Jesse Evans

As a lifelong reader with very broad interests, I rate this book as one of the finest novels I have ever read. Whether your interests lie in the fields of history, ethnography, oceanography or international politics or whether you are simply drawn to the sort of human stories that relate how intense friendships are tested over time, I enthusiastically recommend this book. As a personal preference I delight in stories that can transport me to a time and place where I have never been, and I was not disappointed in that regard either. Like many readers my age (73) I had only a small understanding of the post war partitioning of Korea and the various political and social forces that made life so brutally difficult for its people. Stories like this are always hard to read but closing our eyes to them will not erase them. I applaud the author for her courage in bringing this chapter to life, and for using the main characters to teach us an unforgettable lesson about forgiveness.