About the Author

Mia Yun was born and raised in South Korea. She received her Master's Degree in Creative Writing from City College of New York. Her first novel, House of the Winds, received wide critical acclaim, and she has lectured extensively at literary events and universities. She has also worked as a reporter, translator, and freelance writer, and she is currently the Korea correspondent for the Evergreen Review. She lives in New York City. Visit her website at www.miayun.com.

Reviews

"[A] bittersweet tale about the meaning of race, kinship, and success."
-- The New York Times

"[R]emarkable and playfully original."
-- Evergreen Review

"[B]eautiful."
-- Booklist

"[A]n atmospheric and powerful work."
-- KoreAm Journal

"It's time for Mia Yun's distinctive and enriching talent, rooted in a vision utterly new to our marveling eyes, to find the wider recognition it deserves."
-- Cynthia Ozick

"[A] bittersweet tale about the meaning of race, kinship, and success."
-- The New York Times
"[R]emarkable and playfully original."
-- Evergreen Review
"[B]eautiful."
-- Booklist
"[A]n atmospheric and powerful work."
-- KoreAm Journal
"It's time for Mia Yun's distinctive and enriching talent, rooted in a vision utterly new to our marveling eyes, to find the wider recognition it deserves."
-- Cynthia Ozick

In this follow-up to her debut novel, House of the Winds, Yun tells a touching story of love, family, identity, and determination. The story centers on the lives of twin sisters Yunah and Inah, the only children born to their 25-year-old mother and 44-year-old father. Yunah narrates, recalling their seemingly happy lives in Korea until the fateful day of a terrible accident, which results in a horrible scar on her sister's face. With the decision to move to the United States for Inah's sake (to give her a better future, barring her appearance), Yunah describes the family's journey and adjustments to their new life in Flushing, Queens, NY, and her own struggles to find her way while living in Inah's shadow. Like many of Amy Tan's works, Yun's novel vacillates between the past and the present. Her writing is fluid, and she captures the essence of her characters, especially in her descriptions of the sisters in their younger years. Minor characters are not as fully developed as one might like, leaving secondary storylines a tad flat. Nevertheless, Yun's is an emotionally reflective piece to which many will relate. Recommended for larger fiction and Asian American fiction collections.-Shirley N. Quan, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.