew, their red flowers fell on the black cliffs or tumbled into the sea. The air smelled of salt and ripe tangerines.

Hesoon used to say that Jejudo is the most beautiful place in the world. I haven’t seen much of the world to truly know, but she may have been right.

Beasts of a Little Land, set in Korea from 1917-1965 is both a historical novel (of the Japanese occupation of Korea and the independence movement)combined with a love story, but one where neither the tides of history nor love run smoothly, both frequently diverted by tragedy and division.

I say 'love story', but this would better be described as a story of Inyeon (인연), or more specifically first-love Inyeon 첫사랑과의 인연, a concept that denotes a strong life-long connection between two people, here Jade and JungHo (정호), both born in the latter half of the first decade of the 20th century.

Their first connection is coincidental and one that the characters themselves don't realise even when a clue emerges decades later.

The hanja in JungHo's name mean Righteous Tiger, and Korean tigers (한국 호랑이) are a key motif through the novel. As the story opens in 1917, a Japanese party in the Korean mountains are being (deliberately we discover later) astray by Baek, a travelling silk merchant who they have press-ganged as a guide.  At the same time a hunter Nam is tracking what he thinks is a leopard, only to find it is a young tiger, which he doesn't shoot, remembering his father's advice, despite his own reputation for having killed a huge beast, that one only kills a tiger to protect one's own life.

Nam has gone too far from home and into the snow in his hunt, and collapses from exhaustion, but is discovered by the Japanese party, who first save him, with heat, food and drink, but then rely on his skills to save them and guide them back down the mountain. En-route they encounter a much larger tiger, but Nam scares it away, saving both the men and the animal from harming each other. On arrival back in the town, a Japanese major executes Baek for his incompetence, while a captain gives Nam the gift of a silver cigarette case.

In another strand of the story, we discover that Baek traded silk with Silver, a courtesan in Pyongyang. But secretly Silver also raises funds for the independence movement, which Baek then traffics back to them. Learning that Nam's family buried Baek, Silver sends them a gift of a silver ring. Meanwhile, Jade, a young girl is sold to Silver as an apprentice.

A few years later, Jade is sent to live with another courtesan in Seoul and at the same time Nam's son, Jung-ho, arrives in the city from the countryside, making his living as leader of a gang of beggars, his two prized possessions, which he keeps for the rest of his life, the ring and the cigarette case, both inherited from his late father. And there the two meet for the first time.

Rather neatly the Inyeon concept enables what otherwise might be seen as contrived plot coincidences to become a key part of the book's themes. I mentioned the connection between Jade and Jung-ho, but there are several such connections - almost 30 years later Jung-ho's life is spared when the Japanese captain, now much more senior, recognises the cigarette case. And yet, as so often in this novel, tragedy follows redemption, and post-war the same cases leads to him being condemned as a collaborator, despite his war heroics in the resistance.

Some favourite quotes:

The island paradise of Jeju-do, where Jade finishes the novel in a first-person postscript - this quote is where she first heard of it, from her aunt's maid:

Jade begged their maid Hesoon to tell them stories of her childhood in Jejudo, the magical southern island where there were trees without any branches and wild horses running freely under a snowcapped mountain. Hesoon said her mother and her four sisters were all seawomen who dove in the water to harvest abalones, holding their breath for two minutes at a time.

The rather fractured nature of the resistance (which was to carry forward into post-independence factionalism):

MYUNGBO RETURNED HOME LATE that week after meeting with his comrades in the Coalition. It tied together groups from all points of the political spectrum under the one banner of independence: the Anarchists, the Communists, the Nationalists, the Christians, the Buddhists, and the Cheondoists. He was one of the senior leaders of the Communists, but among their ranks there were those who saw the struggle as primarily between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, the rich and the poor, and not between Japan and Korea, as MyungBo had always believed. The Anarchist credo was that any social order was destructive and oppressive. The Nationalists were the conservatives and some of them put more faith in America than in Korea itself. They also opposed the Communists almost as often as they fought the Japanese. Then some of the Christians were Pacifists, although a few of them had gladly assassinated Japanese generals and governors before putting a gun to their own heads.

All the groups believed that Japan would send every Korean man to the mines and every Korean woman to the military brothels rather than admit defeat; their opinions diverged on what they could do to implode Japan from within before that point.

The Andong Kim family (from which my mother-in-law originates):

Where is your family from?”
“I was born in Seoul, but my family is originally from Andong.”
“You mean you’re an Andong-Kim?”
SungSoo blurted out, and HanChol gave a slight bow of his head. His intuition about the kid being exceptional might prove true, after all. He surely came from an impoverished cadet branch, but he still belonged to one of the most important families in the country—one that even kings have feared over the centuries.

3.5 stars - historical love-stories aren't really my thing, so 3 stars for me, but recommended more generally to fans of the genre.

[Tom the Teacher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who doesn't love a sweeping, decades-long epic about heartache, missed opportunities, and chance encounters?

I'm sure there are some people who don't, but I'm not one of them.

Beasts of a Little Land follows a cast of characters through a turbulent time in Korean history - Japanese occupation, WWII, and the aftermath of the Korean War - and primarily focuses on JungHo, a street urchin, and Jade, a trainee courtesan. The relationship between these two is the core of the novel, and neither can seem to let the other one go.

Besides these two, there's a great cast of characters, from the Japanese general Ito, to HanChol the rickshaw driver, Jade's best friend Lotus, and her indomitable Aunt Dani. At first the threads between the characters seem disparate, but everything ties together in the end, and every moment of the story has its relevance.

Juhea Kim's writing itself is stunning and elegant, mostly third-person but with a couple of POV chapters from JungHo and Jade. My only quibble is the ending - to me, it could've ended in a slightly different place, or even a chapter sooner, but again that's minor: The core themes here and the characterisation are more than enough.

An excellent piece of historical fiction, and I'll be keeping an eye out for what Juhea Kim does next.

[Dylan]

DNF @ 22%

I threw this on the DNF shelf earlier but then changed my mind and read a couple more chapters. I think it’s staying this time. The historical context is certainly interesting but that’s essentially the only thing that’s working for me.

Biggest issue is that I really don’t like Kim’s writing, it reads as very cold to me. Beyond that I still don’t care about any of the characters, even almost a quarter of the way through, and there’s not really any plot beyond what’s going on in the characters’ lives at this point so not much interest there.

I think if I wasn’t so putt off by the writing I could probably stick with it because I am interested in knowing more about the historical context here but I’d rather learn about that some other way tbh.

[Stephanie Daige · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beasts of a Little Land is a captivating story of twentieth-century Korea during Japanese occupation, World War II, and the rise of Communism.  It follows the life of Jade, a girl who is forced to become a courtesan at a young age, as well as the friends and lovers she makes along the way.  I learned a lot about Korea from reading this novel, but it is much more entertaining than a history book. The story was engrossing and I felt myself really caring about (or loathing, in some cases) the characters.  It was painful to watch Jade's friend  JungHo get excited about the ideals of Marxism and Communism.   I just wanted to hop into a time machine and go back and warn this fictional character about how Communism actually turns out! 

Over the course of the story,  we follow Jade's career and those of her courtesan friends, Lotus and Luna, who are like sisters to her.  We become privy to their victories and tragedies. Jade is loved by two different men.  Which one, if either, will she end up with?

The writing in Beasts of a Little Land is gorgeous, but it didn't get so bogged down in beautiful writing that it keeps the story from moving along.  Juhea Kim achieves a perfect balance of characterization and plot.

[Celia · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be published Dec 7, 2021

Received an early copy from BookBrowse, for which I thank BookBrowse, the publisher and the author.

The story takes place in Korea and starts in the mountains in 1917. We move to Pyongyang, currently the capital of North Korea. In that year, North and South Korea were not separated. A train ran between Pyongyang and Seoul.

I love historical fiction because references within encourage me to do research and I learn much. This book is a prime example of one that makes me want to look deeper. The characters seem real and are well described.

I loved what I learned and following the story of

Jade-a courtesan in training
Silver-her original teacher
Dani-her second teacher (Silver's first cousin)
Luna-Silver's love child
Lotus-Luna's younger sister
Nam JungHo-an orphan living in Seoul
HanChol-a rickshaw driver
Nam's Father-saved the life of a Japanese Captain

The story covers the years 1917-1964. Korea gains its independence from Japan upon the conclusion of WWII. The lives of those listed above change dramatically in the course of the 47 years.

Very good and compelling historical fiction.

5 stars

[Melissa Crytzer Fry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was sucked right into the atmospheric first pages of this novel and while that level of literary detail didn’t necessarily hold throughout, I continued to learn a great deal about Korea’s fraught history of war as I read on the treadmill daily.

What impressed me most about this book was the author’s juggling ability. She tossed an assortment of colorful characters into the air from the start – all of them seemingly disconnected – and ended up deftly catching them all in one hand, where each, as it turns out, fit together perfectly in her palm. Japanese soldiers, Korean businessmen, courtesans, movie stars, tigers, political protesters, zoo animals … this book has it all!

Some of the language is quite lovely and evocative:

Time was a winter fog – gray, shapeless, indifferent to his existence.

Everyone dreams, but only some people are dreamers. The nondreamers, by far more numerous, are those who see the world as it is. Then there are the few dreamers, who see the world as they are.

They were facing northwest, and to their right were the smooth dark green ankles of the Khingan mountains, sloping gently upward to meet the clouds.

I would have liked to have seen a bit more depth to many of the relationships, but, overall, I found this to be an enjoyable and historically educational read, well worth my time as I burned some calories away! My overall 3.5 rating reflects a “3” on the writing (I liked it) and a solid “4” (I really liked it) on the story. So I rounded up.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Ecco and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Beasts of a Little Land and provide an honest review.

I was left speechless after finishing this beautifully written, evocative epic by Juhea Kim. The gifted author explores the concept of Inyeon, the idea that there is a human thread in which connections and encounters between people are preordained, and the result is a moving and thought-provoking work that took on a cinematic quality in my imagination as I was reading. Kim's masterful phrasing created some of the best closing chapters of a book I have ever read. I am so tempted to add a few lines from some of Kim's most poignant passages to illustrate this claim, but would rather the reader come across them for themselves in hope that the words take their breath away, as they did for me.

[DeB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Huge cast of characters followed in Korea during the Japanese occupation, beginning in early 1900’s until the end of WWII- a period of immense change in this “Little Land”. Not unlike Ukraine today, Korea was a key strategic military prize, fought over for centuries and always vulnerable to invaders. The writing is lyrical, and hints at the threads of fate which will link the errant Japanese soldier and poor Korean hunter, in its introduction. While that story percolates behind the scenes over years, the making of young courtesans is front and centre- an accepted, if “side-eyed” profession for the most talented dancers, singers and beauties which “entertain” the wealthy, the aristocracy often to become long term mistresses.

The second half of the novel became more brick and mortar- survival as Japan grew increasingly more aggressive on the World stage- and tried to give glimpses into the many lives as political positions were taken by Koreans fighting for independence. Author Juhea Kim tried to compact an immense amount of detail into her story; for me, depth of character development suffered as a result.

However, the author’s depiction of old world Korea, almost frozen in time at the novel’s introduction through to its independence- and being split in two, is remarkable. The factions, important lineage, the history of name changing by the Japanese (Colonialism)- the author has given the reader much to consider and appreciate.

Strong 4 stars.

[Tilly · Rating 2 out of 5]

So many times during my reading of this book I wanted to put it down and stop, but I’m too stubborn to abandon a book, especially one which I had such high hopes for.

The dialogue was one of my first issues: clunky in places, often it was quite unbelievable and took me out of the story.

The narrative moved around between different characters so often that it’s quite hard to form attachments to any of the cast. I didn’t feel they were particularly well developed either.

This book really fell flat for me. There were some interesting things to learn about the history of Korea but they were few and far between. I really don’t understand how it’s being described as an ‘epic’- to me it felt more like a melodramatic soap opera. Very disappointed.

[Anaïs Cahueñas · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Everyone dreams, but only some people are dreamers.”

Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim is a raw story filled with breathtaking prose and formidable characters including a poor hunter, an orphan boy and a young courtesan in 20th century Korea.

The talented author explores “inyeon” which suggests that there are preordained threads of connection that tie humans together throughout the course of their lives.

A sweeping historical fiction of Japan’s occupation in Korea, telling the interweaving stories of many people during Korea’s fight for independence. It’s a stunning story of resilience, love and life.

[Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is difficult to review.

The first half had some salient and pivotal characters, situations, dynamics of occupation etc. that were excellent. Told fairly well. But the novel as a whole?

It's pacing was hugely uneven. The second half was breakneck pace of years that told a mere timeline progression of work, politico etc. It lost its character dynamic that it had in the earlier sections with Dani, Jade, and the boy orphan.

The symbolism and mystical entities (ties between souls etc.) were appreciated but because of the over scope of the whole, IMHO- they got lost in their intrinsic detail/importance. Too much, too fast of telling the history going on for it.

This also holds horrific death and mutilation description. Japanese sword style. Not a fan of reading this at all. I take the chewy and horrendous when they fit the place, time etc. This did. But still. The coldness of torture and execution in these times and places? Seldom surpassed. And when it is, I dislike the description.

And like two other novels I can think of trying to tell family, nation sagas? Too much for one book here too. Way, way too much bitten off that couldn't be chewed.

Still, I am glad I read it. In some slants it puts more of the Korean history into perspective for me.

A long friend, close person to me spent years plus time in Korea during the period of the Vietnam War. The wars have never paused there since the 1940's or before. It's just always in a different or more/less active form is all. And the winters are beyond cold in North Korea. Much more like Montana than even like Scandinavia. Brutal winters.

This may be a book that people who have little Korean history might read to get an inkling. Some of the most tragic treatments of humans ever recorded were done/ committed by the Japanese in the first half of the former century. Beware, you get a taste of that with this book.