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Native Speaker
Native Speaker
Author: Chang-Rae Lee
Korean American Henry Parks is "surreptitious, B+ student of life, illegal alien, emotional alien, Yellow peril: neo-American, stranger, follower, traitor, spy..." or so says his wife, in the list she writes upon leaving him. Henry is forever uncertain of his place, a perpetual outsider looking at American culture from a distance. And ...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9781573225311
ISBN-10: 1573225312
Publication Date: 3/1/1996
Pages: 368
Rating:
  • Currently 3.6/5 Stars.
 41

3.6 stars, based on 41 ratings
Publisher: Riverhead Trade
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed Native Speaker on + 8 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
This is the first appearance on the American literary scene of Chang Rae Lee who writes of the trials endured by his immigrant Korean American hero: his outsider status, his confusion over conflicting loyalties, and his love for his American wife. Beautifully written, so much so that I literally wept over the tragedies narrated.
reviewed Native Speaker on + 24 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Cool book...New York City recently put this on a city wide reading campaign, I believe.
reviewed Native Speaker on + 9 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
The story of Korean American Henry Park, forever uncertain of his place, a perpetual outsider looking at American culture from a distance. A man of two worlds, he's beginning to fear that he has betrayed both and belongs to neither. (Autographed copy)
reviewed Native Speaker on + 52 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Good characters...reminiscent of Invisible Man by Ellison
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reviewed Native Speaker on + 224 more book reviews
This is an exceptional book. I recently read "Aloft", another of Lee's books, and I liked this one many times better than Aloft. The story is both unique and informative, giving the reader a feel for the Korean immigrant's experience in the US. It was pretty gripping, this is not really my usual favorite, but it was intriguing and kept my attention late into the night. Very interesting characters, I especially liked the relationships between the main characters. This is gritty without being sad.


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