Park, Linda Sue. 2002. When my name was keoko. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN: 0-618-113335-6.
When My Name Is Keoko by Linda Sue Park is a historical novel set in Korea during World War II. The book has two alternating narrators: Sun-hee (Keoko) and Tae-yul (Nobuo). The Kim (Kaneyama) family lives in Korea. They are very proud of their heritage. When Japan took control of Korea, many things changed for the family. The Japanese took all the best jobs, and took over the educational system. Korean children were to be taught onlyJapanese culture, history, and language. It was forbidden to speak Korean. It was forbidden to fly (or own) a Korean flag. And at the beginning of the novel, the Kim family has just learned the latest rule: all Koreans are required to change their names to Japanese ones. This, of course, angers the family a great deal. (The family consists of Sun-hee, Tae-yul (children), Omoni (mother), Abuji (father), and an uncle.) The family handles this change with strength.
Tae-yul, Sun-hee, you know that the Kim clan is a large and important one. . . long ago, all Kims lived in the same part of Korea, in the mountains. Choosing the word for gold as their name shows what a strong clan they were. Gold was only for kings. . . I have chosen our Japanese name. It will be Kaneyama. "Yama" means 'mountain' in Japanese, and "ka-ne" means 'gold.' So the name will honor our family history. They will not know this. But we will. (6).
Their father is a vice principal at a school. Their uncle runs a printing press. The book chronicles the changes the family goes through throughout the war (1940-1945). The Korean families are required to make large sacrifices to supply the Japanese soldiers with all that they need. Food is often in short supply, and hunger is the reality many faced. Sun-hee (Keoko) and Tae-yul (Nobuo) provide unique perspectives to this time period. Sun-hee describes her school life, her school work, her friendships, her games, and her family life. Tae-yul shares his struggles as well. He is a young man on the verge of adulthood. He realizes just how dangerous the times are. He picks up on a lot of things before his sister, Sun-hee. Both work together to help the family stay safe. For example, their uncle is part of the resistance movement. They try to help him stay safe in any way they can. Tae-yul admires his uncles courage. He hopes to live up to that courage some day�which the novel shows him doing exactly that. But the uncle is not the only one resisting. Each member of the family resists in their own little way. The mother refuses to burn/destroy all of her rose of Sharon trees (the national tree) and replace them with the cherry tree (the Japanese national tree). She hides one tree to remind the family of their heritage. Sun-hee keeps a diary and records everything as her way of fighting back. Tae-yul chooses to resist in a seemingly unusual way: he volunteers for the Japanese army. What he doesn't share with his family�other than Sun-hee�is that the Japanese are threatening to use him as a pawn to find their uncle. To save his uncle's life, Tae-yul volunteers for the army. He hopes that the war will be over before he finishes training�he knows the Americans are winning�because he knows Korean soldiers are put in the most dangerous positions because they are "less valuable" than their Japanese counterparts. He also volunteers to be a kamikaze (suicide bomber) because the commander has said that no Korean would ever be brave enough or accept such an important mission.
The family is very saddened when they receive a letter from the "late" Tae-yul (or Nobou) saying that he is about to fly his mission. Weeks later, the war is over. Korea belongs to Korea once more. Sun-hee relates a very amusing tale on her first experience with chewing gum. The family is very shocked�and very happy�to see Tae-yul return uninjured from the war. Due to mechanical failure (or weather or something like that) the crew decided to turn back from their suicide mission. They were "punished" by being put in prison for treason for their lack of courage to continue on, but at least they were alive. The book ends with a family reunion, but unfortunately, their uncle is still missing. It is assumed that he is in northern Korea which was being controlled by the Soviet Union and he was unable to make his way back home.
Park's novel is very thrilling. She paints a vivid picture of Korea during this time. Her author's note and bibliography show just how important it was to get the details correct. It is a fascinating time period. The characters are well drawn. Each of the family members plays a vital role in the novel. (In other words, all characters have dimensions! There are no flat characters.) Relationships are very important in the novel. It is interesting to read how brother and sister relate to one another, and how each child relates with their parents. For example, Tae-yul idolizes his uncle. He sees how strong and courageous his uncle is, but he doesn't understand or doesn't see that his own father is brave in his own way. Sun-hee is more aware of her father. Sun-hee is a very lovable narrator. As a young girl, she realizes that it is not "her place" to ask questions and take part in serious "adult" conversations. But she always finds a way to get the information she wants! Both Sun-hee and Tae-yul are characters that would be easy to relate to.
I loved this novel. I love historical novels in general. I love novels (children books) set during World War II. This novel shows the war from a different perspective. This Korean family was cheering on the Americans wanting to be freed from Japanese tyranny. It is interesting to read their perspective of Pearl Harbor and the subsequent events. I would definitely recommend this title.
Culture Five focuses on Asian American literature for children and young adults. Selected readings were as follows: