Search - The Calligrapher's Daughter

The Calligrapher’s Daughter is a beautiful, touching, and at times tragic story of a woman and her family growing up in Korea during the Japanese occupation. Our main character is Najin Han, and we meet her at about the age of five, before she even has a name in fact, in the year 1915. Through her story, we learn about the customs of Korea and how devastating the Japanese were to the culture, history, and people of the country.

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I really wanted to like this book. It takes place in a foreign country during an historical era (early 1900's), two things I really enjoy in a novel, but after 60 pages I had had enough of the style of writing. I just could not continue reading Korean history (and other things such as childbirth), from a child's viewpoint. It would have been so much more enjoyable if the author had written it in the third person. Just another in a long line of books BADLY in need of an editor with a big, fat, red pencil.

I caught a blurb about this book on Amazon and was delighted to find it on my library's current books shelf on my next visit. What a discovery! Eugenia Kim's debut novel was wonderful. Beautifully written, completely engrossing story and characters that come to life on the page. I've been reading a lot of great historical fiction lately, and this one ranks up there with the likes of Lisa See and Amy Tan. I can't wait to see what Ms. Kim does next. Very highly recommended.