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16th out of 19 books
—
4 voters
The Language of Blood
“A book that translates, and transcends, the eternal question of home, belonging, family, identity.”
—Star Tribune (Minneapolis)
My name is Jeong Kyong-Ah. My ancestry includes landowners, scholars, and government officials. I have six siblings. I am a citizen of the Republic of Korea. I come from a land of pear fields and streams, where people laugh loudly and honor their...more
—Star Tribune (Minneapolis)
My name is Jeong Kyong-Ah. My ancestry includes landowners, scholars, and government officials. I have six siblings. I am a citizen of the Republic of Korea. I come from a land of pear fields and streams, where people laugh loudly and honor their...more
Paperback, 244 pages
Published
July 1st 2005
by Graywolf Press
(first published 2003)
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Trenka's enigmatic story is reminiscent of Shirley Geok-Lin Lim and Maxine Hong Kingston but moves far beyond the post-colonial experiences of those two writers. Her unique story does not even compare to the ethnic lit of second generation ________(fill in the blank)-Americans.
"The Language of Blood," instead, is a well told story about a woman who was adopted as a young age from Korea and raised in rural Minnesota. There are throwbacks to the post-colonial and second generation experience, but...more
"The Language of Blood," instead, is a well told story about a woman who was adopted as a young age from Korea and raised in rural Minnesota. There are throwbacks to the post-colonial and second generation experience, but...more
I've been wanting to read this memoir for as long as I was made aware of it. I'm always interested in what other transracially adopted persons create because they share a history equivalent to mine.
The one main theme I recognized as I read through the book was the author's struggle with silence, both internally and externally. Many adoptees feel yoked to society's stereotype of an adoptee who should feel forever grateful for a second chance at life and eternally happy that they were saved from u...more
The one main theme I recognized as I read through the book was the author's struggle with silence, both internally and externally. Many adoptees feel yoked to society's stereotype of an adoptee who should feel forever grateful for a second chance at life and eternally happy that they were saved from u...more
This is the first book I've read by a Korean adoptee about the Korean adoptee experience. My overall impression was this: it was okay, but nothing more. On the one hand, Ms. Trenka paints interesting images of life in both Korea and in Minnesota, the state in which she was raised. Since I am a Korean adoptee who was raised only one state away, the Midwestern references were sometimes fun to read (but not really). On the other hand, I was never moved by her prose. Not once. And I really wanted to...more
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Apr 05, 2013
Dakota
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Dakota by:
Korean Tourism Website
Shelves:
favoritebooks
I can't recall very many books that were as stimulating as this one. The Language of Blood is unlike any memoir I have read. This is my first experience with adoption and related subjects, but Trenka's story is so moving that I will be sure to pursue other books like it.
At times her story is saddening, well the majority of her early story is saddening, but it evolves into a combination of despair and hope that connects the reader with the author almost instantly.
The book maintains a somewhat di...more
At times her story is saddening, well the majority of her early story is saddening, but it evolves into a combination of despair and hope that connects the reader with the author almost instantly.
The book maintains a somewhat di...more
This book, about a Korean-American adoptee whose Korean birthmother reached out for a relationship, employed a lot of "experimental" techniques, such as including scripts for plays that depicted the author's relationship with her Asian identity, using names that dehumanized people (Mrs. A, Mrs. B, Mr. CEO), and mini-essays and stories within the larger narrative. While these snippets were at times interesting, they also made the story feel disjointed. Even in the more traditional storytelling, t...more
My brother was home from college this weekend, and he had to read this book for his Ethnic class. Since I had nothing else better to do and I love to read, I took this book and read it. I can't even think of words to describe this book; I loved it.
I immigrated to the U.S. when I was 7. Just like the author herself, I've struggled to balance between who I was and who I am. It's really hard sometimes. I'm now 16, and this summer I get to go back to Taiwan. It's exciting and nerve-wracking at the s...more
I immigrated to the U.S. when I was 7. Just like the author herself, I've struggled to balance between who I was and who I am. It's really hard sometimes. I'm now 16, and this summer I get to go back to Taiwan. It's exciting and nerve-wracking at the s...more
This book surprised me with the degree to which I enjoyed it. Personally aware of some of the challenges adoption may bring, I began to notice as the story unfolded that the author's self descriptions were very much like those associated with RAD. When her psychologist sister finally suggested exactly that I was impressed. Her life as an infant certainly would account for both RAD and PTSD; she likely suffered from both.
This is a book that I would highly recommend for adoptive parents. As Jane's...more
This is a book that I would highly recommend for adoptive parents. As Jane's...more
This is a valuable memoir for Korean adoptees and adoptive parents alike, but outside of that demographic, it's not a necessary read. The author meanders through her life story, including every significant event regardless of whether it fit with the story. The complaints about her parents are less that they were white adoptive parents and more that they were people who taught her to suppress her feelings, and refused to acknowledge any of their own emotions. This is dangerous for children of any...more
A lyrical and lovely memoir. The author's attempt to weave together all parts of her family history and herself are moving and powerful. At first I was afraid that the mixture of storytelling elements would feel like a grad school exercise, but this felt very appropriate and beautifully executed. I truly enjoyed getting a look into her confusing and multifaceted life, both as an American and as a Korean, as she tries to figure out and articulate her identity. Even her parents are three-dimension...more
In this autobiography, Korean adoptee Jane Trenka writes a touching and honest personal account of transnational adoption from the perspective of the adoptee. She discusses the profound loss of identity she suffered growing up without acknowledgment of her cultural roots. I am the mother of an adopted child of a different race, and this book gave me food for thought. I did however, think it was quite one sided, focusing on the negative aspects of the experience without any nod to benefits adopti...more
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This memoir alternately fascinated and annoyed me. She does a few self-conscious writerly things, like inserting little one-act plays and whatnot, and these didn't feel organic. She also came across as whiny at times. However, her thoughts about being stuck between two cultures were compelling, and the chapter in which she describes being stalked is very powerful and disturbing.
This is the most articulate, vivid, and probably accurate account of psychic suffering I've ever seen. All the issues of loss of culture, loss of family, exile, difference, adoption pains that I could imagine are here, articulated directly and by metaphor, and faced with huge courage by the author. This is an extraordinarily brave work, and I recommend it very highly.
An adult Korean adoptee's perspective on adoption by US parents and reuniting with her birth family. Suggest for parents of older, internationally adopted kids - while recognizing that the differences among families and countries of origin make every family's experience unique.
A Minnesota author! A multi-genre book! A great study on identity and growing up as a minority in Minnesota! I lost this book, and I paid full price to buy it again, it's that good.
I loved this memoir! Having never read anything about one's experience with adoption, I found this to be very, very interesting. I enjoyed the author's voice as it was both personable and sarcastic and aloof at times. Most of the story went in order, but at times it would jump around, which I also enjoyed. Being a Minnesotan myself, I could relate to some of the Midwestern culture she seemed to both love and hate. A very beautiful, honest, and raw memoir. Not only did it help me understand what...more
May 31, 2007
Kasey
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
any and all adoptees, transracial or otherwise
Shelves:
transracial-adoption,
memoir
I'd been meaning to read this book for a really long time, but some how never got around to it. Then, all of a sudden I just HAD to read it. I went to the closest bookstores, and neither of them had it in stock. I went to the library, and their check-out copy was gone too! But they did have an in-library copy, you know the kind you can't check out. So I spent 2 whole days in a row up in the reading lofts devouring this book. There were lots of shameless public displays of emotion over those 2 da...more
Definitely insight into what it was like for the author to be a Korean child adopted by an American family living in MN.
I read the other reviews of this book and I'm confused. I don't know how one would "enjoy" this story - it's compelling, it's moving, but it wasn't the kind of read I'd connect to enjoyment. Maybe it's because I know people who feel as Trenka does - they didn't do something, it was done to them, and yes, she and they are victims. It's how it's dealt with that makes her story compelling. Her amazing voice and command of words made me unable to put this down. The two adoptees in my house made me w...more
A really great exploration of the identity and family issues faced by a Korean adoptee.
Beautiful & amazing. I was so moved by this book and went through an entire range of emotions: sorrow, fear, joy, shame, disappointment. I look forward to reading Ms. Trenka's second memoir which came out recently.
2.5
An interesting memoir, but not a read I'd be itching to pick up again.
An interesting memoir, but not a read I'd be itching to pick up again.
May 24, 2010
Hannah
marked it as to-read
adoption story of a girl adopted from South Korea...I think it might be sad
One of the most compelling memoirs that I have read to date.
About a transracial adoptee (TRA) experience.
The adoption story of a Korean Minnesota woman.
I very much enjoyed this book.
The Language of Blood is worthy attempt at depicting the complexity of transnational adoption, home, kinship, family and race. Her commitment to also addressing the methodology of adoptee narratives is obvious in her varied writing styles and form. Though the writing itself is not as nuanced as I wish it were, it's worth a read, especially if you have never entered this dialouge before.
It's really so far interesting to read about her life! Also, some events in her life that coincide with mine makes it seem more real. (I, too, have been on the trip to Korea with CHS, and I've met Mrs. Han!) It does jump around quite a bit, which makes it hard to follow in some parts, but all in all an interesting read.
I was blown away by the power of this book! The Language of Blood is a mixed-genre memoir that set the bar high for all others in that sub-genre. My only bone to pick: the cover on the Borealis Books hardcover is much cooler than that of Graywolf's paperback.
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