L'année de l'impossible adieu

Year of Impossible Goodbyes #1

by Sook Nyul Choi, Janine Hérisson (Translator)

It is 1945, and courageous ten-year-old Sookan and her family must endure the cruelties of the Japanese military occupying Korea.  Police captain Narita does his best to destroy everything of value to the family, but he cannot break their spirit.  Sookan's father is with the resistance movement in Manchuria and her older brothers have been sent away to labor camps.  Her mother is forced to supervise a sock factory and Sookan herself must wear a uniform and attend a Japanese school.



Then the war ends.  Out come the colorful Korean silks and bags of white rice.  But Communist Russian troops have taken control of North Korea and once again the family is suppressed.  Sookan and her family know their only hope for freedom lies in a dangerous escape to Americancontrolled South Korea.



Here is the incredible story of one family's love for each other and their determination to risk everything to find freedom.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Fiction, Historical, Asia, War, Middle Grade

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

From the days of her childhood, Sook Nyul Choi wanted to be a writer. The first stories, poems, and articles she wrote were in Korean, her first language. Later, after teaching for many years in New York City schools, she began to write in English.

Sook Nyul Choi writes both for children and for young adults. Her own experiences in Korea help to shape her books. One of her main goals is to help young Americans learn about the culture and history of Korea.

Reviews

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

I have read this book more than once in middle school and high school. There are few things more impactful than a first hand account of courage and resilience in the wake of oppression. The prose is simple, yet hauntingly profound. Absolutely worth a read.

[Irene · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could give this novel more than five stars, I would! I can’t believe how long it has taken me to read this distressing, but uplifting piece of historical fiction that reminds me of how precious freedom is.

Years ago, students had enthusiastically recommended this book to me. Middle school students. Enthused about historical fiction. I took note. I remember the students telling me that they couldn’t tell me too much without ruining the story and I remember writing the book title down.

Now this occurred around the year 2000. Before I was on Goodreads. I had a binder system of book lists, articles, notes, post-its. A fine collection of paper napkins covered with ink-smeared writing of book titles and author names. A truly official and highly organized system of chaos.

When I started cataloguing online all of my reading, I was so relieved. My one mistake was glancing through my “to-be-read” binder too quickly. I overlooked and dismissed too many books.

The group of children who were such fans of this Korean’s family struggle at the end of WWII happen to be among some of my favorite children I’ve taught over the years. They liked reading, but were particular about what books they would recommend whole-heartedly. I never forgot how passionately they talked about this story.

Several years ago I heard about Escape from Camp 14 on one of my favorite podcasts Books on the Nightstand. I listened to that audiobook and my memory of this historical fiction recommendation was jarred. The problem was that I could not remember the title except for the words impossible and goodbye.

Luckily, those key words lead me to Sook Nyul Choi’s beautifully crafted story. Once I purchased a copy of the book, it sat on my bookshelf for a few years. At 170 pages, I felt like I could read this novel in a weekend…easily. And I finally have.

The story opens in Korea as WWII is winding down. Sookan and several members of her family live outside of Pyongyang in fear of the Japanese. The first half of the book records their constant fear in managing the sock factory for Captain Narita, the Japanese officer who represents the Japanese Empire and Our Heavenly Emperor.

Any wrong word could cause the family to be separated. Special punishments would be devised to break their spirit. Food rations would disappear. Food distributed might be a bag of rice half-filled with sand.

One of the most heart-breaking scenes is one of the first impossible goodbyes. Sookan and her cousin Kisa have special bonds with the sock girls, the girls who work in the factory Sookan’s mother manages. Captain Narita arrives to take the sock girls away to the front lines where they will be comfort women who will give the soldiers special spirit to fight. Stomach-turning.

When Japan surrenders, the Russians arrive in Northern Korea, and they know just how to indoctrinate the terrified Koreans. Mother and Aunt Tiger are rightfully skeptical, but Sookan reacts positively to the friendly Russians with their festivities, songs, and huge meals.

Not until she experiences the daily labor of a proletariat does Sookan realize that her country has traded one captor for another. Her family learns of the 38th Parallel too late. If they are to plan an escape to the South, they will need to be extra careful.

The last third of the book chronicles how the family faces the decisions about whether or not to try to flee. The resolution gives a solid account of what happens to every character, a decision by the author that would endear her to middle school students who are not fond of ambiguous endings. While there are numerous impossible goodbyes in this story, the overall message about the perseverance of the human spirit is worthwhile and uplifting.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh... A short, good, rather historical fiction type of story, because this had happened to many people, including the author, Sook Nyul Choi. I enjoyed the story, but I really didn't like how Sookan always cries, (but I probably would too, given if I were in that situation.) : )

P.S. Sookan looks just a little bit like Albert, don't you guys think so?

[Spriya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely stunning. Period.
The writing transported YOU back to Sookan's life, and it just highlighted the atrocities the Japanese committed in Korea. Every time I re-read this book, I was so grateful I didn't live during this time.

It's astonishing how many times I've read this book as a kid, and cried every single time.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually read youth fiction, so it's hard for me to rate.

This is the true story of a young Korean girl in Pyongyang at the end of WWII under the Japanese, and the beginning of "liberation" under the USSR. She and her family must escape south of the 38th parallel, where the Americans are. It's a gripping story.

I would offer a caution for younger readers: the is a part before the war ends that the Japanese force some young women to go to the front lines as "comfort women" for the soldiers. It doesn't explain what that means; the protagonist herself is confused. But if you don't want to address that question with your child just yet, maybe have them wait, or read it aloud and skip over that part for now.

[Brian Ham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, that was a bummer.

[Grace (은혜) · Rating 5 out of 5]

My grandparents didn’t like to talk about Korea during its difficult times.
They had seen too much, grieved too deeply, left too many behind to ever think of the past over again. The history I knew of them was in small bits and pieces, half mumbled and quickly dismissed. I was too afraid to ask and too busy to dive into any research until my 하라버지, my grandfather, passed away suddenly while I was away for school.
My grandmother came to live with us and I started digging a little deeper.
Research and reading came easy to me, I had always loved history and historical fiction quickly became another avenue to get a better picture of the times.
History was wonderful. I could read about the most intense battles, the most grotesque labor camps, the most emotional testimonies of events and study it. It was sad, but never personal. It was horrific but never overwhelming. I have a strong constitution and like to read of things to analyze it. Why did people do what they did? What were they thinking? What could’ve happened differently?
It was nice to read of other people’s experiences rather than my own. It was pleasant to be detached from the situation and use logic instead.
I read this book and, about halfway through, I put it down for nearly a week. I wasn’t busy. I wasn’t bored of it.
I just couldn’t read it.
Each chapter made me weep harder than the next. By the end of the book, I had cried so much that I developed severe dry eye and nearly had ulcers form on my cornea. When I recovered, I began to tell my mom the synopsis of the book and surprised both of us with the tears that began so readily to flow. My mom said that it was why she had always refused to study the history herself. It’s why my grandparents refused to speak of it in the first place.

The story itself might be fictional but the events were not. The book winded up slowly and came crashing down with an ending that had me closing the covers after every page, praying with tears for fictional characters to make it. To survive.

I understand that my review is biased.
This was my family. My own relatives went through this and I could not even comprehend how I had not heard the severity of their treatment. I began asking questions and have since learned much more about my family’s past, each subject more heartbreaking than the last.
I will never stop recommending this book even though I cannot give an honest review. This book broke my heart in all the right ways and I think that’s what matters. That’s what history is for.

[Dani · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had me in tears at the end of every chapter.

This story is about a 10 year old girl named Sookan and her family having to endure and face the cruelties of the Japanese military occupying Korea.
Once the war is over, Communist Russian troops take control over North Korea. Sookan and her family find themselves suppressed once again. They know their only hope to freedom lies in an escape to South Korea.


Just like the title of the book there were many sad goodbyes Sookan had to experience as a 10 year old who is simply trying to survive and escape the current situation she is dealt with for a better life. I was surprised this is categorized as a middle grade book, but one that I think everyone should read. I will be thinking about this book for a long time and one of my favorite reads of this year.

5/5 ⭐️

[Roxanne Coopchiak · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book, is pretty emotional, I know the author wants to share how her childhood was and it's history but while I was reading this book I kept asking "Why? why? why?". This book is way to sad, but I really love interesting stories like this. I also wonder why the Russians, Japanese and Chinese love having war in Korea. It's getting to much for them to keep struggling for food and drinks.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is required summer reading for my rising 8th grader. It was intense, at times, but I found the book incredible. I had no understanding of the harsh and cruel way the Koreans were treated by the Japanese in WWII and subsequently by the Russians. It was eye-opening and while this is a book geared towards Middle-Schoolers, it definitely made me want to read more about this time period.

[arianalovesoscarwilde · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think even though this book is recommended for children, it was a good story. It really put my life into perspective I learned more about history in this short book than in my whole semester of world history. Love that.

[Soojin · Rating 4 out of 5]

i remember reading this in elementary school but i couldn't remember the title. after hours of searching i FINALLY found it. :')

[Jodi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book and the characters are very well-developed for a children's book. I simply devoured it. I do not know much about Korea so it was interesting to read about the time period of World War II and the division of this country into North Korea and South Korea. So sad!

8/5/2019: I picked this book up again because I couldn't remember if I had read it or not. As soon as I started reading I did remember it and the sock girls. Such horrible treatment of the Korean people. I was so glad Sookan was able to escape with her family to the south.

As an elementary school teacher, I was rattled this time by how horribly the children were treated at school. They were belittled, and physically abused. They also learned nothing academic - they were simply being taught to rattle of the political agenda of the Japanese and to make weapons. I was shocked the little girls weren't even allowed to use the bathroom, and several had accidents while at school so sad.

I remember that the sock girls were sent away by the Japanese to help in the war efforts but it didn't strike me what their true purpose was until this reading. "Comfort girls" became sexual slaves to the Japanese soldiers. So sad and so deep for a children's book.

[Woojae · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about a family's life in Korea during the Korean War (Known as the 6.25 war in Korea) The family lives through the Japanese occupation to the Korean war and during the occupation they live in a village in the part of North Korea. Sookan the sister of the family is brave and protects her younger brother. There father is in Manchuria for Japanese-resistant movement and there three older brothers are camped in the labor camp of Japan.

After the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surrenders and the Pacific war ends. The family now is happy and dreams a better life. However, there dream is suppressed by the communist Russia controlling North Korea.

There only hope is there escape to American-controlled South Korea. Sookan, bravely take cares of her brother and successfully escapes to South Korea.

In 25 of June 4 AM, North Korea invades South Korea.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me personally, I respect this book for introducing an oft-overlooked portion of World War II and the years beyond- Korea's occupation by Japan and ultimately America and Russia splitting the country in two. After a dreary existance under the Japanese, young protagonist Sookan falls under the influence of the communist Russians and must escape with her family to the south. Underneath all of the specifics is a formula story about escaping oppression and coming of age, but it was told so beautifully. I was captivated.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In terms of growing in knowledge of debunking the single story, this book will do it for you. Choi relates her experiences during the Japanese occupation of Korea, then describes escaping the Russian Communist regime that occupied North Korea. The entire time I thought -- what? This happened?! Where was this in my World History class?

Books like these matter because stories like these are important to know.

The writing itself was alright, but the heart of the story is the meaning.

[Blythie Colvin · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMYGOSH BEST BOOK EVAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
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[Eddie Hahm · Rating 4 out of 5]

It wasn't the best book because the action in the story happened too fast like the author just dumped all the events together. So the tension was there but there wasn't a lot of tension. But it had an interesting setting and plot that caught my attention.

[Parker M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a very good story obout the koren war and what a tipical family went through. although the torture is bad and i hate it!!!

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was...

[Jason Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just didn't really like it

[Hannah ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing book but not as emotional as many other Korean War memoirs I've read before.

[Heesung Tae · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a time when all the Koreans had to suffer. There was time when all the Koreans had to go through harsh lives. Crises threatened them on two separated occasions, and this is what happened during last 100 years. We live without a big conflict in our lives. Everything is prepared for us-we’re attending a good school, which provides us a good education, we eat, wear and live without problem and we have rights and privileges. But during Japanese colonial era, which continued for about 35 years, Koreans’ rights were stolen by the Japanese-absolutely. Koreans were forced to work and work for Japanese, but there was nothing coming back for them. People who desperately longed for their freedom joined in the Korean independence movement. But if they were found by Japanese, most of them were cruelly killed and the others were arrested to be tortured.

When the Koreans finally escaped from this horrible period of time, the second problem came for them just after few years. Korea was divided into the North and South, by 38th Parallel. Communist Russia took over North Korea and Capitalist America controlled South. Some families were torn apart, and many North Koreans escaped to South.

This book, “Year of Impossible Goodbyes” by Sook Nyul Choi, is a story of a girl named Sookan who went through this hard time in the perspective of a 10 year-old kid. She had 3 older brothers, 1 oldest sister and 1 younger brother. The oldest child, Theresa, became a nun and couldn’t be seen often because Japanese forced people to only worship the Heavenly Emperor. The other 3 older brothers were sent to the labor camps.

When I discussed about why this book’s title is “Year of Impossible Goodbyes” with my older sister who already read this book before me, she said “Well, they surely lost many things during those few years, didn’t they?” And that one sentence made me realize how heartbreaking this whole story was. Japanese took Sookan’s grandfather, his beloved pine tree, the girls who worked in mother’s sock factory (the Japanese took them as “Comfort Women”... one of Korea’s painful historical issues.), their brasswares, and most of all, their freedom.

When I read about half of the book, the Japanese colonial era finally ended. I was sure that no one could and will be able to describe Koreans’ joy when our own Korean flag was held up instead of Japanese flag. Soon Russia took over North Korea and people were brainwashed to believe that communism is the best. When I watched the news and read newspapers, North Korean government was saying nonsense to the people and I wondered how could people believe those lies. But as I read that part of the book, I couldn’t help being surprised at how gradually and cleverly they tricked people. Even I was hard to decide whether I should believe them or not.

Later in the book, Sookan, Inchun(little brother) and their mother try to escape North Korea. Kisa (Sookan’s cousin) and Aunt Tiger prepare everything for them to safely cross over 38th Parallel and decide to stay. When I read that they were shot dead in the epilogue, it was so hard for me to hold my tears back. They risked everything for their family and sacrificed themselves!

Thanking for their help, the 3 of them(Sookan, mother, Inchun) leave their precious house and start on the journey. But their journey isn’t like what they hoped it to be. The guide they hired was not a reliable man, and mother gets separated with Sookan and Inchun. Without their mother, children who are even younger than us risk their lives to find their family. With others’ help, they succeeded at escaping. Reading their journey, I was ashamed that Sookan, 10-year-old young girl and little Inchun had more courage than I had. The kids who should have been childish, already had adult’s mind and thoughts. What made them to be so mature? I strongly think that it’s the influence of their environment. The adults and social characteristics didn’t let kids to be “kids”. How sad is that?

If you’re Korean, you have to read this book. If you’re Korean and don’t know what happened during Japanese colonial era and Korean war, you must read this book. The way this book is written is easy and short. The only problem is that the topic and story it’s telling about is hard for little children to understand. I recommend people more than 10 years old to try this book, and I truly hope they learn something throughout the story.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Year of Impossible Goodbyes, Author Sook Nyul Choi recounts the events of her and her family's life in 1945 when her homeland of Korea is freed by from the cruel and sadistic rule of Imperial Japan, only to be conquered by Stalin's Soviet Russia. Without giving away more than is on the back sleeve of the book, they find their only hope of freedom is to flee to the newly formed South Korea.

It is a relatively quick read, but an important one for a time like now when people, many of whom were alive during the Cold War, already already seem to forget so much of this kind of history. Told from the perspective of her 10-year-old self, Sook Nyul Choi recounts these events framed like a standard novel. At times, because of this, some of the villains come across as a bit one-dimensional. After all, a 10-year-old isn't going to know the life story and inner conflicts of a cruel, seemingly sociopathic Japanese military officer. of course, this isn't always even a shortcoming. History is sometimes more cartoonish than fiction. Soviet propaganda from this era really could be as ham-fisted as this book makes it out to be.

As a work of first-hand historical narrative, Sook Nyul Choi's perspective as a child can in some ways be refreshing, as it does not attempt to try to look for nuances (nuances which sometimes do not even exist). It's relatively straightforward and makes sense to students of history: as they did in many places, the Soviets initially won over the townspeople by being friendly, allowing them to embrace their national pride, and feeding them (and thereby doing the exact opposite of their more upfront Japanese oppressors). And in this backdrop, we are reminded that once they got a foothold, they would also kill people who were wise to their plans and tried to the South. Because that is the kind of system that communism is. It is a virus, not an oncoming freight train.

This book isn't Shakespeare, and at times some of the details may go beyond what is needed to get the point across. But there are worse things.

Overall, it is a worthy read to get a glimpse at a pivotal time in modern world history, from a perspective we don't often get, in a way that makes for a satisfying story.

[Hafee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bello Hafeez
Douglas .T
Eng 2D1
May 30,2017


Goodreads review: Year of Impossible Goodbyes
The novel years of impossible goodbyes took place in korea in 1945. During the Korean War (Known as the 6.25 war in Korea). There is a particular family whose life is devastating during the war because of the fact that her father is one of the soldiers who fought with the Resistance Movement in Manchuria. In this movement, the Japanese military took over Korea.
This is how my social justice issue, Colonization is related to my book. Colonization is the action or process of higher setting among and establishing control over the indigenous people of an area. The Japanese, Russian and Korean military were fighting for the colonization of each other’s country’s/government. Sookan’s family started to split apart because her father took part in the war, her brothers went to labour camps and she and her mother were working in factory that produces socks. Meanwhile Korea was able to win the war of colonization between the Japanese military,not a short amount of time Korea was taken over by the communist Russian .
Her name is Sookan and is regarded to be the main character of the novel. Sookan currently lives with her mother at the young age of 10 while World War 2 is going on. She also has 3 brothers, who split apart because of the war, Sookan’s world began to tear apart.
I think this novel is a good novel because it teaches us what it feels like to be taken over by a different country and to live by their strict rules and regulations. This is also a story that happened many years ago and was linked to world war 2. I regard this book to be read by young kids, why? Because they are the one who could make change in this world (young generation).

[Seungmyoung · Rating 5 out of 5]

Relieved to see Inchun and Sookan escaping North Korea and arriving at the Red Cross medical center, I finished reading this wonderful book that shows the tragedy of Koreans in the time of Koreans under Japanese rule like a short movie. It was so detailed and easy to understand that I could draw images of every scenes in my brain and felt like all of the characters are really moving and talking in my head. I have learned from Elementary school history class that Japanese rules and their leaders made Koreans suffer a lot but it wasn't as shocking as I felt after I read this book. As a student, I felt so mad when Japanese teachers forced Koreans to sing Japanese songs, not speak Korean, and even not to share their food with others at school. I can know how much brave Sookan and Inchun is even though they are much younger than I am by looking at their process of escaping-they relied on each other and were brave even though they lost their guide and mom. If I was in that situation, I would just go back to my home or just give up escaping with the sorrow that I lost my mom, who is the most of my life. When Sookan and Inchun bravely decided to cross the wire fence and ran only with the belief that their mom will be waiting for them made my tears fall down and to regret fighting with my brother and not obeying my mom's messages. I highly recommend every teen in Korea to read this book since it is not just about learning history; it is about reflecting yourself and learning how to be thankful for now.

[Peter A · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story of a ten-year-old girl, Sookan, who grew up under Japanese occupation of Korea, near Pyongyang (currently North Korea). The story depicts life at the end of the Japanese occupation (June to August 1945) and the beginning of the Russian occupation (late August 1945 to the end of 1946), how Sookan (and other Koreans) adjusted to the cruelty of one occupier, had a sense of freedom, only to be controlled by another occupier. It also shows the beginning of the North Korean state and its underlying society.

While Sookan and her mother, brother, aunt and other relative seek to survive both oppressors, they also long to be reunited with Sookan’s father (who was away in Manchuria fighting the Japanese) and her three brothers, who were sent to Japanese labor camps.

The last scenes of the book describe the flight of Sookan, her brother, and mother from North Korea, and the harrowing challenges they faced.

FB. A short novel relating the experiences of the end of Japanese occupation in 1945 and the beginning of the Russian occupation from the perspective of a ten-year-old girl, Sookan, living near Pyongyang Korea. Sookan’s experience mirrors those of others, with the separation of family and escape from the north to the south in 1946.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book took me a while to get through, in part because it was in my "waiting" bag, to read while I waited for the doctor or in the check-out line and I had not had to wait. It was also hard to read in large chunks because the subject matter is heavy. The author recounts her actual experiences of a particularly difficult childhood. I will say that I have a much clearer understanding of North Korea now. The Japanese occupied North Korea from 1909 to 1936 in an increasingly brutal regime. When the Japanese lost World War II and left North Korea, the Allies had decided to divide North Korea from South Korea at the 38th Parallel and give Russia control of North Korea. The Russians were apparently more benevolent than the Japanese to begin with, but the situation quickly soured and people were trapped. The succession of brainwashing and brutality broke the spirit of most of the population and did not make for the most cheerful reading, although I felt it was an important book.

[Jewon Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

The overall story strongly showed the value of freedom to the Koreans and also to the world. The book "Year of Impossible Goodbyes", kindly guides the readers through the Japanese & Russian occupations on the Korean territory. As one of the Korean race, I know the importance of reminding and informing the serious tragedy of our war history to the world. Therefore so thankful to the author who had bravely described the Korean history and published to the world.

The story is about a North Korean family escaping to the South while the Russian occupation. The one major character in this book is named, "Sookan". I was surprised by her mature behavior to every situations during escaping at her young age. After I finished the book, I was amazed to know that this book was based on the author's "True" story.

[Rebecca P · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful memoir that would be appropriate for readers as young as 10 or 11. It has some more mature themes: oppression, family separation, suggestions of violence. Older readers will realize there is talk of torture and sex, but a younger reader wouldn't make those inferences, most probably. Sook Nyul Choi really takes us into her life and also her fear and her bravery during the end of World War II in Korea. I've read this book two or three times now, and I will definitely read it again in the future. This is where I first learned of Korean history outside my American textbooks, and this memoir continues to inspire me to learn more about Korean history and to read more perspectives about world events.