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The Korean Word For Butterfly
Set against the backdrop of the 2002 World Cup and rising anti-American sentiment due to a deadly accident involving two young Korean girls and a U.S. tank, The Korean Word For Butterfly is told from three alternating points-of-view:
Billie, the young wanna-be poet looking for adventure with her boyfriend who soon finds herself questioning her decision to travel so far from the comforts of American life;
Moon, the ex K-pop band manager who now works at the English school struggling to maintain his sobriety in hopes of getting his family back;
And Yun-ji , a secretary at the school whose new feelings of resentment toward Americans may lead her to do something she never would have imagined possible.
The Korean Word For Butterfly is a story about the choices we make and why we make them.
It is a story, ultimately, about the power of love and redemption.
*The author would like to note that this book deals, in part, with abortion. It tries, as best it can, to explore the issue with compassion rather than judgement.*
"5 stars...full of fresh and original writing." -Kindle Book Review
Billie, the young wanna-be poet looking for adventure with her boyfriend who soon finds herself questioning her decision to travel so far from the comforts of American life;
Moon, the ex K-pop band manager who now works at the English school struggling to maintain his sobriety in hopes of getting his family back;
And Yun-ji , a secretary at the school whose new feelings of resentment toward Americans may lead her to do something she never would have imagined possible.
The Korean Word For Butterfly is a story about the choices we make and why we make them.
It is a story, ultimately, about the power of love and redemption.
*The author would like to note that this book deals, in part, with abortion. It tries, as best it can, to explore the issue with compassion rather than judgement.*
"5 stars...full of fresh and original writing." -Kindle Book Review
271 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 27, 2013
196 people are currently reading
2545 people want to read
About the author
Jamie Zerndt
8 books109 followersJamie Zerndt is the author of THE CLOUD SEEDERS, THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY, THE ROADRUNNER CAFE, and JERKWATER. His short story, "THIS JERKWATER LIFE", was recently chosen as an Editor's Pick in Amazon's Kindle Singles store. He now lives in Portland, Oregon, with his son where he is probably trying to take a nap. And failing.
Follow him on the Bookbub here: bit.ly/3tU1EZP
Follow him on the Bookbub here: bit.ly/3tU1EZP
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December 24, 2014
Warning: This book review comes with extensive soapboxing - I have my own take on the situations described here, based on personal experience as an ex-pat in Korea. So, take the rant into account with my rating.
I was originally going to give this self-published novel my usual "one to three chapters and done" treatment unless I really liked it.
I did not really like it, but I kept reading, which I suppose says something about its readability, but I still can't give a very high recommendation. I think this is an ambitious attempt at a contemporary, multiple-POV, cross-cultural literary novel that doesn't quite succeed. I respect the author's efforts, but the finished product is lacking.
Much of my interest in the story (and probably why I kept reading) is that two of the main characters are American English teachers in Korea at a time not long after I spent a year and a half teaching English in Korea. So I recognized a lot of the references and scenery and situations, and in a way, the characters (as in, "Yeah, I knew assholes like that").
The Korean Word for Butterfly takes place in South Korea in 2002, against the backdrop of the 2002 World Cup (held in South Korea that year) and the Yangju highway incident, in which a U.S. tank accidentally ran over two Korean schoolgirls.
This was shortly after my own tenure in South Korea - I was there a couple of years earlier - so I fortunately did not experience the anti-American sentiment that that incident stirred up, though of course there have been other incidents before and after that — I recall a student protest at the university where I was teaching in which they displayed graphic photographs of a Korean woman who'd been raped and murdered by a U.S. soldier. Fortunately, I never had any personal animosity directed at me. In fact, my experience in Korea was wonderful overall, one of the best experiences of my life. But I was conscious of the status I enjoyed just by virtue of being an English-speaking American, and though I tried not to be a dick about it, I probably did make some cross-cultural blunders and display some unintentional American arrogance, for which my gracious hosts never remonstrated with me. I also saw some other Westerners (not just Americans, for the benefit of all you Brits and Canadians and Aussies who want to get smug about how much more well-mannered y'all are abroad...) who were rude and arrogant douchebags — insensitive, greedy, and convinced that South Korea was a combination ATM machine and nation-wide massage parlor.
There are three POV characters. The first is Billie, who with her boyfriend Joe came to Korea to teach English at a kids' school. Billie and Joe are purportedly graduates of Reed College, in Oregon, but in fact, they just graduated from high school the previous year and faked their college diplomas to get the teaching gig. They arrive in Korea convinced that they're qualified to teach English because hey, they're native speakers — how hard can it be?
Oh man. There is so much baggage to unpack here. The first thing to realize is that in Korea, private English schools (or "hogwans") are a huge business. English is absolutely mandatory for any Korean who aspires to any kind of professional or high-status job — regardless of whether they're actually going to need it, or will ever even speak to a foreigner. So parents enroll their kids (including preschoolers) in these English schools, which are for the most part unlicensed and unregulated and charge huge tuitions, and in which the chief draw is native English-speaking teachers. White English-speaking Westerners can come to Korea and make significant bank just because of their white faces and native language — not quite as much as in the pre-IMF era, but it's still the case even now. The better schools, and especially the universities, do try to hire foreigners who actually have a teaching degree, or at least a TEFL certificate, but the demand is high and checking of credentials is not rigorous, so a minimally or unqualified Westerner can easily walk into a job anywhere in the country and make more money than a Korean with a Master's degree in English education.
And let me tell you, being a native speaker of a language does not make you qualified to teach shit. Especially to children. I'd rather reenlist in the Army than spend 8 hours a day riding herd on a classroom full of children. That takes a special skill set over and above being able to teach language.
(For the record: I had a Master's degree in Teaching English as a Second Language when I went over there. So at least I was, theoretically, qualified. But I taught university students; I never had to work at a hogwan and I refused to do the summer kids' classes.)
So obviously, I was immediately biased against our two American teenagers who thought Korea would just be a fun money-making adventure. But in fairness, this kind of stunt was believable for kids that age, and it is not portrayed as an awesome thing for them to do — in fact, eventually, their fraud catches up with them.
But the main subplot involving Billie and Joe is Billie discovering shortly after they arrive that she is pregnant, and now that she's stuck here in another country with her high school sweetheart who has knocked her up, realizing that she doesn't really like him very much. This leads to immature and petty behavior on both their parts, which does little to endear either of them to the reader who already thinks they're kind of assholes for the whole "Let's pretend we're qualified English teachers" and their all-too-typical culture shock which leads to dismissive and condescending attitudes towards their host country.
That's one subplot. The other two POV characters are Korean employees of Kids Inc!, where Billie and Joe teach. One is Moon, who assists the owner. Moon is a former music producer who was living the fast life before he decided to do something less soul-sucking, like taking care of dumbass foreigners. Moon has an estranged wife and a young son, and it turns out, he is a former/reformed alcoholic who nearly dislocated his son's shoulder one drunken night (hence his estrangement). Now he's full of remorse and penitence, which is dwelled upon in angsty detail.
The third main character is Yun-ji, also an employee at the English school, working as an administrative assistant, whose duties also often involve trying to clean up after the foreign teachers' messes. (I felt so sorry for these office ladies, who are present at every hogwan and university extension, because yes, us foreign teachers tended to take up an enormous amount of their time even when we weren't being offensive, unprofessional, calling in sick over hangovers, sleeping with students, and other nonsense which is, sadly, almost routine and expected from foreigners.) Yun-ji is quite aware that Billie and Joe are making four times what she does just because they speak English natively, but she's always kind and helpful to them, as is Moon. But her subplot involves her hooking up with a handsome and charming American soldier, which makes discovering that, like Billie, she's got an unexpected visitor a case of very bad timing when the following week an American tank runs over two schoolgirls, provoking anti-American demonstrations.
One of the biggest problems with this book is that the three storylines above are not really connected, except that the characters all happen to work at the same place. Billie, Joe, Moon, and Yun-Ji all know each other, but their individual problems don't really intersect and they don't even talk to each other about them - Moon and Billie never learn about Yun-ji's pregnancy, Yun-ji and Moon never learn about Billie's, Billie meets Moon's son but she and Joe never really get to know him well enough to be involved with his own family drama, so they're essentially a group of superficial acquaintances thrown together during a period that's stressful on each of them but for entirely separate and unrelated reasons.
The Korean Word for Butterfly seems to be trying to say something heartfelt, but what it's trying to say, I'm not exactly sure. Are we supposed to sympathize with Yun-ji, knocked up by an American soldier and not sure how to tell her alcoholic, American-hating father? With Moon, living in perpetual guilt and shame over one bad moment for which his spotless sobriety cannot atone? With Billie, an oblivious, privileged white girl who discovers shit got real when her equally privileged and oblivious boyfriend knocked her up? I suppose they are all sympathetic to a degree (Yun-ji and Moon much more so), but I actually found Billie and Joe more interesting, but less likeable, while Moon and Yun-ji were very nice people in very pat roles, nearly as pat as the snowball fight in the end that "brings everyone together."
This is, I think supposed to be a literary novel, though I'm not sure if the author is trying to invoke Jodi Picoult or Jonathan Franzen. But the writing is, while not bad, amateurish in construction and in stylistic affectation. Zerndt emphasizes portentously with chapters full of one-sentence paragraphs.
This is Billie's observant internal dialog. Poor baby.
Most of the book reads like this, regardless of POV.
This was a Kindle freebie, and I'm not sorry I read it, but I cannot say I'd have been happy if I'd paid for it. I think the author has writing talent but this is the sort of book that should have been a trunk novel or else polished with the help of a good professional editor. It's just not good enough for professional publication. On the other hand, apparently it's a big seller and getting lots of 5-star reviews on Amazon, so what do I know? This is not the first time I've been a bit baffled by the popularity of what to me seems like a sub-par novel, so clearly it is a good thing that after teaching English to Koreans, I went into computer science instead of publishing.
I was originally going to give this self-published novel my usual "one to three chapters and done" treatment unless I really liked it.
I did not really like it, but I kept reading, which I suppose says something about its readability, but I still can't give a very high recommendation. I think this is an ambitious attempt at a contemporary, multiple-POV, cross-cultural literary novel that doesn't quite succeed. I respect the author's efforts, but the finished product is lacking.
Much of my interest in the story (and probably why I kept reading) is that two of the main characters are American English teachers in Korea at a time not long after I spent a year and a half teaching English in Korea. So I recognized a lot of the references and scenery and situations, and in a way, the characters (as in, "Yeah, I knew assholes like that").
The Korean Word for Butterfly takes place in South Korea in 2002, against the backdrop of the 2002 World Cup (held in South Korea that year) and the Yangju highway incident, in which a U.S. tank accidentally ran over two Korean schoolgirls.
This was shortly after my own tenure in South Korea - I was there a couple of years earlier - so I fortunately did not experience the anti-American sentiment that that incident stirred up, though of course there have been other incidents before and after that — I recall a student protest at the university where I was teaching in which they displayed graphic photographs of a Korean woman who'd been raped and murdered by a U.S. soldier. Fortunately, I never had any personal animosity directed at me. In fact, my experience in Korea was wonderful overall, one of the best experiences of my life. But I was conscious of the status I enjoyed just by virtue of being an English-speaking American, and though I tried not to be a dick about it, I probably did make some cross-cultural blunders and display some unintentional American arrogance, for which my gracious hosts never remonstrated with me. I also saw some other Westerners (not just Americans, for the benefit of all you Brits and Canadians and Aussies who want to get smug about how much more well-mannered y'all are abroad...) who were rude and arrogant douchebags — insensitive, greedy, and convinced that South Korea was a combination ATM machine and nation-wide massage parlor.
There are three POV characters. The first is Billie, who with her boyfriend Joe came to Korea to teach English at a kids' school. Billie and Joe are purportedly graduates of Reed College, in Oregon, but in fact, they just graduated from high school the previous year and faked their college diplomas to get the teaching gig. They arrive in Korea convinced that they're qualified to teach English because hey, they're native speakers — how hard can it be?
Oh man. There is so much baggage to unpack here. The first thing to realize is that in Korea, private English schools (or "hogwans") are a huge business. English is absolutely mandatory for any Korean who aspires to any kind of professional or high-status job — regardless of whether they're actually going to need it, or will ever even speak to a foreigner. So parents enroll their kids (including preschoolers) in these English schools, which are for the most part unlicensed and unregulated and charge huge tuitions, and in which the chief draw is native English-speaking teachers. White English-speaking Westerners can come to Korea and make significant bank just because of their white faces and native language — not quite as much as in the pre-IMF era, but it's still the case even now. The better schools, and especially the universities, do try to hire foreigners who actually have a teaching degree, or at least a TEFL certificate, but the demand is high and checking of credentials is not rigorous, so a minimally or unqualified Westerner can easily walk into a job anywhere in the country and make more money than a Korean with a Master's degree in English education.
And let me tell you, being a native speaker of a language does not make you qualified to teach shit. Especially to children. I'd rather reenlist in the Army than spend 8 hours a day riding herd on a classroom full of children. That takes a special skill set over and above being able to teach language.
(For the record: I had a Master's degree in Teaching English as a Second Language when I went over there. So at least I was, theoretically, qualified. But I taught university students; I never had to work at a hogwan and I refused to do the summer kids' classes.)
So obviously, I was immediately biased against our two American teenagers who thought Korea would just be a fun money-making adventure. But in fairness, this kind of stunt was believable for kids that age, and it is not portrayed as an awesome thing for them to do — in fact, eventually, their fraud catches up with them.
But the main subplot involving Billie and Joe is Billie discovering shortly after they arrive that she is pregnant, and now that she's stuck here in another country with her high school sweetheart who has knocked her up, realizing that she doesn't really like him very much. This leads to immature and petty behavior on both their parts, which does little to endear either of them to the reader who already thinks they're kind of assholes for the whole "Let's pretend we're qualified English teachers" and their all-too-typical culture shock which leads to dismissive and condescending attitudes towards their host country.
That's one subplot. The other two POV characters are Korean employees of Kids Inc!, where Billie and Joe teach. One is Moon, who assists the owner. Moon is a former music producer who was living the fast life before he decided to do something less soul-sucking, like taking care of dumbass foreigners. Moon has an estranged wife and a young son, and it turns out, he is a former/reformed alcoholic who nearly dislocated his son's shoulder one drunken night (hence his estrangement). Now he's full of remorse and penitence, which is dwelled upon in angsty detail.
The third main character is Yun-ji, also an employee at the English school, working as an administrative assistant, whose duties also often involve trying to clean up after the foreign teachers' messes. (I felt so sorry for these office ladies, who are present at every hogwan and university extension, because yes, us foreign teachers tended to take up an enormous amount of their time even when we weren't being offensive, unprofessional, calling in sick over hangovers, sleeping with students, and other nonsense which is, sadly, almost routine and expected from foreigners.) Yun-ji is quite aware that Billie and Joe are making four times what she does just because they speak English natively, but she's always kind and helpful to them, as is Moon. But her subplot involves her hooking up with a handsome and charming American soldier, which makes discovering that, like Billie, she's got an unexpected visitor a case of very bad timing when the following week an American tank runs over two schoolgirls, provoking anti-American demonstrations.
One of the biggest problems with this book is that the three storylines above are not really connected, except that the characters all happen to work at the same place. Billie, Joe, Moon, and Yun-Ji all know each other, but their individual problems don't really intersect and they don't even talk to each other about them - Moon and Billie never learn about Yun-ji's pregnancy, Yun-ji and Moon never learn about Billie's, Billie meets Moon's son but she and Joe never really get to know him well enough to be involved with his own family drama, so they're essentially a group of superficial acquaintances thrown together during a period that's stressful on each of them but for entirely separate and unrelated reasons.
The Korean Word for Butterfly seems to be trying to say something heartfelt, but what it's trying to say, I'm not exactly sure. Are we supposed to sympathize with Yun-ji, knocked up by an American soldier and not sure how to tell her alcoholic, American-hating father? With Moon, living in perpetual guilt and shame over one bad moment for which his spotless sobriety cannot atone? With Billie, an oblivious, privileged white girl who discovers shit got real when her equally privileged and oblivious boyfriend knocked her up? I suppose they are all sympathetic to a degree (Yun-ji and Moon much more so), but I actually found Billie and Joe more interesting, but less likeable, while Moon and Yun-ji were very nice people in very pat roles, nearly as pat as the snowball fight in the end that "brings everyone together."
This is, I think supposed to be a literary novel, though I'm not sure if the author is trying to invoke Jodi Picoult or Jonathan Franzen. But the writing is, while not bad, amateurish in construction and in stylistic affectation. Zerndt emphasizes portentously with chapters full of one-sentence paragraphs.
Outside the vegetable man and his cart have arrived.
The human alarm-clock.
The vendor of headaches and buh-nah-nuhs.
I like it when he says that though.
And lemon.
He says it lay-mon.
They're the only two words I can make out. The rest is a litany of Korean, all prerecorded, listing the specials of the day. I swear he parks his cart outside my window just to antagonize me. It's the perfect soundtrack to the miserable drama being played out inside this apartment. It definitely needed something Korean and hellish to accent it. Why does the caged bird sing again? I can't remember. All I know is that this bird is going to peck its eyes out if something doesn't change soon.
This is Billie's observant internal dialog. Poor baby.
Most of the book reads like this, regardless of POV.
This was a Kindle freebie, and I'm not sorry I read it, but I cannot say I'd have been happy if I'd paid for it. I think the author has writing talent but this is the sort of book that should have been a trunk novel or else polished with the help of a good professional editor. It's just not good enough for professional publication. On the other hand, apparently it's a big seller and getting lots of 5-star reviews on Amazon, so what do I know? This is not the first time I've been a bit baffled by the popularity of what to me seems like a sub-par novel, so clearly it is a good thing that after teaching English to Koreans, I went into computer science instead of publishing.
August 7, 2024
Setting: Seoul, South Korea; 2002-2003.
Billie and Joe have travelled to Seoul from their home in Portland, Oregon to teach English to schoolchildren at a Korean school - but the pair are travelling under false pretences....
Moon, former manager of a K-Pop band, is now senior administrator at the school and he meets Billie and Joe at the airport and helps them settle in. A recovering alcoholic, Moon is estranged from his wife but has occasional contact with his son, Hyo....
Yun-ji works part-time in the offices at the school. She has recently started a relationship with an American soldier based in the city but her parents, who run a noodle restaurant, are anti-American, particularly her father.....
As the Football World Cup is being staged in Seoul and the home team progress through the competition to the semi-finals, a tragic accident occurs - two teenage schoolgirls are run over by an American tank on exercises.
Told from the perspectives of Billie, Moon and Yun-ji, the book tells of life in Korean culture from the point of view of both Koreans and the American visitors and also the impact that the accident and its aftermath has on relations between the locals and Americans.
A really interesting and enjoyable read - the story and setting are different to the books I normally read so it was quite refreshing! Will be looking for more from this author - 8.5/10.
Billie and Joe have travelled to Seoul from their home in Portland, Oregon to teach English to schoolchildren at a Korean school - but the pair are travelling under false pretences....
Moon, former manager of a K-Pop band, is now senior administrator at the school and he meets Billie and Joe at the airport and helps them settle in. A recovering alcoholic, Moon is estranged from his wife but has occasional contact with his son, Hyo....
Yun-ji works part-time in the offices at the school. She has recently started a relationship with an American soldier based in the city but her parents, who run a noodle restaurant, are anti-American, particularly her father.....
As the Football World Cup is being staged in Seoul and the home team progress through the competition to the semi-finals, a tragic accident occurs - two teenage schoolgirls are run over by an American tank on exercises.
Told from the perspectives of Billie, Moon and Yun-ji, the book tells of life in Korean culture from the point of view of both Koreans and the American visitors and also the impact that the accident and its aftermath has on relations between the locals and Americans.
A really interesting and enjoyable read - the story and setting are different to the books I normally read so it was quite refreshing! Will be looking for more from this author - 8.5/10.
September 25, 2013
First, I wanted to give props to the author. This is one of the best edited self-published novels I've read. Unfortunately, I didn't like the novel as a whole. I had major issues with the back and forth between first and third person. I started to make reasons for the transitions, but there wasn't any. For me, Billie was hard to like as will. She annoyed me to no end and I joking started to call her Rose Tyler. She was very immature as was the language used for her. While she was indeed young, it was strange to go from cohesive, strong writing, to reading Billie using words like "pooped in my pants." Billie may have gotten on my nerves, but damn if I didn't love Moon. He was amazing. His son was even better. I did love the author's attempt at discussing abortion, and while the politics were there (lack of abortion knowledge, and lack of doctor etiquette), the emotions seemed off. Finally, the endings seemed cut short, and WAY too easy. The New Year's Eve scene had me in pure shock. Everything suddenly just seemed fake. I felt like the author gave up.
October 30, 2013
Captivating and intriguing, The Korean Word For Butterfly gives the reader an inside look at South Korea through the eyes of the three main characters. Told in alternating points of view, we see life through the eyes of a father separated from his wife an young child, through the eyes of a young single Korean girl, and through the eyes of an American girl who has come to Korea to teach English. All three work at the same school and as their lives intersect, we appreciate the conflicts of cultural differences and the similarities of hopes and dreams that transcend culture. Kudos to Zerndt for a job well done.
June 16, 2013
Study the cover of this book for the meaning
James Zerndt. Note the name because we are bound to see it become a household word. Though this is Zerndt's second novel (I have not read his first novel THE CLOUD SEEDERS) and it represents the depth and profundity and polish of a seasoned writer. Not only does Zerndt grasp the secret of how to unravel a well-constructed story, complete with a slow character build up, an interplay of all the characters with a natural evolution, a denouement that is transcendent, and a resolution that leaves the reader with a feeling of complete satisfaction, but he also has elected in THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY to use a writing style that follows the tilt of the story - a mixture of Western prose with isolated lines that resemble Eastern haiku that spaces his interwoven tale in chards that the reader can assemble as a part of the reading process. Arendt's time spent in Korea enhances his ability to pulse Korean language and customs and manners naturally, and that is one of the reasons the balance between the Korean aspect and the American aspect is so smooth. In other words, this novel works.
The time is 2002, the year of the World Cup in Korea, and we first meet Billie and Joe - two high school graduates who for the urge to see something different have falsified documents that they are graduates from Reed College in their hometown of Portland, Oregon I order to be accepted as teachers in a Korean school for children who need to learn English. They are met at the airport by Moon, a recovering alcoholic whose drinking problem has resulted in his wife's leaving him and allowing only periodic visits to his iyoung son who he assaulted in a drunken fit. They are interviewed by the school's principal, are accepted and begin their teaching assignment: Joe is a natural but Billie as a budding poet is challenged by the children and the assignment. Billie and Joe meet Yun-Ji, a secretary at the school and a young girl with little respect for Americans. In the course of the story Billie discovers she is pregnant with Joe's child and decides to obtain an abortion. Yun-Ji, needy for love and attention, meets Shaun, a handsome athletic bungee jumping GI stationed there, and in an evening of lust becomes pregnant with Shaun's child - a secret (from Shaun) pregnancy she attempts to terminate by bungee jumping, but her pregnancy remains intact, much to her parents' chagrin. Ever in the background is Moon as he tries to befriend his new American friends and his fellow school employee Yun-Ji while striving to recover his now distant wife and his beloved son Hyo. The World Cup loss for Korea is confounded by an accident where an American troop tank runs over two young Korean girls resulting in their death. American resentment rises and the schism between East and West is magnified. All of these events congeal on a snowy winter evening in a rather surprising but well considered fashion.
Zerndt weaves Korean myths and traditions through his book so smoothly that by book's end we feel as though we understand the Korean vantage. There is one myth that is of particular note: it is said that in the DMZ between North and South Korea there are Siberian tigers (Amurs) and Yun-Ji has decided that the child in her womb is a boy will be named Amur. In a way it is a mending of the East and West - the pregnancy shared by Yun-Ji and Shaun - and underlines the theme of the book that life is about the choices we make and how that elusive feeling of Love can mend even the most broken wings - like the butterfly (also a part of a eloquent dream sequence in the story) on the cover of this magnificently successful novel. This is one of the best young novels of the year.
Grady Harp
James Zerndt. Note the name because we are bound to see it become a household word. Though this is Zerndt's second novel (I have not read his first novel THE CLOUD SEEDERS) and it represents the depth and profundity and polish of a seasoned writer. Not only does Zerndt grasp the secret of how to unravel a well-constructed story, complete with a slow character build up, an interplay of all the characters with a natural evolution, a denouement that is transcendent, and a resolution that leaves the reader with a feeling of complete satisfaction, but he also has elected in THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY to use a writing style that follows the tilt of the story - a mixture of Western prose with isolated lines that resemble Eastern haiku that spaces his interwoven tale in chards that the reader can assemble as a part of the reading process. Arendt's time spent in Korea enhances his ability to pulse Korean language and customs and manners naturally, and that is one of the reasons the balance between the Korean aspect and the American aspect is so smooth. In other words, this novel works.
The time is 2002, the year of the World Cup in Korea, and we first meet Billie and Joe - two high school graduates who for the urge to see something different have falsified documents that they are graduates from Reed College in their hometown of Portland, Oregon I order to be accepted as teachers in a Korean school for children who need to learn English. They are met at the airport by Moon, a recovering alcoholic whose drinking problem has resulted in his wife's leaving him and allowing only periodic visits to his iyoung son who he assaulted in a drunken fit. They are interviewed by the school's principal, are accepted and begin their teaching assignment: Joe is a natural but Billie as a budding poet is challenged by the children and the assignment. Billie and Joe meet Yun-Ji, a secretary at the school and a young girl with little respect for Americans. In the course of the story Billie discovers she is pregnant with Joe's child and decides to obtain an abortion. Yun-Ji, needy for love and attention, meets Shaun, a handsome athletic bungee jumping GI stationed there, and in an evening of lust becomes pregnant with Shaun's child - a secret (from Shaun) pregnancy she attempts to terminate by bungee jumping, but her pregnancy remains intact, much to her parents' chagrin. Ever in the background is Moon as he tries to befriend his new American friends and his fellow school employee Yun-Ji while striving to recover his now distant wife and his beloved son Hyo. The World Cup loss for Korea is confounded by an accident where an American troop tank runs over two young Korean girls resulting in their death. American resentment rises and the schism between East and West is magnified. All of these events congeal on a snowy winter evening in a rather surprising but well considered fashion.
Zerndt weaves Korean myths and traditions through his book so smoothly that by book's end we feel as though we understand the Korean vantage. There is one myth that is of particular note: it is said that in the DMZ between North and South Korea there are Siberian tigers (Amurs) and Yun-Ji has decided that the child in her womb is a boy will be named Amur. In a way it is a mending of the East and West - the pregnancy shared by Yun-Ji and Shaun - and underlines the theme of the book that life is about the choices we make and how that elusive feeling of Love can mend even the most broken wings - like the butterfly (also a part of a eloquent dream sequence in the story) on the cover of this magnificently successful novel. This is one of the best young novels of the year.
Grady Harp
December 30, 2013
Having read some of Mr. Zerndt’s shorter fiction, I was excited to see what he would do with a full novel. Even in the first pages, I recognized his clean, casual style and the finesse with which he develops his characters.
Set in South Korea, the story unfolds through the perspectives of three major characters, each one troubled, each one flawed. They are sometimes selfless and sometimes selfish; always, they are real people with many dimensions.
Moon, my favorite of the three major characters, has a past in the music (“K-pop”) industry and delights the reader with allusions to familiar American rock music of the 80’s and 90’s. It is easy to be sympathetic toward Moon, who struggles with alcoholism and desperately longs to repair his broken family.
While the lives of the three major characters (Moon, Billie, and Yun-ji) do intersect, the overarching story is connected more by its overlapping themes than by the movement of any single plotline. Ultimately, the novel is about the human struggle, the relentless search for peace, love, and acceptance. While each character’s own quest is personal and unique, their needs are universally relatable.
The novel unflinchingly explores issues of pregnancy and abortion, but the central questions posed by the book are much broader than that. Still, readers who find these topics especially sensitive should approach the novel with caution.
Set in South Korea, the story unfolds through the perspectives of three major characters, each one troubled, each one flawed. They are sometimes selfless and sometimes selfish; always, they are real people with many dimensions.
Moon, my favorite of the three major characters, has a past in the music (“K-pop”) industry and delights the reader with allusions to familiar American rock music of the 80’s and 90’s. It is easy to be sympathetic toward Moon, who struggles with alcoholism and desperately longs to repair his broken family.
While the lives of the three major characters (Moon, Billie, and Yun-ji) do intersect, the overarching story is connected more by its overlapping themes than by the movement of any single plotline. Ultimately, the novel is about the human struggle, the relentless search for peace, love, and acceptance. While each character’s own quest is personal and unique, their needs are universally relatable.
The novel unflinchingly explores issues of pregnancy and abortion, but the central questions posed by the book are much broader than that. Still, readers who find these topics especially sensitive should approach the novel with caution.
January 19, 2014
The Korean Word For Butterfly by Jamie Zerndt is a highly recommended novel that explores our fragile connections with what is important in life.
Set in 2002 during the World Cup soccer match and when two 13 year old girls were ran over by a US tank and killed, there are three major characters who tell their stories in alternating chapters in The Korean Word For Butterfly by Jamie Zerndt.
Billie and Joe are two high school graduates who have forge college transcripts and diplomas so they can travel to Korea and teach English at the English language school, Kids, Inc! Billie tells us in the first chapter that she and Joe are frauds but that this job will provide them with an adventure. What she doesn't realize is how much their relationship and lives will be challenged over the course of the next six months.
Moon, a former music producer, currently works for Kids, Inc! His wife, Min Jee, has left him, taking their 3 year old son Hyo with her after a drunken Moon caused their son to hurt his arm. Moon has stopped drinking. He desperately misses his son and longs for his family to be whole again. He's also suspicious that the two new teachers may not actually be qualified to teach.
Yun-ji is a secretary at the school. She lives with her parents and after observing her mother's passive acceptance of her father's neglect and drinking, desires more than a life settling for so little. She meets a handsome GI and starts a relationship with him that will have far reaching consequences.
While the lives of Billie, Moon and Yun-ji are interconnected, they are all also making different choices during some very similar situations: questioning family connections, abuse of alcohol,
pregnancy, abuse of power, tradition versus change. Ultimately the characters different choices lead to different consequences.
This is a thoughtful novel that, while set during a turbulent time, quietly follows the desperate lives of the three characters Billie, Moon, and Yun-ji. Even while living during big events we still process them through our own inner voice, based on our own wants and needs, and search for our own answers. Zerndt has a way with words, perhaps because he is a poet, and has his characters approach their conflicts with a gentleness and understanding that is very appealing. He captures the individuality of his characters brilliantly while ever mindful of the Korean time period and setting. (Note: abortion is presented as a choice in this novel, although not for all characters.)
Disclosure: I received an advanced reading copy of this book from the author for review purposes.
Set in 2002 during the World Cup soccer match and when two 13 year old girls were ran over by a US tank and killed, there are three major characters who tell their stories in alternating chapters in The Korean Word For Butterfly by Jamie Zerndt.
Billie and Joe are two high school graduates who have forge college transcripts and diplomas so they can travel to Korea and teach English at the English language school, Kids, Inc! Billie tells us in the first chapter that she and Joe are frauds but that this job will provide them with an adventure. What she doesn't realize is how much their relationship and lives will be challenged over the course of the next six months.
Moon, a former music producer, currently works for Kids, Inc! His wife, Min Jee, has left him, taking their 3 year old son Hyo with her after a drunken Moon caused their son to hurt his arm. Moon has stopped drinking. He desperately misses his son and longs for his family to be whole again. He's also suspicious that the two new teachers may not actually be qualified to teach.
Yun-ji is a secretary at the school. She lives with her parents and after observing her mother's passive acceptance of her father's neglect and drinking, desires more than a life settling for so little. She meets a handsome GI and starts a relationship with him that will have far reaching consequences.
While the lives of Billie, Moon and Yun-ji are interconnected, they are all also making different choices during some very similar situations: questioning family connections, abuse of alcohol,
pregnancy, abuse of power, tradition versus change. Ultimately the characters different choices lead to different consequences.
This is a thoughtful novel that, while set during a turbulent time, quietly follows the desperate lives of the three characters Billie, Moon, and Yun-ji. Even while living during big events we still process them through our own inner voice, based on our own wants and needs, and search for our own answers. Zerndt has a way with words, perhaps because he is a poet, and has his characters approach their conflicts with a gentleness and understanding that is very appealing. He captures the individuality of his characters brilliantly while ever mindful of the Korean time period and setting. (Note: abortion is presented as a choice in this novel, although not for all characters.)
Disclosure: I received an advanced reading copy of this book from the author for review purposes.
August 15, 2013
If a native English teacher or expatriate living and working in South Korea wanted to write the great foreigner in Korea novel they might have come up with the idea that James Zerndt does in The Korean Word for Butterfly by writing about the lives of two English teachers learning his to survive in a foreign country and the lives of two Koreans coming to grips with their own personal trials. Jumping ack and forth between these four lives, the author gives readers a unique window on modern Korean society at a pivotal historic moment: the 2002 World Cup.
The author pulls it off for the most part, but for this Korean Old Hat (I've lived in Korea for over twenty-three years), I had trouble suspending my disbelief, in this case the events surrounding the 2002 military vehicle accident which took the lives of two Korean middle school girls. (Although this is a novel, the author took liberty with the actual events surrounding this incident for the sake of the story line.) That was about the only unsettling part of the novel for me given the actual events which transpired following the 2002 World Cup. Although no fault on the author's part, there is no mention of the sea battle between the North Korean and South Korean navy toward the end of the World Cup, which was just as significant an event but lost in the World Cup fervor.
Despite these flaws (in addition the Kindle formatting was a bit funky) this is a good story given the novel's timeline as well as the story of these four lives. Although it may not be "The Great Expat Novel" of what it is like living and working in South Korea, it is nonetheless a good read.
The author pulls it off for the most part, but for this Korean Old Hat (I've lived in Korea for over twenty-three years), I had trouble suspending my disbelief, in this case the events surrounding the 2002 military vehicle accident which took the lives of two Korean middle school girls. (Although this is a novel, the author took liberty with the actual events surrounding this incident for the sake of the story line.) That was about the only unsettling part of the novel for me given the actual events which transpired following the 2002 World Cup. Although no fault on the author's part, there is no mention of the sea battle between the North Korean and South Korean navy toward the end of the World Cup, which was just as significant an event but lost in the World Cup fervor.
Despite these flaws (in addition the Kindle formatting was a bit funky) this is a good story given the novel's timeline as well as the story of these four lives. Although it may not be "The Great Expat Novel" of what it is like living and working in South Korea, it is nonetheless a good read.
March 3, 2014
I received this book from the touring host for an honest review.
This is not a normal story book filled with facts as it unfolds giving you a glimpse of the 2002 World Cup in South Korea. It is a book that is told from three different view points; people that in some way were connected with each other but not always part of each other’s lives.
We meet Billie, as she and Joe was on an adventure, going to Korea to teach English; meeting Moon at the airport and then later on Yun-Ji a local Korean girl also working at the same school. We share their experiences during good times and also making some tough decisions in their family lives and relationships. It is not an easy to follow story and at times I felt lost in between the scenes as if things were missing in the lives of these people. At the end I understood what the author tried to say and it became clear as the lives of Billie, Moon and Yun-ji were highlighted during a difficult time in the South Korean history.
A very gripping drama but personally not my favorite book to read. I found the book informative and well written.
This is not a normal story book filled with facts as it unfolds giving you a glimpse of the 2002 World Cup in South Korea. It is a book that is told from three different view points; people that in some way were connected with each other but not always part of each other’s lives.
We meet Billie, as she and Joe was on an adventure, going to Korea to teach English; meeting Moon at the airport and then later on Yun-Ji a local Korean girl also working at the same school. We share their experiences during good times and also making some tough decisions in their family lives and relationships. It is not an easy to follow story and at times I felt lost in between the scenes as if things were missing in the lives of these people. At the end I understood what the author tried to say and it became clear as the lives of Billie, Moon and Yun-ji were highlighted during a difficult time in the South Korean history.
A very gripping drama but personally not my favorite book to read. I found the book informative and well written.
September 22, 2014
Great book
I loved this book. it took me to the Korean culture, while still being American. it made me feel as if I was really there. I can definitely relate to Billie and her predicament, and it also made me wonder if her choices would have been different on American soil. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good read. one with feeling, where you get to know the characters not only on paper, but also intimately. thank you for writing this book, can't wait to read'll d the cloud seeders.
I loved this book. it took me to the Korean culture, while still being American. it made me feel as if I was really there. I can definitely relate to Billie and her predicament, and it also made me wonder if her choices would have been different on American soil. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good read. one with feeling, where you get to know the characters not only on paper, but also intimately. thank you for writing this book, can't wait to read'll d the cloud seeders.
September 17, 2014
Thought provoking
This was a very different book than I usually read. At first, I was unsure about the setting in Korea and whether I could relate to it. However, I found the characters grew on me. I could relate to Billie and found myself outraged at the discrimination against Americans that she dealt with. All in all a surprising story that spoke to me on many levels. I recommend it.
This was a very different book than I usually read. At first, I was unsure about the setting in Korea and whether I could relate to it. However, I found the characters grew on me. I could relate to Billie and found myself outraged at the discrimination against Americans that she dealt with. All in all a surprising story that spoke to me on many levels. I recommend it.
February 17, 2022
Not sure
I'm not entirely sure what I just read. I don't know where the book was heading or even the characters.
I'm not entirely sure what I just read. I don't know where the book was heading or even the characters.
June 22, 2013
I totally enjoyed reading James Zerndt’s THE CLOUD SEEDERS, so when he gave me the opportunity to read his second novel, THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY, I jumped at the chance. Zerndt is a wonderful writer, and BUTTERFLY is an absolutely beautiful story. I was drawn into his characters from the first page, and I found myself devouring the novel in huge, satisfying gulps.
BUTTERFLY is set in Korea in 2002, against the backdrop of the World Cup and the tragic incident in which two young Korean girls were run over by a US Army tank. Joe and Billie are high school graduates from Portland who have come to Korea to teach at the so-called “English school,” Kids, Inc! They have forged college diplomas and transcripts (Billie says in the first chapter that they are “frauds”), and they know nothing at all about teaching, but this is an opportunity for them to explore a totally new environment. What neither of them know is that Billie is already pregnant, and they will be challenged in ways more difficult than the classroom.
In Korea they meet Moon, a former music producer, and Yun-ji, a college student, both of whom now work for Kids, Inc! Moon has been estranged from his wife, Min Jee, since the day he drunkenly injured their infant son, Hyo. Since then, he has given up drinking and is determined to mend his relationship with his family. Yun-ji is struggling with her own relationship with her parents; her mother is passive and distant, and her father spends most of his time drinking himself into a stupor. When she meets handsome GI Shaun Howell, she rushes into a relationship that will have overwhelming consequences.
Zerndt is able to blend the stories of these characters into a lovely and powerful tale about the ultimate meaning of life. At one point in the story, Yun-ji explains to Billie that Americans see themselves as “snowflakes,” each unique and individual. But Koreans, she says, see themselves as “snowballs,” together as one people. By the end of the novel, this image will be demonstrated perfectly as a confrontation between angry Koreans (infuriated over the death of the two young girls) and the Americans (military and otherwise) who have come to live in a country not their own. In the end, Billie wonders whether it’s possible for us to be “both a snowflake and a snowball.” Can we be individuals, perfect in our uniqueness, but also dependent on each other and necessary to each other. Billie says yes. I say yes, too.
There is a moment in THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY when Yun-ji has a dream brought on by both the death of the Korean girls and the worries of her own life. Suddenly, in the dream, she sees millions of blue butterflies, “a blue shimmering wall spiraling up into the sky.” She thinks to herself, “This is what death must look like. So beautiful it hurts to look at it.” That’s pretty much how I feel about this book. It’s beautiful and painful, all at the same time. I loved these characters, even when they infuriated me. I loved Moon’s attempts to reach his now three-year-old son, and the delight he takes in every tiny step toward reconciliation. I loved Yun-ji’s realization that what seems at first to be a tragic development in her life, may be a blessing sent by God. And I loved Billie and Joe’s fragile relationship with one another as they struggle with difficult decisions and even more difficult feelings. These are very real people, flawed and teetering on the edge of something important, who touched me in a way that will not soon be forgotten.
At its core, this novel is about what really matters and what’s worth holding on to. Moon reads that an artist once said that “to hold a brush was life.” What Moon realizes – and what Yun-ji eventually realizes, too – is that the thing he is most meant to hold is his son, Hyo. The connections we have with each other, especially through family, are what hold us together as one people. Yun-ji comes to understand this. Billie and Joe see glimpses of it. And through all of them, Zerndt’s readers see something very, very important. THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY is a wonderful, readable novel about life and love. Yes, we’re all snowflakes, unique and individual. But unless we can come together as snowballs, we’ll just melt into nothingness. It’s a nice message. I highly recommend this book.
[Please note: I was provided a copy of this book for review; the opinions expressed here are my own.]
BUTTERFLY is set in Korea in 2002, against the backdrop of the World Cup and the tragic incident in which two young Korean girls were run over by a US Army tank. Joe and Billie are high school graduates from Portland who have come to Korea to teach at the so-called “English school,” Kids, Inc! They have forged college diplomas and transcripts (Billie says in the first chapter that they are “frauds”), and they know nothing at all about teaching, but this is an opportunity for them to explore a totally new environment. What neither of them know is that Billie is already pregnant, and they will be challenged in ways more difficult than the classroom.
In Korea they meet Moon, a former music producer, and Yun-ji, a college student, both of whom now work for Kids, Inc! Moon has been estranged from his wife, Min Jee, since the day he drunkenly injured their infant son, Hyo. Since then, he has given up drinking and is determined to mend his relationship with his family. Yun-ji is struggling with her own relationship with her parents; her mother is passive and distant, and her father spends most of his time drinking himself into a stupor. When she meets handsome GI Shaun Howell, she rushes into a relationship that will have overwhelming consequences.
Zerndt is able to blend the stories of these characters into a lovely and powerful tale about the ultimate meaning of life. At one point in the story, Yun-ji explains to Billie that Americans see themselves as “snowflakes,” each unique and individual. But Koreans, she says, see themselves as “snowballs,” together as one people. By the end of the novel, this image will be demonstrated perfectly as a confrontation between angry Koreans (infuriated over the death of the two young girls) and the Americans (military and otherwise) who have come to live in a country not their own. In the end, Billie wonders whether it’s possible for us to be “both a snowflake and a snowball.” Can we be individuals, perfect in our uniqueness, but also dependent on each other and necessary to each other. Billie says yes. I say yes, too.
There is a moment in THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY when Yun-ji has a dream brought on by both the death of the Korean girls and the worries of her own life. Suddenly, in the dream, she sees millions of blue butterflies, “a blue shimmering wall spiraling up into the sky.” She thinks to herself, “This is what death must look like. So beautiful it hurts to look at it.” That’s pretty much how I feel about this book. It’s beautiful and painful, all at the same time. I loved these characters, even when they infuriated me. I loved Moon’s attempts to reach his now three-year-old son, and the delight he takes in every tiny step toward reconciliation. I loved Yun-ji’s realization that what seems at first to be a tragic development in her life, may be a blessing sent by God. And I loved Billie and Joe’s fragile relationship with one another as they struggle with difficult decisions and even more difficult feelings. These are very real people, flawed and teetering on the edge of something important, who touched me in a way that will not soon be forgotten.
At its core, this novel is about what really matters and what’s worth holding on to. Moon reads that an artist once said that “to hold a brush was life.” What Moon realizes – and what Yun-ji eventually realizes, too – is that the thing he is most meant to hold is his son, Hyo. The connections we have with each other, especially through family, are what hold us together as one people. Yun-ji comes to understand this. Billie and Joe see glimpses of it. And through all of them, Zerndt’s readers see something very, very important. THE KOREAN WORD FOR BUTTERFLY is a wonderful, readable novel about life and love. Yes, we’re all snowflakes, unique and individual. But unless we can come together as snowballs, we’ll just melt into nothingness. It’s a nice message. I highly recommend this book.
[Please note: I was provided a copy of this book for review; the opinions expressed here are my own.]
February 25, 2014
Like earlier stated I was given this book by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion.
I've been DYING to read this book since I first hear of it. I read a few reviews a while back and I was tempted to buy it, but I waited for it to go down in price (I'm frugal...I can't help it). When the price went down, I was about to buy it, but I luckily got asked to review this...so yayy!
This was definitely a good book. I was so absorbed, I could hardly put it down. Of course I'm reading this during moving out and etc, so my free-time was scarce. Sighs. Such is life. When I did have the time, I was reading this.
The characters were all different with different stories, but they were all connected in some way. I hated Billie, but I did like her story. I liked all the stories, but I wanted to punch Billie in the face. Poor Joe...I know he wasn't as supportive at one point (can't say what), because he was stuck in his own head and grief. It isn't right, but everyone mourns/deals with life issues differently. Billie wasn't AT all supportive of him or even remotely understanding. It was an issue that both had to deal with and make peace with. She was so damn selfish and self-absorbed she didn't care how others felt. Near the end she got better, but still...meh.
I loved Moon.
It was nice to get different POVs (which are nicely stated when the POV switches). It was nice to see how Koreans see Americans and the American soldiers. Honestly...I didn't know that many hate that Americans are there. When my cousin was stationed there last year, he said the the majority liked the fact the Americans are there. Perhaps it was different years ago (this was set in the early 2000s, so it might have been different). I loved learning more about the Korean culture. It was nice and interesting.
I really liked this book. I'm mad at myself for waiting SO long to actually get my hands on it and read it. I recommend people who like people books to read this. It was a nice change up in my reading. I rarely read anything set in Korea, especially more modern books. The characters and the story were great and well written. Out of five stars I shall stamp this with 5 stars. ^.^
Favorite Character(s): Moon, Hyo, Joe, and Yun-ji
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Billie
I've been DYING to read this book since I first hear of it. I read a few reviews a while back and I was tempted to buy it, but I waited for it to go down in price (I'm frugal...I can't help it). When the price went down, I was about to buy it, but I luckily got asked to review this...so yayy!
This was definitely a good book. I was so absorbed, I could hardly put it down. Of course I'm reading this during moving out and etc, so my free-time was scarce. Sighs. Such is life. When I did have the time, I was reading this.
The characters were all different with different stories, but they were all connected in some way. I hated Billie, but I did like her story. I liked all the stories, but I wanted to punch Billie in the face. Poor Joe...I know he wasn't as supportive at one point (can't say what), because he was stuck in his own head and grief. It isn't right, but everyone mourns/deals with life issues differently. Billie wasn't AT all supportive of him or even remotely understanding. It was an issue that both had to deal with and make peace with. She was so damn selfish and self-absorbed she didn't care how others felt. Near the end she got better, but still...meh.
I loved Moon.
It was nice to get different POVs (which are nicely stated when the POV switches). It was nice to see how Koreans see Americans and the American soldiers. Honestly...I didn't know that many hate that Americans are there. When my cousin was stationed there last year, he said the the majority liked the fact the Americans are there. Perhaps it was different years ago (this was set in the early 2000s, so it might have been different). I loved learning more about the Korean culture. It was nice and interesting.
I really liked this book. I'm mad at myself for waiting SO long to actually get my hands on it and read it. I recommend people who like people books to read this. It was a nice change up in my reading. I rarely read anything set in Korea, especially more modern books. The characters and the story were great and well written. Out of five stars I shall stamp this with 5 stars. ^.^
Favorite Character(s): Moon, Hyo, Joe, and Yun-ji
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Billie
February 24, 2014
As the book opens, Billie and her boyfriend Joe just arrive in South Korea and are greeted at the airport by Moon. They are expected to start work that same day and are taken to meet the other staff and instructors from the school they are to teach English at. As the story progresses we learn that the two have a secret that, if it came out, would most likely cause an early dismissal, perhaps more. We also find out that Moon and Yun-ji also carry secrets.
When we first meet people in person, we often form a first impression before they even speak. Then we modify that impression as we get to know the real person. However, with books it can be a slower period of introduction. It took awhile for the characters in The Korean Word For Butterfly to develop enough to get to know them. I enjoyed the processes from the beginning. From just learning there names, an out of focus picture started to pop in my head and slowly focused as the story progressed. It was kind of like talking on the phone with a person I haven't met face to face.
The location in South Korea became another character and developed more fully as the pages turned. I felt like I was there as one of the U.S. or Canadian instructors teaching English to little children. I experienced the hostility of the South Koreans when the U.S. tank ran over the two children. That was how well written the book was. James Zerndt rolled out the words in poetic prose. The only thing the bugged, until I got use to it was the change in narrator when it was Moon's turn. He didn't narrate himself, like the other characters. Yet I could see why he couldn't.
This was a very emotional book to read. It really delved into the characters feelings and controversies. If you aren't even willing to consider abortion as a choice, this book is probaly not for you. Though from my prospective, it didn't answer if it was right or wrong but the physical and emotional consequences of going through with it or not. It allowed the reader to form their own opinion, which is the way I think it should be.
This was a book that I couldn't put down and was sad to see end. I highly recommend The Korean Word For Butterfly.
When we first meet people in person, we often form a first impression before they even speak. Then we modify that impression as we get to know the real person. However, with books it can be a slower period of introduction. It took awhile for the characters in The Korean Word For Butterfly to develop enough to get to know them. I enjoyed the processes from the beginning. From just learning there names, an out of focus picture started to pop in my head and slowly focused as the story progressed. It was kind of like talking on the phone with a person I haven't met face to face.
The location in South Korea became another character and developed more fully as the pages turned. I felt like I was there as one of the U.S. or Canadian instructors teaching English to little children. I experienced the hostility of the South Koreans when the U.S. tank ran over the two children. That was how well written the book was. James Zerndt rolled out the words in poetic prose. The only thing the bugged, until I got use to it was the change in narrator when it was Moon's turn. He didn't narrate himself, like the other characters. Yet I could see why he couldn't.
This was a very emotional book to read. It really delved into the characters feelings and controversies. If you aren't even willing to consider abortion as a choice, this book is probaly not for you. Though from my prospective, it didn't answer if it was right or wrong but the physical and emotional consequences of going through with it or not. It allowed the reader to form their own opinion, which is the way I think it should be.
This was a book that I couldn't put down and was sad to see end. I highly recommend The Korean Word For Butterfly.
April 3, 2014
A pleasant and strange surprise, this book ended up being a lovely escape, and a really engaging story--in the end, it's one of those books that proves there are some really worthwhile self-published works being created and looking for an audience. I likely wouldn't have found it if it hadn't been offered as a Goodreads First Reader Giveaway, but I'm glad it found me.
At first, I had a difficult time engaging with it--the book cycles between three narrators, and while I was really interested in one of them, I found another incredibly annoying. I had an easier time once I realized that my least favorite narrator was quite a bit younger than I'd originally thought (giving a bit more reason for her voice), and it really wasn't long before I was interested enough in the book that that one complaint was a distant memory. As a complete work, the book moves quickly, and the interweaving of characters is both clever and natural, making the work as a whole more and more engaging as it moves forward.
There were moments that stretched believability, but these were few and far between. Age was along the same lines--one character sounded a bit younger than I would have expected, and another sounded a bit older, but this may actually have been intended based on the way the story evolves (though, as you've guessed by now, it didn't entirely work for me personally). Beyond this one fault, I'd only say that it ended a bit too quickly and easily for my liking--I felt as if one storyline was really forced closed because two others were coming to their natural ends, and I wasn't thrilled with that.
In general, this was an enjoyable read, if more fragmented than narratives I normally get lost in.
At first, I had a difficult time engaging with it--the book cycles between three narrators, and while I was really interested in one of them, I found another incredibly annoying. I had an easier time once I realized that my least favorite narrator was quite a bit younger than I'd originally thought (giving a bit more reason for her voice), and it really wasn't long before I was interested enough in the book that that one complaint was a distant memory. As a complete work, the book moves quickly, and the interweaving of characters is both clever and natural, making the work as a whole more and more engaging as it moves forward.
There were moments that stretched believability, but these were few and far between. Age was along the same lines--one character sounded a bit younger than I would have expected, and another sounded a bit older, but this may actually have been intended based on the way the story evolves (though, as you've guessed by now, it didn't entirely work for me personally). Beyond this one fault, I'd only say that it ended a bit too quickly and easily for my liking--I felt as if one storyline was really forced closed because two others were coming to their natural ends, and I wasn't thrilled with that.
In general, this was an enjoyable read, if more fragmented than narratives I normally get lost in.
June 10, 2025
I did not like this book. It was written from the perspective of a stereotypical, selfish American who doesn't understand that, when you go out in public, you have to deal with the public. One character felt that everyone judged her, but she then judged them because their beliefs differed from hers. It is so far from my experiences that it just didn't ring true. We are born of people and are forever tied to people; life is not about the individual and their likes and dislikes. Life is about society, and all things must be taken into consideration; compromises need to be made. If there is one thing I have learned in life, it is that it is not about "What the heart wants, the heart wants." Life is about how society works together and accepts that individuals have different wants and needs. I have to admit the book was so infuriating that I had to speed-read to the end, so some details are lost to me.
October 15, 2014
This was a very good book. I'd never read anything by this author in the past, so I wasn't sure what to expect. The book kept me interested all the way until the end, though and I enjoyed the way the author changed character perspective from chapter to chapter. I am partial to books and movies that have more than one main character and/or tell several stories at once, so I found this book quite entertaining.
Although the book deals with some very serious subject matter (on issues that some might consider controversial), the author manages to show likable qualities in all of the main characters in the book. Whether I agreed with their individual choices or not, I still felt the heart of all of the characters(Perhaps Moon, most of all).
For me, this was one of those books that I was sad to finish. I just kept wanting the story to go on and on...
Although the book deals with some very serious subject matter (on issues that some might consider controversial), the author manages to show likable qualities in all of the main characters in the book. Whether I agreed with their individual choices or not, I still felt the heart of all of the characters(Perhaps Moon, most of all).
For me, this was one of those books that I was sad to finish. I just kept wanting the story to go on and on...
September 26, 2014
I read this book in a day while traveling through South Korea. A great insight into the modern day culture.
July 11, 2018
Not Historically Accurate
The Korean Word For Butterfly is a semi-historical novel that tells the story of an American couple, Joe and Billie, who go to South Korea to teach at an English school for a year. There they meet and befriend two coworkers Moon and Yun ji. Shortly after Joe and Billie arrive there is a horrific accident and two 14 year old Korean girls are run over by an American tank. This starts a diplomatic crisis that affects the lives of all Americans living in South Korea.
I have to preface the rest of this review by stating I served in the U.S. Navy and was stationed in South Korea. I know the country and the people well. While the training accident that is at the center of this novel did happen that is the only true "historical" piece to this novel. I feel I have to defend the Korean people for they came across as anti-American and cold as well as the troops stationed there who are a caricature of the ugly American. I worked side by side with members of the ROK army and Korean civilians working for the military. I became friends with them, was invited into their homes and treated like family. As Americans everyone stationed there has respect for the Korean people and I know everyone I served with grew to love the people and their culture. This book is not a true representation of the real Korea or the relationship that stands between U.S. Armed Forces and Korean people.
That said, it's a good book and as a whole I enjoyed it. There are a few separate storylines that intertwine well and overlap to comprise a well developed novel that is about life choices and how they affect each character.
The character development for Yun ji and Moon was excellent. Their backgrounds are well laid out and I completely understood both characters. There was little background given for Joe and Billie and I never felt like I knew them well or why they made the choices they did.
The book was an easy read. I read it in about six hours and it held my attention.
I recommend the book with a big disclaimer. The story is good and worth reading. However, this did not in any way represent what South Korea, it's people or the U.S. Forces stationed there are truely like so if you read this book keep that in mind.
The Korean Word For Butterfly is a semi-historical novel that tells the story of an American couple, Joe and Billie, who go to South Korea to teach at an English school for a year. There they meet and befriend two coworkers Moon and Yun ji. Shortly after Joe and Billie arrive there is a horrific accident and two 14 year old Korean girls are run over by an American tank. This starts a diplomatic crisis that affects the lives of all Americans living in South Korea.
I have to preface the rest of this review by stating I served in the U.S. Navy and was stationed in South Korea. I know the country and the people well. While the training accident that is at the center of this novel did happen that is the only true "historical" piece to this novel. I feel I have to defend the Korean people for they came across as anti-American and cold as well as the troops stationed there who are a caricature of the ugly American. I worked side by side with members of the ROK army and Korean civilians working for the military. I became friends with them, was invited into their homes and treated like family. As Americans everyone stationed there has respect for the Korean people and I know everyone I served with grew to love the people and their culture. This book is not a true representation of the real Korea or the relationship that stands between U.S. Armed Forces and Korean people.
That said, it's a good book and as a whole I enjoyed it. There are a few separate storylines that intertwine well and overlap to comprise a well developed novel that is about life choices and how they affect each character.
The character development for Yun ji and Moon was excellent. Their backgrounds are well laid out and I completely understood both characters. There was little background given for Joe and Billie and I never felt like I knew them well or why they made the choices they did.
The book was an easy read. I read it in about six hours and it held my attention.
I recommend the book with a big disclaimer. The story is good and worth reading. However, this did not in any way represent what South Korea, it's people or the U.S. Forces stationed there are truely like so if you read this book keep that in mind.
April 12, 2019
Thoroughly enjoyed
I really liked the intertwining storylines of the characters. The book brushed on cultural differences and the politics of the time, but it felt authentic rather than stereotypical. Characters could have been developed more, but you got a good sense of them.
I really liked the intertwining storylines of the characters. The book brushed on cultural differences and the politics of the time, but it felt authentic rather than stereotypical. Characters could have been developed more, but you got a good sense of them.
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May 31, 2017
Südkorea im Jahr 2002. Alle sind euphorisch wegen der Fußball WM, doch die wird von einem anderen Ereignis überschattet. Ein amerikanischer Panzer hat zwei koreanische Kinder überfahren und daher wachsen die Ressentiments, gegenüber den Amerikanern, die sich in Korea aufhalten. Das bekommt auch Billie mit ihrem Freund zu spüren, die die Staaten verlassen haben um in Korea Englisch zu unterrichten. Ihr Fremdenführer der ersten Tage ist Moon. Früher war er K-pop Bandmanager, doch seine Alkoholsucht kostete ihn den Job und seine Familie. Jetzt kämpft er verbissen darum, clean zu bleiben, um seine Frau und seinen Sohn zurückzubekommen. In der englischen Schule arbeitet auch die junge Yun-ji, die unter ihrem alkoholkranken, cholerischen Vater leidet und in einem Akt der Rebellion mit einem amerikanischen Soldaten schläft. Als sie feststellt, dass sie schwanger ist, haben sie und ihre Mutter endlich den Mut sich gegen den Haustyrannen aufzubegehren.
The Korean word for butterfly, gehört zu den Freebies, die ich mir aufgrund des Titels und des schönen Covers heruntergeladen hatte. Es war mal ein anderes Leseerlebnis, denn mit Südkorea als Schauplatz, sind mir bisher eher wenige Bücher untergekommen. Dieses Buch greift unliebsame Themen an. Es zeigt das in einer Kultur, wo die Familie über allem steht, auch unter jedem Dach ein Ach herrscht. Männer die zu viel trinken und damit ihre Familien zerstören, Teenager die ungewollt schwanger werden, ohne verheiratet zu sein und von jungen Menschen die von zu Hause davon laufen, weil sie hoffen ihren Schwierigkeiten so zu entkommen. Erzählt wird in drei Handlungssträngen aus der Sicht von Billie, Moon und Yun-ji und während die ersten beiden um ihre Beziehung kämpfen, kämpft Yun-ji darum ein Leben zu führen, ohne die Allmacht ihres Vaters. Dieses Buch geht schonungslos offen Themen wie Abtreibung, Kindesmissbrauch, Alkoholimus und Gewalt an, aber doch so sensibel, dass man die Beweggründe der Protagonisten nachvollziehen kann und nicht empört den moralischen Zeigefinger erhebt. Gestört hat mich, dass bis auf lose Verbindungen, die drei Handlungsstränge nicht miteinander verknüpft werden, außer dass diese drei Personen sich kennen.Am Ende des Buches zeichnen sich Happy Ends am Horizont ab, aber dennoch blieb ich mit einem eigentümlich leeren Gefühl zurück.
Ich habe mich einfach mal auf diese Leseerfahrung eingelassen und bereue nicht Zeit investiert zu haben. Manchmal muss man halt seine Kompfortzone verlassen.Zumindest kenne ich jetzt das koreanische Wort für Schmetterling.
The Korean word for butterfly, gehört zu den Freebies, die ich mir aufgrund des Titels und des schönen Covers heruntergeladen hatte. Es war mal ein anderes Leseerlebnis, denn mit Südkorea als Schauplatz, sind mir bisher eher wenige Bücher untergekommen. Dieses Buch greift unliebsame Themen an. Es zeigt das in einer Kultur, wo die Familie über allem steht, auch unter jedem Dach ein Ach herrscht. Männer die zu viel trinken und damit ihre Familien zerstören, Teenager die ungewollt schwanger werden, ohne verheiratet zu sein und von jungen Menschen die von zu Hause davon laufen, weil sie hoffen ihren Schwierigkeiten so zu entkommen. Erzählt wird in drei Handlungssträngen aus der Sicht von Billie, Moon und Yun-ji und während die ersten beiden um ihre Beziehung kämpfen, kämpft Yun-ji darum ein Leben zu führen, ohne die Allmacht ihres Vaters. Dieses Buch geht schonungslos offen Themen wie Abtreibung, Kindesmissbrauch, Alkoholimus und Gewalt an, aber doch so sensibel, dass man die Beweggründe der Protagonisten nachvollziehen kann und nicht empört den moralischen Zeigefinger erhebt. Gestört hat mich, dass bis auf lose Verbindungen, die drei Handlungsstränge nicht miteinander verknüpft werden, außer dass diese drei Personen sich kennen.Am Ende des Buches zeichnen sich Happy Ends am Horizont ab, aber dennoch blieb ich mit einem eigentümlich leeren Gefühl zurück.
Ich habe mich einfach mal auf diese Leseerfahrung eingelassen und bereue nicht Zeit investiert zu haben. Manchmal muss man halt seine Kompfortzone verlassen.Zumindest kenne ich jetzt das koreanische Wort für Schmetterling.
February 19, 2014
There are a lot of levels to this book. It’s a book about cultures and differences, but it’s also a book about the similarities that underlay human societies. In the end, our humanity trumps our differences and enables us to reach out to those who seem at first unreachable.
It’s about women and men, their relationships, their failure to communicate. The endless misunderstandings arising from these failed efforts — or failed lack of effort. It’s also about the assumptions we make based on appearance and how terribly wrong are the deductions we make based on what we think we see. And how we use bad information to make our choices. And finally, the pain that results from choices — even when the choices are the best available.
The story takes place in South Korea. Billie, a young American woman, is in the country to teach English to grade school children. She has come there with her friend, lover and partner and shortly realizes she is pregnant. It’s as wrong a time in her life to have a baby as there possibly could be and probably the worst possible place she could be — far away from her home and isolated by distance and culture. The story is told in the first person by Billie as well as two other first person narrators, both south Korean. Yun-ji is a young woman approximately the same age as Billie who also becomes pregnant and a man named Moon who is divorced and suffering through a painful separation from his son.
All the characters deal with problems springing from damaged relationships and miscommunication, misunderstanding, problems with parenting, pregnancy and abortion. Despite cultural differences, in the end the pain is very personal — and remarkable similar — for each. There are no simple, happy answers.
It’s well-written and held my interest from start to finish. Whether or not the book will resonate for you may depend on your age and stage in life’s journey. For me, it was a trip back in time to the bad old days before Roe Vs. Wade made abortion a viable choice. Of course, one of the issues made very clear in the book is that the legality of abortion doesn’t make it less of a gut-wrenching, life-altering decision. Anyone who thinks abortion is the easy way out should read this. Whatever else it is, it’s not easy.
It’s a good book. Strongly written, presenting highly controversial issues in a deeply human context.
It’s about women and men, their relationships, their failure to communicate. The endless misunderstandings arising from these failed efforts — or failed lack of effort. It’s also about the assumptions we make based on appearance and how terribly wrong are the deductions we make based on what we think we see. And how we use bad information to make our choices. And finally, the pain that results from choices — even when the choices are the best available.
The story takes place in South Korea. Billie, a young American woman, is in the country to teach English to grade school children. She has come there with her friend, lover and partner and shortly realizes she is pregnant. It’s as wrong a time in her life to have a baby as there possibly could be and probably the worst possible place she could be — far away from her home and isolated by distance and culture. The story is told in the first person by Billie as well as two other first person narrators, both south Korean. Yun-ji is a young woman approximately the same age as Billie who also becomes pregnant and a man named Moon who is divorced and suffering through a painful separation from his son.
All the characters deal with problems springing from damaged relationships and miscommunication, misunderstanding, problems with parenting, pregnancy and abortion. Despite cultural differences, in the end the pain is very personal — and remarkable similar — for each. There are no simple, happy answers.
It’s well-written and held my interest from start to finish. Whether or not the book will resonate for you may depend on your age and stage in life’s journey. For me, it was a trip back in time to the bad old days before Roe Vs. Wade made abortion a viable choice. Of course, one of the issues made very clear in the book is that the legality of abortion doesn’t make it less of a gut-wrenching, life-altering decision. Anyone who thinks abortion is the easy way out should read this. Whatever else it is, it’s not easy.
It’s a good book. Strongly written, presenting highly controversial issues in a deeply human context.
March 20, 2016
The novel is set in Seoul, Korea, in 2002, during the World Cup in Korea. The story is told from the perspective of three of the characters: Moon, a recovering alcoholic, striving to regain his wife and son; Billie, a young woman who wants to be a poet; and Yun-ji, a school secretary, who has a new resentment of Americans.
Billie and her boyfriend, Joe, are eighteen year old high school graduates who forge documents stating they have degrees from Reed College located in their hometown of Portland, Oregon. The documents are needed because they have accepted jobs to teach English at a Korean elementary school. They believe it will be a cool adventure to travel to Seoul and see some of the world. Billie becomes pregnant and must decide how to handle this situation. Joe tells her he will support whatever decision she makes, but he doesn't offer his feelings about the situation.
Moon, an ex pop music manager, now works at the school. One of his jobs is to be the "Welcome Wagon," He picks up Billie and Joe from the airport and takes them to the apartment that Billie and Joe will share while in Seoul. He also befriends Joe. Moon used to drink heavily. One night, while drunk, he accidentally dislocated his son's arm. His wife, a nurse and the love of his life, put him out. That was the end of Moon's drinking. He is allowed regular visitation with his son and he is desperately trying to regain his family.
Yun-ji, works at the school as a secretary and is pretty fluent in English. She spends most of her time working or at home. She doesn't have much of a social life. One evening, while walking in the park with her girlfriend, she meets the handsome American soldier, Shaun. The sparks are there, but Yun-ji tries to down play the attractions. After not answering numerous calls from Shaun, she finally answers and they go out. After one night of passion, Yun-ji becomes pregnant, but she doesn't tell Shaun or her parents. To complicate matters, two young Korean school girls are accidentally run over by an American tank. This accident fuel anti-American sentiments in Korea and Yun-ji as well.
Decisions must be made. What will be the fallout from the decisions.
Billie and her boyfriend, Joe, are eighteen year old high school graduates who forge documents stating they have degrees from Reed College located in their hometown of Portland, Oregon. The documents are needed because they have accepted jobs to teach English at a Korean elementary school. They believe it will be a cool adventure to travel to Seoul and see some of the world. Billie becomes pregnant and must decide how to handle this situation. Joe tells her he will support whatever decision she makes, but he doesn't offer his feelings about the situation.
Moon, an ex pop music manager, now works at the school. One of his jobs is to be the "Welcome Wagon," He picks up Billie and Joe from the airport and takes them to the apartment that Billie and Joe will share while in Seoul. He also befriends Joe. Moon used to drink heavily. One night, while drunk, he accidentally dislocated his son's arm. His wife, a nurse and the love of his life, put him out. That was the end of Moon's drinking. He is allowed regular visitation with his son and he is desperately trying to regain his family.
Yun-ji, works at the school as a secretary and is pretty fluent in English. She spends most of her time working or at home. She doesn't have much of a social life. One evening, while walking in the park with her girlfriend, she meets the handsome American soldier, Shaun. The sparks are there, but Yun-ji tries to down play the attractions. After not answering numerous calls from Shaun, she finally answers and they go out. After one night of passion, Yun-ji becomes pregnant, but she doesn't tell Shaun or her parents. To complicate matters, two young Korean school girls are accidentally run over by an American tank. This accident fuel anti-American sentiments in Korea and Yun-ji as well.
Decisions must be made. What will be the fallout from the decisions.
February 20, 2014
Full review on my blog
The background of the story is the 2002 World Cup in South Korea, and the accident in which a US tank killed two Korean girls. There are three main characters and there are chapters for every one of them.
I think that I didn’t like the book partly because of the female characters: both girls’ behavior was more like a teenager’s instead of adult women. Both deal with abortion in a different way and in the end they make different decisions: the girl whose life was easier decided not to have the child, just the opposite as the other girl did; but I didn’t really find it like an important issue in their lives. Besides, neither the background nor the false titles of the American couple have great importance within the story; it was as if you were expecting a momentous scene that never came.
Despite the downsides, I have to say I loved Moon: he is a character impossible not to like, because he could have been a bad guy in the past, but now he is doing things remarkably well and the reader can’t help but to pray for his wife to give him another chance. He really deserves it.
Summarizing, the story seems plain and doesn’t take much advantage of the political backdrop. It’s an easy and light read but, with the exception of Moon, the characters don’t make you get into it.
August 6, 2015
The first book I read of James Zerndt was his latest - Brailling for Wile. Reading a new author is always an iffy step, because you never know what to expect. But Brailling for Wile surprised me with its simplicity, and its steady and stable emotions. The Korean Word for Butterfly, Zerndt's second book, was equally pleasing. His prose is characterised with short and simple sentences, making them easy to process and poetic.
Zerndt tells us the story of Billie, Yun-ji and Moon, three people dealing with dysfunctional relationships, from their own points of view. It takes a little getting used to - Billie's story is in first person while Yun-ji and Moon are brought to us in third person. Billie is just a kid learning to stand up on her own, unsure of what she really wants or likes; Yun-ji is thoughtful, and determined to make sense of what life gives her; and Moon is sensible, and committed to his family.
In the background of a US tank attack on two Korean girls, this brings to fore anti-American sentiments in the Far East, racism towards the megooks (foreigners/whites) that is rarely discussed in literature, the steady building of trust in human relationships, and not the least of all, celebrates humanity. The book is full of metaphors, symbolism and parallels - at times a bit too obvious - but what makes it a winner is its laidback, almost-melancholic tone of narration.
Zerndt tells us the story of Billie, Yun-ji and Moon, three people dealing with dysfunctional relationships, from their own points of view. It takes a little getting used to - Billie's story is in first person while Yun-ji and Moon are brought to us in third person. Billie is just a kid learning to stand up on her own, unsure of what she really wants or likes; Yun-ji is thoughtful, and determined to make sense of what life gives her; and Moon is sensible, and committed to his family.
In the background of a US tank attack on two Korean girls, this brings to fore anti-American sentiments in the Far East, racism towards the megooks (foreigners/whites) that is rarely discussed in literature, the steady building of trust in human relationships, and not the least of all, celebrates humanity. The book is full of metaphors, symbolism and parallels - at times a bit too obvious - but what makes it a winner is its laidback, almost-melancholic tone of narration.
November 15, 2015
De verdad no se porqué me gustó tanto este libro, pero lo disfruté demasiado.
Las tres perspectivas a lo largo de la historia son muy diferentes, sin embargo confluyen en un sentimiento de ambigüedad, inseguridad y esperanza comunes, con problemas extremadamente fuertes y al mismo tiempo reales.
Cada personaje tiene su propio problema, uno bastante complicado, y su propia filosofía para enfrentarlo, sin embargo, a pesar de todo lo que les ocurre y lo distintos que son en todo sentido, la solución termina siendo simple una vez que logran superar lo difícil que es tomar acción para arreglarlo todo.
Con un mensaje positivo, que se siente más que se entiende, me alegro mucho de haberlo leído. La simpleza de lo complicado y viceversa es simplemente maravilloso, y este libro lo atestigua perfectamente.
Las tres perspectivas a lo largo de la historia son muy diferentes, sin embargo confluyen en un sentimiento de ambigüedad, inseguridad y esperanza comunes, con problemas extremadamente fuertes y al mismo tiempo reales.
Cada personaje tiene su propio problema, uno bastante complicado, y su propia filosofía para enfrentarlo, sin embargo, a pesar de todo lo que les ocurre y lo distintos que son en todo sentido, la solución termina siendo simple una vez que logran superar lo difícil que es tomar acción para arreglarlo todo.
Con un mensaje positivo, que se siente más que se entiende, me alegro mucho de haberlo leído. La simpleza de lo complicado y viceversa es simplemente maravilloso, y este libro lo atestigua perfectamente.
July 25, 2013
This is not a long book, and I read it in one sitting when I had a bout of insomnia. The cover is lovely and I just love the title. Beautiful. The story is told from the point of view of three different and diverse characters. The main characters were all well developed and take the reader through a whole range of emotions. I am American and have never lived in Korea, so I found the whole subject matter intriguing. There were a number of typos and missing words that I had to supply for myself. What really threw me is the story seems to be chronological, but it starts in June 2002 and ends in January 2002. I kept going back and trying to work out the timeline. Am I the only one who couldn't figure that out?
February 25, 2014
The novel makes the local people come alive in the persons of Moon and Yun-Ji, whose personal lives and problems we see and can sympathize with, to some degree. Moon's compassion for Billie and Joe, the two American teachers who pretend to be what they are not, and Yun-ji's friendship with an American soldier Shaun, eventually show hope in the edgy situation of American and Korean interaction in those times.
The cover of the book, showing a blue butterfly with its wings torn off, suggest to me the fragile nature of the U.S. military presence in Korea then and perhaps even now, and the damage that could so easily be done.
The cover of the book, showing a blue butterfly with its wings torn off, suggest to me the fragile nature of the U.S. military presence in Korea then and perhaps even now, and the damage that could so easily be done.
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