Pachinko

loved it sm more than I expected🙇‍♀️

muito lindo, mas dava pra ter 100 páginas a menos

i haven't read a book quite like this. it's a testament of strength, willpower, and love. it's full of heart and soul, and that's why it's heartbreaking. oh, noa i wish you knew how much people loved you despite your lineage. and solomon, you got this :")

historical fiction that gave me perspective into the lives, pain and grit of korean women during the war

this is an exceptional book about human survival, not in a sci-fi way but in a very plain way: it’s a book about family. there is something so special about a book that makes you think about your own life and the people that created it, as this one does. the progression of time is done very elegantly, and the way time skips towards the end was very realistic to me in how families hear updates on each other when they’re generations apart. phenomenally written without trying too hard, min jin lee has written a masterpiece. i only with it had been longer ;)

*silently sobbing in the corner of my room because world is unfair place to live in*

"a woman's lot is to suffer" this book is gorgeous, and it makes me wish i could map out the history of my family, and the women who have cemented our story in time. teared up a few times - amazing read.

What a way to start the year 😢

I enjoyed the first 2/3rd of the book but the last 1/3rd wasn't for me. The time skips didn't work for me.

I’m honestly shocked at the impression this book left on me and how much I enjoyed it. I started reading this book because I had heard good reviews on it but didn’t actually think I would enjoy it as I’m more into action or thriller/crime based books.

It touches on the struggles and suffering of Koreans in Japan in the 1900’s and their will to overcome them. It’s definitely sad, frustrating (mostly from empathizing with a character) and a bit slow at times in pov of a reader but honestly does a great job overall to keep your attention. I loved it and honestly, if I ever have nothing else to read in the future, I can definitely see myself reading this book again.

Did not know anything about this when I started reading it and just wow.. This was so beautifully written and detailed, tugs at your heartstrings at times then reminds you of the realities of living through those times as a Korean in Japan back then.

Udah lama gak baca novel kayak gini. I admit, there are two moments in the book that makes my eyes teary. It is an astonishing, touching story about a Korean immigrant that spans three generations. I learned a lot about the life of Koreans in Japan. How hard life was for them, and even now, they continually face discrimination. I learned not only about their discrimination, but also their determinations to make their life better. What I took as a lesson is this: Life can be hard, and it seems unfair. But there's hope. There's always hope in life.

** spoiler alert ** not quite a 5 but too good for a 4. 4.2/5 stars. some criticism about there being too many characters! you would not last a day reading dr zhivago! anyways, i didn't mind it. i read this over a couple of months so this actually made it easier to remember everyone. LOVE what the author did with akiko's character. i feel like there are a lot of people like her in this world (and not in a good way). also thought it was very interesting that she never figured out how harmful her words were to noa. overall, the waseda chapters were brilliant. only thing that kind of bothered me was yumi's death! why did they kill her off? and the random car that hit her? oh well!

This book is a constant roller coaster of emotions and showcases the harsh realities of life. No country, no person, no culture is perfect, if anything it shows the cruelest sides of humanity. I highly recommend this book.

I am re-reading because I found out Lee Min Ho is going to be in the movie. 🤪🤪🤪🤪

page-turner that made me cry and feel whole inside :(

Edit: I feel in my dissatisfaction with the novel as a whole, I forgot to marvel in here about how goddamn amazing Min Jin Lee was for naming the book Pachinko. Because that is so cool????????? (DO not mind my random burst of anxiousness because I hate hate my feelings not getting across regarding things I really appreciate.) I can see why this worked for so many people but for me, it just. Didn't. For the me who needs to be shown things instead of told them outright (in books, I'm quite dumb irl), Pachinko could've used better, more emotive writing. And I understand it couldn't have been so easy to work with so many characters throughout multiple generations with so many changes, from countries to places to sceneries to even the things around the house, but when I'm reading a book spanning through generations with a war and questioning identities and emotional turmoils of all kinds from love to managing kids to dealing with grief of losing your loved ones going on, I expect at least to feel a little bit of moved, touched even slightly. I appreciate this book and its purpose for being written but I didn't particularly like it or feel connected to the characters; it felt like, to me, that there was a veil of detachment keeping me from reaching inside Sunja or any of the other character's mind and I would've faulted myself for it if I didn't dedicate myself fully to absorbing this novel for the past few days. I was quite disappointed overall for I did not feel that hungry curiosity gnawing at me throughout the book nor did I feel the nervous anxiousness for these people who were going through so much shit; I did want for nothing to but just hug Mozasu and Solomon at times and, when Sunja in the end went to Isak's grave, I felt bittersweet leaving her and her story but other than that, it didn't do much for me :/

Pachinko is the first book by Min Jin Lee since her debut in 2007, Free Food for Millionaires. I must admit that I was unduly harsh in my review of her debut and over the years I have grown to appreciate it more than I did as a first time reader. Lee's books need to be read slowly and deliberately. http://pussreboots.com/blog/2017/comm...

TOO DAMN GOOD BRAH LIKE ACTUALLY THIS IS CRIMINALLY GOOD. everything a novel should be from story telling to narration and dialogue i was absolutely swept away by this writing. such a gorgeous story with gorgeous characters and an important core moment in history i knew ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ABOUT. so glad i was able to read this and learn a new perspective. i think this should be mandatory middle school reading in america tbh.

What a historical journey it has been. But seriously, that’s the ending??? ☹️

Jan 27 Raw Thoughts I couldn't stop thinking about this as I was going to sleep. I woke up thinking about each character and their story. What amazes me about this book is that I feel like I can remember every character, no matter how minor they were. Each person was intentional. I was most drawn to Mozasu but I felt the pain and struggle of each person. I know the word 'heartbreaking' is used to describe this book, but I keep coming back to 한 (han) and felt it throughout the whole book. It's ingrained in our DNA and I think Min Jin Lee wonderfully brought that into this book. I also love how much time and thought Lee put into this book. Almost 30 years in the making, it showed me how perseverance and care for a story is important.

While the historical context of Japan and Korea before the war may not be as deeply explored as one might expect, the book’s focus on Sunja and her descendants presents an intimate portrait of a family across generations. The emotional depth of their personal stories, from Sunja’s struggles to her children’s challenges, provides a strong and humanizing element to the narrative. Though the historical backdrop may take a backseat to the family drama, this narrative choice allows for an intimate exploration of the characters’ lives.

will i ever recover from this? no. this book is so heartbreaking. i cried so much reading it. a very beautiful story of a korean family across the generations. it shows different stories of their family, and how they strive to keep their family moving forward despite everything they have been through. it is rich in culture, and emotional narratives. this book is so remarkable. one of my favorite reads all-time and would highly recommend everyone to read it. i love it so much. would love to read it again or watch the series, but i think i need to give my heart some time to rest from the pain and suffering they had to go through for decades. aaa i dont think words can even measure how much i adore this book so much. please read it!!

Pachinko the game composes a big role in the latter half of the book, but this book is really about family and the women for me. The conflict and tragedy are heart-shattering, but their faithful devotion to the family gave me so much comfort as a reader. If I have to pick one top memorable scene, I'd say it's Sunja and Kyunghee making kimchi for sale. It's the fact that they're doing everything for the family, a testament to the overall theme of the book. Noah's radical choices for his life have also haunted me till now. He went from my favorite boy to a total steel-hearted stranger. But I guess it's just a telling depiction of Korea and Japanese culture at the time. The historical nuance this book delivers is also a mighty valuable takeaway. Pachinko got me discovering a new love for generational fiction. I didn't expect to be this invested for such a seemingly modest tale. But really, you can't help falling in love with characters you've been with for years and years of their life. It's so weird to oversee people's life starting and ending like this. You root for them, you pity, you ache, and then it's just over. You can't even wish for their happiness because a major portion if not the entirety of their life is already written there, no happy future left to pray for. What a bittersweet and lovely experience. It's honestly hard to close the book and say goodbye, left my heart a bit there.