When My Name Was Keoko
| Modern Age |
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 When My Name Was Keoko
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| Content Warning |
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| suicide |
World History > Modern Age > WWII
Sun-hee and her older brother, Tae-yul, live in Korea with their parents. Because Korea is under Japanese occupation, the children study Japanese and speak it at school. Their own language, their flag, the folktales Uncle tells them—even their names—are all part of the Korean culture that is now forbidden. When World War II comes to Korea, Sun-hee is surprised that the Japanese expect their Korean subjects to fight on their side. But the greatest shock of all comes when Tae-yul enlists in the Japanese army in an attempt to protect Uncle, who is suspected of aiding the Korean resistance. Sun-hee stays behind, entrusted with the life-and-death secrets of a family at war.
Emily's Review
This is one of my favorite middle-grade historical fiction novels. There are few books for this age range that explore life under Japanese occupation in Korea. What I love about it is that the author doesn't shy away from the horrors of the time, while still making it age-appropriate. It paints a vivid picture of Korea in the 1940s.
We follow a brother and sister in alternating perspectives over the course of the war. Sun-hee is fairly young and naive in the beginning, but her curiosity drives her to ask questions, a dangerous thing in this time and place. Her older brother Tae-yul is more aware and also angry about what is happening. The two of them offer us different windows into this period. I especially liked reading about Tae-yul's time in the military and the way the Japanese treated the Koreans who enlisted.
I think if you wanted to get a full picture of Korea during WWII and the years after, you should read this book first to see life in South Korea during WWII and immediately after, then read Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi to get the perspective of North Korea in 1945 and up to the beginning of the Korean War.
Other Similar Books
Other suggestions on the subject of World War II (Asian Front).
- Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes (by: Coerr, Eleanor, MG)
- Island War (by: Reilly Giff, Patricia, MG)
- On the Horizon: World War II Reflections (by: Lowry, Lois, MG, UMG)
- The Attack on Pearl Harbor: An Interactive History Adventure (by: Lassieur, Allison, MG)
- Raid of No Return (by: Hale, Nathan, MG, UMG)
- History Smashers: Pearl Harbor (by: Messner, Kate, MG, UMG)
- The House of Sixty Fathers (by: DeJong, Meindert, MG)
- Under the Broken Sky (by: Smith, Sherri L., UMG)
- The Songbird and the Rambutan Tree (by: Abendanon, Lucille, UMG, YA)
- When My Name Was Keoko (by: Park, Linda Sue, UMG)
- A Place to Belong (by: Kadohata, Cynthia, UMG, YA)
- The Blossom and the Firefly (by: Smith, Sherri L., YA, A)
- Women Heroes of World War II―the Pacific Theater: 15 Stories of Resistance, Rescue, Sabotage, and Survival (by: Atwood, Kathryn J., YA, A)
- Barefoot Gen 1 (by: Nakazawa, Keiji, YA, A)
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- The Library of Legends (by: Chang, Janie, YA, A)
- The Last Rose of Shanghai: A Novel (by: Dai Randel, Weina, A)
Other suggestions on the subject of the Korea.
- Bee-Bim Bop! (by: Park, Linda Sue, Korea, Korean Cooking, LE)
- The Firekeeper's Son (by: Park, Linda Sue, Korea, Signal Fires, LE)
- The Kite Fighters (by: Park, Linda Sue, Korea, Kites, MG)
- SeeSaw Girl (by: Park, Linda Sue, Korea, 17th Century Korea, MG)
- When My Name Was Keoko (by: Park, Linda Sue, Korea, WWII, UMG)
- Year of Impossible Goodbyes (by: Sook Nyul Choi, Korea, Korean War, UMG)
- A Single Shard (by: Park, Linda Sue, Korea, Medieval Korea, UMG)
- The Silence of Bones (by: Hur, June, Korea, political murder, Joseon Era, YA, A)
- The Red Palace (by: Hur, June, Korea, Joseon Era, Political Murder, YA, A)
- Pachinko (by: Lee, Min Jin, Korea, Japan, Korean War, YA, A)
- The Island of Sea Women (by: See, Lisa, Korea, Korea, A)