"A Year of Impossible Goodbyes" by Sook Nyul Choi

This novel written by a Korean author is set during the Japanese occupation of North Korea in 1945. Written from a Korean child's viewpoint we see the struggles that this young girl and her family are put through during World War II. This book was very sad and made me as a reader appreciate everything I have in my life that I take for granted. There are many things that the little girl wishes she had or was able to do that I have and do everyday without thinking of it as a luxury. The little girl is put in a very mature position towards the end of the book when they are running to freedom and she is in charge of her younger brother. I connected to this part of the book because I am the oldest of three daughters in my family and would have done the same thing for my younger sisters if I were put in this situation. I could feel her frustration of being responsible for her younger brother and how she was passionate about making sure he was safe. Although this is a very sad book I think it is a great book to teach kids about war with. We can see the feelings and how war directly affects families and children contrasting to the political aspect we often times see in current events about war that children see in the newspapers everyday.