BOOK OF THE MONTH

Pachinko

A New York Times Top Ten Book of the Year and National Book Award finalist, Pachinko is an "extraordinary epic" of four generations of a poor Korean immigrant family as they fight to control their destiny in 20th-century Japan (San Francisco Chronicle).

NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2017 * A USA TODAY TOP TEN OF 2017 * JULY PICK FOR THE PBS NEWSH...show more

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Average rating: 8.13

957 RATINGS

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28 REVIEWS

Community Reviews

lurlinetwist
Mar 20, 2024
8/10 stars
“Pachinko was a foolish game,” Lee writes, “but life was not.” The reader could be forgiven for thinking that the reverse might also be true. Min Jin Lee’s “Pachinko” is honest writing, fiction that looks squarely at what it is, both terrible and wonderful and occasionally as bracing as a jar of Sunja’s best kimchi. The last third of the novel felt rushed and the ending somewhat abrupt, but still, this was a meticulously researched and fascinati...read more
abooklover
Mar 15, 2024
8/10 stars
A compelling story that provided such insight into Korean culture during a tumultuous period in the history of Korea.
Jlaborie
Mar 07, 2024
4.25
Anonymous
Feb 20, 2024
8/10 stars
Brilliant work!
Anonymous
Jan 27, 2024
10/10 stars
I really thought a lot about this rating and eventually decided on 4.5 stars rounded up.

I'm not sure how to review this at all because of what a literary monolith that was, and it would've been an undisputed 5 stars if not for the last 30% having some places where I felt the plot was a bit disjointed and the main themes were hard to see. Besides that, however... I enjoyed this book so much. I kept thinking while I was reading that this is what a ...read more

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