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Blue Rice
By candlelight, an elderly Korean woman relives her years upended by the Korean War, finding love in the rubble, and her acclimation to 1960 America.
Recently widowed Honey, nee Hanhee, is preparing to move out of her Arlington home when the Virginia earthquake of 2011 hits. Subtly, something in her cracks. Four days later, Hurricane Irene strikes, evoking monsoon-swept streets of yore. With the power out, Honey’s life of a half-century ago cinematically comes to light: Her months as an unlikely prostitute at Madam Cho’s; her secret revolt against her dead parents whose love was in question; a mysterious monk’s prediction; her great, sassy Korean friend Kissuni Kim who dreamed of nothing more than ‘love-mak-ing’; her kindly American neighbor Emma Church who would guide her to independence; and, above all, her lingering love for her first husband Joe Lipton, a journalist who brought Honey to America, only to desert her.
Frances Park states that writing Blue Rice was like living a dream from scenes her late mother shared with her, as well as her watercolor-like remembrances of growing up in white America as a small child of war-torn Korean parents.
Recently widowed Honey, nee Hanhee, is preparing to move out of her Arlington home when the Virginia earthquake of 2011 hits. Subtly, something in her cracks. Four days later, Hurricane Irene strikes, evoking monsoon-swept streets of yore. With the power out, Honey’s life of a half-century ago cinematically comes to light: Her months as an unlikely prostitute at Madam Cho’s; her secret revolt against her dead parents whose love was in question; a mysterious monk’s prediction; her great, sassy Korean friend Kissuni Kim who dreamed of nothing more than ‘love-mak-ing’; her kindly American neighbor Emma Church who would guide her to independence; and, above all, her lingering love for her first husband Joe Lipton, a journalist who brought Honey to America, only to desert her.
Frances Park states that writing Blue Rice was like living a dream from scenes her late mother shared with her, as well as her watercolor-like remembrances of growing up in white America as a small child of war-torn Korean parents.
- GenresFiction
256 pages, Paperback
Published June 18, 2024
4 people are currently reading
62 people want to read
About the author
Frances Park
23 books27 followersI grew up in an era when the U.S. Census Bureau need only come to my family's house to get a total head count of Koreans in my ‘burb. That reality is often reflected in fourteen books by publishers big and small for readers young and old.
BLUE RICE (Vine Leaves Press/June 2024) is a timely tale of a young woman from northern Korea who takes what fate deals her following the Korean War, including her acclimation to 1960s America when her husband deserts her.
On the horizon is a children's book SUKA'S FARM (Albert Whitman/March 2025), a testament to a hungry Korean boy's desire to feed his family during the Japanese Occupation.
THE SUMMER MY SISTER WAS CLEOPATRA MOON (Heliotrope NYC/Sept 2023) is a revised and streamlined version of a novel originally published in 2000, long before the era of K-Pop and K-Dramas. A quarter century later, the Oscars have proven that stories about the Asian American experience have certainly come to light, and that audiences are receptive. That said, playing in my mind like vintage footage, I was always hoping that somehow, someday, I could bring the Moon family back to life, sisters Marcy and Cleo cruising around in that yellow Mustang on their way to Taco Town in the summer of '76. And here it is!
Other works include GRANDPA'S SCROLL (Albert Whitman/May 2023), my sixth co-authored children's book with sister Ginger, my includes my memoir THAT LONELY SPELL: STORIES OF FAMILY, FRIENDS & LOVE (Heliotrope NYC/2022) and CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE: THE TRUE STORY OF TWO SISTERS, TONS OF TREATS, AND THE LITTLE SHOP THAT COULD (Thomas Dunne/ 2011), Shorter works - stories and essays - have appeared in O: The Oprah Magazine, The Chicago Quarterly, The Massachusetts Review, The Bellevue Literary Review, The London Magazine, Pleaides, Spirituality & Health Magazine, OZY, Slice, Folio, Gulf Coast Journal, and Arts & Letters, to name a few. One work earned a spot on THE BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS 2017 Notable List.
More co-authored and highly-praised children's books include MY FREEDOM TRIP: A CHILD'S ESCAPE TO NORTH KOREA (Boyds Mills Press/1998), winner of The International Reading Association Award; THE ROYAL BEE (Boyds Mills Press/2000), winner of The Joan B. Sugarman Award; and GOOD-BYE, 382 SHIN DANG DONG (National Geographic Children’s Books/2002), described by Newsweek magazine as "the perfect all-American story".
I've been interviewed on 'Good Morning America', CNN, the Diane Rehm Show, Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, and NPR.
When I'm not in writing mode, I'm at Chocolate Chocolate, a sweet boutique in Washington, DC breaking bonbons with customers. Books + Chocolate = A Dream Life!
Visit me at www.parksisters.com.
BLUE RICE (Vine Leaves Press/June 2024) is a timely tale of a young woman from northern Korea who takes what fate deals her following the Korean War, including her acclimation to 1960s America when her husband deserts her.
On the horizon is a children's book SUKA'S FARM (Albert Whitman/March 2025), a testament to a hungry Korean boy's desire to feed his family during the Japanese Occupation.
THE SUMMER MY SISTER WAS CLEOPATRA MOON (Heliotrope NYC/Sept 2023) is a revised and streamlined version of a novel originally published in 2000, long before the era of K-Pop and K-Dramas. A quarter century later, the Oscars have proven that stories about the Asian American experience have certainly come to light, and that audiences are receptive. That said, playing in my mind like vintage footage, I was always hoping that somehow, someday, I could bring the Moon family back to life, sisters Marcy and Cleo cruising around in that yellow Mustang on their way to Taco Town in the summer of '76. And here it is!
Other works include GRANDPA'S SCROLL (Albert Whitman/May 2023), my sixth co-authored children's book with sister Ginger, my includes my memoir THAT LONELY SPELL: STORIES OF FAMILY, FRIENDS & LOVE (Heliotrope NYC/2022) and CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE: THE TRUE STORY OF TWO SISTERS, TONS OF TREATS, AND THE LITTLE SHOP THAT COULD (Thomas Dunne/ 2011), Shorter works - stories and essays - have appeared in O: The Oprah Magazine, The Chicago Quarterly, The Massachusetts Review, The Bellevue Literary Review, The London Magazine, Pleaides, Spirituality & Health Magazine, OZY, Slice, Folio, Gulf Coast Journal, and Arts & Letters, to name a few. One work earned a spot on THE BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS 2017 Notable List.
More co-authored and highly-praised children's books include MY FREEDOM TRIP: A CHILD'S ESCAPE TO NORTH KOREA (Boyds Mills Press/1998), winner of The International Reading Association Award; THE ROYAL BEE (Boyds Mills Press/2000), winner of The Joan B. Sugarman Award; and GOOD-BYE, 382 SHIN DANG DONG (National Geographic Children’s Books/2002), described by Newsweek magazine as "the perfect all-American story".
I've been interviewed on 'Good Morning America', CNN, the Diane Rehm Show, Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, and NPR.
When I'm not in writing mode, I'm at Chocolate Chocolate, a sweet boutique in Washington, DC breaking bonbons with customers. Books + Chocolate = A Dream Life!
Visit me at www.parksisters.com.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 24, 2024
An elderly American woman of Korean origin narrates back her life, from the devastation of the Korean War, and her struggle to survive in Seoul after the war, migration to the US, and attempts to make peace with both her new home, and country, as well as her past.
Packaged as a story of migration, for the most part, Blue Rice attempts to narrate the tragedy of war on those involuntarily caught within it through the narrator’s life and her bestfriend’s. While the narrative voice is straightforward and at times insightful, there was still a feeling of caricature, esp in the narrator’s bestfriend’s character, her husband, and her American neighbour and friend. Even at the end of the book, we ‘re left feeling like we didn’t really get to know the narrator, or the other characters, in depth.
I also expected alot more of Korea, given the blurbs claim that her past “cinematically comes to her”, but there isn’t too much on the country other than names of food, without much effort to make them appetising, and names of places, sans atmosphere. It felt like a story told from the outside.
Thanks to BookSirens and the author for an ARC of this!
Packaged as a story of migration, for the most part, Blue Rice attempts to narrate the tragedy of war on those involuntarily caught within it through the narrator’s life and her bestfriend’s. While the narrative voice is straightforward and at times insightful, there was still a feeling of caricature, esp in the narrator’s bestfriend’s character, her husband, and her American neighbour and friend. Even at the end of the book, we ‘re left feeling like we didn’t really get to know the narrator, or the other characters, in depth.
I also expected alot more of Korea, given the blurbs claim that her past “cinematically comes to her”, but there isn’t too much on the country other than names of food, without much effort to make them appetising, and names of places, sans atmosphere. It felt like a story told from the outside.
Thanks to BookSirens and the author for an ARC of this!
May 21, 2024
I enjoyed this novel not only because of the tender and heartfelt manner in which the author presents her fully-formed main character, but also because Blue Rice addresses the often overlooked subject of Korea’s controversial post-war history of government-sponsored prostitution. The US military camp town environment that pervaded Korea for decades following the 1950 war sets the tone for Park’s story of the former prostitute Hanhee and her marriage to the American wannabe journalist and writer Joe Lipton, who brings his bride to America only to fall short of his wife’s expectations.
The small and meaningful observations about life as a Korean woman in 1950s America adds to the book’s authenticity. I recommend this understated and forthright survivor’s tale.
The small and meaningful observations about life as a Korean woman in 1950s America adds to the book’s authenticity. I recommend this understated and forthright survivor’s tale.
June 19, 2024
French Park's novel 'Blue Rice' centers around Hanhee, an elderly Korean woman who relives her years upended by the Korean War. She finds love amidst destruction and acclimates to life in 1960 America.
"There’s a time for everything, Hanhee. For us to meet and for us to part. A time for your life to begin again."
A journalist, Joe Tipton, chose Hanhee Song from a line-up of girls to write a story about her time as a prostitute in post-war Korea. In the course of their encounters, they would forge a relationship that would eventually lead to marriage. A monk gave Hanhee and her friend Kissuni dire predictions of their futures one evening outside work. The man told Hanhee that her husband was going to leave her. Afterwards, he said that her hands were powerful and could save her.
There is no way Hanhee (Honey) could have anticipated life in America. Her husband was far from the man she thought he was. A secret was hidden in his heart. His betrayal of her would leave her feeling like he had never loved her at all.
"Once in a blue moon, you blink, and the sky goes black."
The elderly woman living in her building, Mrs. Church, would become her friend. As time passed, Honey grew to be very close to her. Emma's age eventually forces her to move away.
After being abandoned by her husband, Honey is left with a daughter, a world that still feels foreign, and memories of growing up in Korea.
"There’s a time for everything, Hanhee. For us to meet and for us to part. A time for your life to begin again."
A journalist, Joe Tipton, chose Hanhee Song from a line-up of girls to write a story about her time as a prostitute in post-war Korea. In the course of their encounters, they would forge a relationship that would eventually lead to marriage. A monk gave Hanhee and her friend Kissuni dire predictions of their futures one evening outside work. The man told Hanhee that her husband was going to leave her. Afterwards, he said that her hands were powerful and could save her.
There is no way Hanhee (Honey) could have anticipated life in America. Her husband was far from the man she thought he was. A secret was hidden in his heart. His betrayal of her would leave her feeling like he had never loved her at all.
"Once in a blue moon, you blink, and the sky goes black."
The elderly woman living in her building, Mrs. Church, would become her friend. As time passed, Honey grew to be very close to her. Emma's age eventually forces her to move away.
After being abandoned by her husband, Honey is left with a daughter, a world that still feels foreign, and memories of growing up in Korea.
June 26, 2024
I very much enjoyed this book. From the beginning, I was impressed by the writing and enjoyed the descriptive language. The author did a great job of evoking emotion throughout, whether that be laughter, anger, sadness, shock, etc. I really only wanted more for the ending, it felt a little rushed and vague to me and I would have loved for it to be fleshed out a bit more to match the rest of the book. Otherwise I found this to be a very solid read and I definitely have already recommended it to friends. It’s always important to get new/fresh perspectives on events you may already be familiar with. I think Park did a great job of humanizing the “other” in this novel, allowing readers to really connect with someone they might not otherwise identify with.
My rating system is as follows for reference:
1 star: would have DNF’d
2 stars: not for me but some redeeming qualities
3 stars: an average book that I would recommend to the right person
4 stars: a good book that I would recommend to most people, overall very enjoyable
5 stars: top tier, recommend to everyone, might even re-read at some point
**Disclaimer: I received an advanced review copy of this book for free and this review reflects my honest opinion.
My rating system is as follows for reference:
1 star: would have DNF’d
2 stars: not for me but some redeeming qualities
3 stars: an average book that I would recommend to the right person
4 stars: a good book that I would recommend to most people, overall very enjoyable
5 stars: top tier, recommend to everyone, might even re-read at some point
**Disclaimer: I received an advanced review copy of this book for free and this review reflects my honest opinion.
July 7, 2024
Mainly I don't care for most contemporary novels. I can't even get through the first page of most of those books. However... this book is vastly different. "Blue Rice" an historical novel, has the largest heart, great depth, and a striking honesty. Way beyond most of what I've encountered in recent times. That is something to celebrate. Plus, author Frances Park did not pull any tricky stunts. This is a straight-forward book about a war and the aftermaths. It is written poetically, as well as prosaically, with all the mystery of the Korean culture peppered through like so many spices. This is a book about people getting on with life in varying ways, many at great personal risk, after terrible tragic events, to reach a never expected peace while still here on the earth plane. The protagonist Hanhee (Honey) will stay with me forever. I rooted for her every moment of this story. There is true brilliance on every page keeping me fully engaged right to the end. I mean, how often does this happen with contemporary fiction? And I read a high bar: Edna O'Brien, Maugham, Greene, Baldwin, Trevor. Park will now be part of that list of my eternal favorites. So very highly recommended.
July 19, 2024
Blue Rice is a wonderful read. I'm in love with the gradual evolution of Hanhee's voice throughout the book. It's so powerful, so strong to have that carry throughout the years her character lives. I can dig that so much, especially with the historical setting that doesn't always get recognition in English written media.
Dearest me, the astounding brevity and ardor for historical fiction shines in this book. Just enough to get an idea, not so much as to overwhelm with redundancy and details. Hanhee never turns into a sudden scholar who knows everything about the era and her surroundings during the Korean War, as can happen when an author is in too much love with their research. She's surviving, learning how to live. It's a compassionate motivation when so much has already happened to her by the first chapter. Character is always at the forefront with what we're given.
I'm grateful for that faithfulness and respect to historical details. Yes, she could have said more about the Korean situation, but she chose not to with an intention that I admire. That made me an immediate fan of Park's craft.
Appreciate that the author's note was put at the forefront for this particular novel. It brought a lot of context to how certain events can be disassociating and feel too third person for a first person narrative. It's a tight rope walk between what is true and what is imagined. Then again, I attribute that to Park's desire to keep a consistent tone of what she felt with Mrs. S.'s company: an unexpected remarkable joy through what she had experienced during her youth and moving between different countries. I empathize with that over the surprising if sporadic moments of emotional detachment.
Blue Rice is exactly the kind of book I want to read more from historical fiction. Really. I miss those stories where the protagonist is unremarkable in the eyes of world history. They're not someone who happened to be in the middle of an important historical event as it happened, and they're not someone who happens to receive a Magic School Bus encounter with an important historical figure who may or may not be famous at that time. It's why books like Kindred remained with me so much. That element of an average joe who is experiencing history through their own eyes. Except there is no actual time travel magic here, it's a woman looking over her life. And it's a good one.
Please give this book a try if you can.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Dearest me, the astounding brevity and ardor for historical fiction shines in this book. Just enough to get an idea, not so much as to overwhelm with redundancy and details. Hanhee never turns into a sudden scholar who knows everything about the era and her surroundings during the Korean War, as can happen when an author is in too much love with their research. She's surviving, learning how to live. It's a compassionate motivation when so much has already happened to her by the first chapter. Character is always at the forefront with what we're given.
I'm grateful for that faithfulness and respect to historical details. Yes, she could have said more about the Korean situation, but she chose not to with an intention that I admire. That made me an immediate fan of Park's craft.
Appreciate that the author's note was put at the forefront for this particular novel. It brought a lot of context to how certain events can be disassociating and feel too third person for a first person narrative. It's a tight rope walk between what is true and what is imagined. Then again, I attribute that to Park's desire to keep a consistent tone of what she felt with Mrs. S.'s company: an unexpected remarkable joy through what she had experienced during her youth and moving between different countries. I empathize with that over the surprising if sporadic moments of emotional detachment.
Blue Rice is exactly the kind of book I want to read more from historical fiction. Really. I miss those stories where the protagonist is unremarkable in the eyes of world history. They're not someone who happened to be in the middle of an important historical event as it happened, and they're not someone who happens to receive a Magic School Bus encounter with an important historical figure who may or may not be famous at that time. It's why books like Kindred remained with me so much. That element of an average joe who is experiencing history through their own eyes. Except there is no actual time travel magic here, it's a woman looking over her life. And it's a good one.
Please give this book a try if you can.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 2, 2024
I was immediately drawn in by the strong, voice of the narrator, Honey (Hanhee) a Korean bride brought to the United States by her journalist husband after they met and grew to love each other in South Korea after the war. Not only does the author take you on a believable and deeply affecting emotional journey—first in Korea in the aftermath of a brutal war and then in the United States, when Honey, with barely any help from the man she loved, had to adjust to life in a country that was so different from the land where she grew up—but the author also artfully, scene after scene, provides insight into life in Korea and in the United States as seen through the eyes of an immigrant. I'm glad to have met Honey on these pages and thankful to the heightened awareness the Korean experience.
August 6, 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed this sweet immigrant story of survival and adaptation. Young Hanhee's journey from ravaged post-war Korea where she finds herself completely on her own to quaint 1960's Arlington, Virginia and her marriage to an American journalist is gripping from the start. Our protagonist is sensitive, honest, observant, insightful, funny and all-around easy to root for. The writing is lyrical, offering vivid imagery of the cultures it embraces, a satisfying pace, and an engaging story arc. I was thoroughly engaged in Hanhee's evolution from a naive girl to a wise and at-peace old woman and could have happily stayed in her world a lot longer.
August 10, 2024
Hanhee is a survivor. She's the only member of her family who survives the Korean war, and she turns to prostitution to earn a living. To survive. When she meets Joe Lipton, an American living in Korea, they fall in love and a door opens. Hanhee travels to America with Joe to start a family. And in America, Hanhee (now called Honey by most people in her life) starts a new journey: one of practicing English and finding friends and learning new skills. Honey's drive to learn and grow moves her from survival to strength. Loss and change have shaped Honey, but her own willpower polishes her. This literary masterpiece is highly recommended!
June 24, 2024
Hanhee Song survives the Korean War and finds refuge in a Seoul brothel. Here, she gains survival skills and meets American writer Joe Lipton who sweeps her off her feet and across the seas to America where Hanhee becomes Honey Lipton. When her husband abandons her, Honey, once again, must utilize her survival skills as she navigates life in her new world. Blue Rice is a beautifully written tale of love and love lost, but mostly of living a whole life after shattering events.
July 4, 2024
A window into the aftermath of the Korean War, Hanhee’s story connects across cultures with the universal experience of love, loss, and resilience. The experience of transitioning between cultures and between relationship dynamics flow throughout. I love how Frances Park does so through heart and humor. So hit the emotions I just sat there for a while afterwards. A fabulous read. Highly recommend.
November 15, 2024
A young woman in war-era Korea meets a loving American GI who ultimately whisks her out of oppression, and they begin a life in America. For Hanhee, it's a struggle with twists and turns. Beautifully written, it helps the reader feel the challenges, frustrations, obstacles of being in a new place where idiom, nuance, prejudice are only part of her American experience. Keep reading more by Frances Park - and sister Ginger Park as well!
August 23, 2025
I loved this book and devoured it in just a couple of days. If I'd been reading this on Kindle, I probably would have wanted to highlight just about every other phrase. Park's effervescent writing prevents Honey's story (nee Hanhee) of war, prostitution, and ultimately abandonment, from being sordid and sad. Blue Rice is, instead, a lively tale of a woman whisked across the sea by her American husband, and her efforts to make the best of her circumstances.
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January 9, 2026With detailed descriptions of the little-known (at least to this reader) post-war Korean everyday reality and enriched with vivid imagery, “Blue Rice” tells the story of the immigrant efforts to survive, overcome the obstacles, and adapt to a new world that, at times, shuns them. Frances Park tells the story of the two main characters' struggle to find, redefine, and come to terms with their identity with keen observation, touching sensitivity, and utter humanity.
July 13, 2024
Blue Rice is a novel that you’ll savor long after you reluctantly read the last words. Frances Park has a singular ability to get at the heart of her characters and pull out bedrock truths. This book is full of humanity in all its glory, foibles, humor and callousness. Read it once and you’ll remember it forever.
August 9, 2025
An entertaining book, I ultimately felt it was written in too much of a hurry. The characters were interesting and situation of the monk foreseeing the future felt contrived, but it did help me understand more about the aftermath of the Korean war.
December 24, 2024
Melancholic, gorgeous, lyrical.
Hanhee Song, coming of age at the end of the Korean War. Falls in love with an american teacher, becomes Honey Lipton, moves to the US in the 1960’s.
Heartbreaking in moments, uplifting in others and book I wanted to linger with, Hanhee/Honey is a joy to spend time with.
Another brilliant story from Frances Park.
Thanks to Book Sirens, Vine Leaves Press and the author Frances Park for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.
Hanhee Song, coming of age at the end of the Korean War. Falls in love with an american teacher, becomes Honey Lipton, moves to the US in the 1960’s.
Heartbreaking in moments, uplifting in others and book I wanted to linger with, Hanhee/Honey is a joy to spend time with.
Another brilliant story from Frances Park.
Thanks to Book Sirens, Vine Leaves Press and the author Frances Park for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.
August 1, 2025
A gorgeous narrative -- and what a stunning cover!
This historical novel follows the story of a struggling survivor of the Korean War as she finds love with an American reporter, leaves behind her crumbling world, and navigates an intimidating new life in America, slowly carving out steps to independence. Heartbreaking, vivid details, and so captivating, I didn't want to put this one down.
This historical novel follows the story of a struggling survivor of the Korean War as she finds love with an American reporter, leaves behind her crumbling world, and navigates an intimidating new life in America, slowly carving out steps to independence. Heartbreaking, vivid details, and so captivating, I didn't want to put this one down.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews