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Can Tran

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To Kill a Tiger: A Memoir of Korea

by Jid Lee

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Can Tran said: " I came across a hardcover version of Jid Lee's memoir at the local library last year and I purchased a digital copy for my Kindle several months later. This book resonated with me because I am an Asian American whose parents left Vietnam as refugees I came across a hardcover version of Jid Lee's memoir at the local library last year and I purchased a digital copy for my Kindle several months later. This book resonated with me because I am an Asian American whose parents left Vietnam as refugees a few days before the Fall of Saigon (the very day that I was born). There are a lot of commonalities because of Inter-Asian sociopolitical and socioeconomic nuances that were a proverbial snowball effect because of Japan's annexation of Korea in the late 19th century, World War I, World War II, The Korean War, and The Cold War.

What Jid Lee experienced is similar to what my mom had suffered at the hands of her family.

The trauma suffered by the dark part of cultural customs (especially the misogyny), foreign invasion, warfare, and forced nationalism is passed down from one generation to another, which is one of the attributing factors to the mental health problems that affect Asians in the homeland and Asians in the diaspora.

I felt I could relate to Professor Lee because of what my mother had gone through, especially after living in the United States.

The other reason her memoir resonated with me is that I am a Taekwondo instructor. The martial art style that was born in Korea is a hot-button topic because it is the national sport of the two Koreas and there have been reunification talks between World Taekwondo (WT) and the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) where the latter lost legal recognition from the South Korean government because General Choi Hong-Hi chose to spread the style to North Korea.

The revisionist policies of Rhee Syngman and Park Chung-Hee manipulated Taekwondo's history and true origins.

This is a book that I implore martial artists, especially Taekwondo experts, to read carefully. I do know that this is not a book on Taekwondo, but Professor Lee's memoir gives valuable insight into how Park governed the country during his regime. To understand Taekwondo, one needs to dig deep into the country's history and its relationship with other countries. This memoir is a vivid recollection of what life in South Korea was like when Park instilled himself as the junta's leader until he became elected the third President of South Korea.

If you're a mental health specialist who wishes to help the Asian communities at home and abroad, this is an important book to read because Lee's insight paints the picture of the circumstances that led to the never-ending cross-generational traumas.

These are just a couple of reasons out of a long line of reasons one should read To Kill A Tiger: A Memoir of Korea. ...more "

Jun 20, 2022 11:00AM · see review