WINNER OF THE LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE
" A] suspense-filled page-turner." --Viet Thanh Nguyen, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for The Sympathizer
A touching portrait of two families bound together by a split-second decision." --Attica Locke, Edgar-Award winning author of Bluebird, Bluebird
A Best Book of the Year
Wall Street Journal * Chicago Tribune * Buzzfeed * South Florida Sun-Sentinel * Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel * Book Riot * LitHub
A powerful and taut novel about racial tensions in Los Angeles, following two families--one Korean-American, one African-American--grappling with the effects of a decades-old crime
In the wake of the police shooting of a black teenager, Los Angeles is as tense as it's been since the unrest of the early 1990s. But Grace Park and Shawn Matthews have their own problems. Grace is sheltered and largely oblivious, living in the Valley with her Korean-immigrant parents, working long hours at the family pharmacy. She's distraught that her sister hasn't spoken to their mother in two years, for reasons beyond Grace's understanding. Shawn has already had enough of politics and protest after an act of violence shattered his family years ago. He just wants to be left alone to enjoy his quiet life in Palmdale.
But when another shocking crime hits LA, both the Park and Matthews families are forced to face down their history while navigating the tumult of a city on the brink of more violence.
Today is Korean American Day, a celebration of the considerable contributions of Korean Americans to our society. Starting with Younghill Kang, the father of Korean-American literature, there is a robust body of literature infused by this rich cultural background. Here are seven of our favorite recent novels by Korean Americans.
Here's our fourth installment for the best books of the past decade. Each week for five weeks, we are presenting top ten lists of the best books of the past decade in two different genres. A total of ten lists of ten: 10 x 10 equals 100! This week's lists are SciFi/Fantasy and Thriller/Mystery. Here are our picks for the top ten of each.