Everything Belongs to Us by Yoojin Grace Wuertz is the story of four young people set in the student protests against an authoritarian regime in South Korea. What I expected was politics and history anchored around the story of these four individuals. What the book delivers, however, is more a soap opera centered around their lives. Unfortunately, for me, the story completely overtakes the history.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2017/01/everything-belongs-to-us.html

Reviewed for NetGalley and the Penguin First to Read program.

Of course, everything belongs to us and we should all have it but to obtain it, it is not such an easy task. For the three main characters in this novel find that going against the norm is uplifting but it a battle nonetheless.

I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to find inside this novel but once I started reading it, I found individuals who were willing to fight for what they thought was fair and just. Jisun had the world in her hands but that was not her dream, it was her father’s. She was a determined and bright individual, using these talents to get exactly what she wanted; to be accepted and to follow her dream. Namin, I felt for her, as I thought she felt conflicted. She was her families escape out of the poverty that they lived in yet I didn’t think she felt that she actually had a life. Namin studied continuously, day in and day out while her family worked to keep her in school and keep themselves out of the street. It felt like too much pressure to put on Namin and when the author introduced her sister, her feeling pertaining to the situation at home just added more weight to how I felt about the situation. Namin and Jisun had met each other when they were little and now as they begin their journey at the University, new opportunities awaited them. The girls soon meet Sunam, a young man who is part of The Circle, an elite social circle. I liked that he helped the girls branch out and that he encouraged each of them. There was a part in this novel that had me speechless. I can’t exactly tell you what happened but I was laughing so hard, I just couldn’t believe that Suman had actually opened his mouth and spoken those words out loud. This guy…….he really is something.

It’s the 1970’s and you can feel the tension, the freedom, and the movement, that’s in the air. The girls, they start to have relationships yet the time for commitment is not now, the family images have to be maintained, grades have to secured and family issues have to be dealt with. These are young people and they feel that their lives matter, they want their voice to be heard even if it has be underground.

I received a copy of his novel from NetGalley and Random House in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review. Yoojin Grace Wuertz explores the relationships between four college students with very different backgrounds in Seoul during the late 1970s. Sunam is from a middle class family and is trying to be accepted into the Circle, an elite group of students who are destined for successful careers. Juno is his ambitious mentor, quick to point out his shortcomings. When Sunam is introduced to Namin, a pre-med student who is also a contender for the Circle, his life changes dramatically.

Namin and Jisun met as young students and have remained friends through their school years. Namin's parents own a food cart and she feels compelled to succeed in order to provide a future for her family. Jisun comes from a wealthy family and spends her time supporting underground activities. Their differences and a betrayal will eventually drive them apart.

These are four students with hopes and dreams that are affected not only by their decisions, but by social influences as well. Wurtz' story has an intimate feel and is beautifully told, allowing the reader to feel the angst, euphoria and despair along with her characters. The ending feels somewhat abrupt, but the fates of her characters are satisfactorily revealed in her epilogue. This is a story to be savored and is highly recommended.

I really enjoyed reading this novel, the characters are amazing and the writing is wonderful. I was so intrigued to see where their story would take them! The novel provides insight into lives which are so distant and foreign to mine, which is why this type of novel is a favorite genre for me.

This was such a neat, brief look into what life was like in South Korea in the 1970s. The underground labor unions/public strikes plotline was so fascinating, and a chunk of history that I had never read about before. I kind of wish the political aspects had been fleshed out just a tiny bit more, but this felt more like a character study. And I can’t complain about that!

Two of the main characters, Jisun and Namin, are unlikeable, for different reasons, but they felt realistic. Sometimes their actions made little sense, and oddly enough, that made them seem even more fleshed out. I think the story would have been stronger without Sunam’s perspective, because he lacked the complexity and depth of Jisun and Namin. He was just unlikeable, and that’s never fun to read. Minor characters were annoying, because like Sunam, they were simply unlikeable.

This could have been a 4-star read, but the ending killed those dreams. It was very rushed and it felt like a bit of a cop-out. Wuertz tried to wrap it all up, but it was disappointing. Overall, the writing was average. Nothing special, but it wasn’t painful to read. At times, the melodrama was too much, but maybe that’s your thing.

If you’re like me, and you like stories set in South Korea, you’ll want to pick this up, despite these problems. I’m glad I read this, because Everything Belongs to Us has certainly whet my appetite for more books set in South Korea!

When I received this book from NetGalley to read and review, I was excited. I spent over a year in South Korea, a bit before the time frame of this book, but still, I felt it would help me remember my days there, while providing me a good picture of the lives of young South Koreans. In the book, we encounter three main characters. Jisun, the wealthy daughter of a tycoon, is a rebel, trying to distance herself from the life she has led through her activism while a student. Namin, daughter from a poor Korean family, who takes her studies seriously and is trying to raise her family out of their impoverished lives. Sunam just wants to gain access to an upper crust social club, the Circle, with little care for much else. He is the character I never felt I could imagine being my friend or liking. This story follows these young Koreans through this tumultuous time in South Korea. While the author does develop the two female characters well enough for them to grow on me and to get me to like them as students and future professionals in this society, I never really felt them become a part of me as book characters often do. As for Sunam, I had difficulty just accepting who he was and his place in the story.

The story starts off slowly and only really gained my full attention after reading a good portion. After finishing the book, I wondered what I was supposed to have learned from this glimpse into the lives of these young people. The book did give me a feel for life in South Korea during this time, but I felt as if I needed more. I enjoyed reading about an area with which I was somewhat familiar since I had spent some months there, but I nevertheless came away wondering about South Korea and the book’s message. The writing was good, though I did not think it was as even as it could have been throughout. The book does give a good idea to the reader about life in South Korea during that time frame. Thus, it will be of interest to the reader looking for this or something a bit different. For me, however, the book just did not do it. It was good, but not a book I will remember very much now that I have finished it.

Set in a time of great upheaval and change, protests and women living as the bottom rung of society, this book explores the relatiionships between the haves and the have nots as well as family structures in this time and place.

Jisun and Namin are total opposites socially but they both know they want more. Everything Namin does is to further her goal of becoming a doctor and getting her family out of poverty. She is exceptionally bright, which affords her more access to education than most in her town.

Jisun is rebelling against her father and his wealth and power not only in businesss but over her as well.

I would like to have heard more in the end from Namin’s point of view.

I really liked the look at the part Americans have played in this country for years and the animosity and hatred of them.

It was a good story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this one!

Interesting story about the 2 Korean sisters, but it just didn't hold my interest.

3.5 Stars

1978 Seoul, Korea is when and where this story begins, telling the stories of two men and two women, primarily. One of the women from a very wealthy family - Jisun, the other – Namin, the daughter of parents who operate a push food cart as many hours of the day as possible just to barely survive. At the start, Jisun seems a bit frivolous in her determination to avoid being a part of her father’s world, where power and money reign. She becomes involved with an activist movement, while Namin works tirelessly to maintain the best grades. Namin is determined to rise above the life of her parents, and to help her disabled brother by becoming a physician. It is the only way for her family to escape the poverty they’ve come to know, the poverty they’ve become trapped by.

This debut novel opens in April of 1978 with a three-day protest scene, women factory workers are protesting, chanting their demands for guaranteed basic labor rights, and more.

*This excerpt is from an advance uncorrected copy*

“In the predawn, the women gather like ghosts around the factory yard and formed rows as if on lines etched into the concrete. They sat shoulder to shoulder, close enough to link arms and share warmth. The drumming began with the sun.”

Two young men, Sunam and Juno stand watching each day from the roof across the street, both also students at Seoul National University. Juno, a year older, had already made those oh-so-necessary connections at University, and Sunam hopes to gain entrance to the prestigious group known only as the Circle by virtue of his connection with Juno.

On the third day, police in riot gear arrive, give their last warning. In response, one woman protestor steps away from the line, removes her top, then her bra, tossing them to the ground. Other women follow. A riot breaks out, Sunam and Juno watching from their perch. When things have settled down, Juno sends Sunam to collect some “souvenirs.”

The story revolves mostly around these four primary characters, all University students. Their individual drives and ambitions are very different from each other, and yet in other ways they are more alike that different. Both Jisun and Namin, from two very different families, disparate lifestyles and dreams are bonded by their inner strength and commitment to their individual visions. No damsels in distress but passionate about their desires for their futures. For every man like Juno, there needs to be one like Sunam. Juno - the bossy almost bully type, has to be one better than anyone else, but especially those he is “mentoring,” training him to exude that put-on confidence that comes across more like arrogance. He needs someone to be his subject, his peon, in order to play the “master” and Sunam fits the bill.

I enjoyed this story, some parts more than others, but I rarely felt completely pulled into this story. The writing was fine, as in good enough, although there were parts where I felt the author showed promise of more, and I wanted more of that promise and less of the wandering ways of the story.

All that is not to say that this is not an enjoyable read, it is, I just found it to be an uneven distribution of enjoyable. Perhaps that’s because I was expecting more, perhaps it was from all the meandering hither and yon. Would I recommend it? Yes, it is still an interesting portrait of a time and place when the world changed yet again, with the lives of those at the top lording it over the others, the lives of those climbing to the top trying to grab every possible advantage, even when it meant climbing over others.


Pub Date: 28 Feb 2017


Many thank for the ARC provided by Random House

A solid read that was slightly underwhelming at times. I wanted to love this book, but it just fell a bit too short.

I was disappointed in the book as the story didn’t hold my interest. This book is set in South Korea in the 1970's and focuses on two main female characters, Namin and Jisun who come from very different backgrounds but meet at school. The book covers the different paths they take in life and their relationship with one of their male friends. While it was interesting to read about the politics and oppression in Korea at the time, the book was more about their relationship and love interests.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read and review this book!

I was never 100% involved in this book, although I really wanted to be. This book is set in Seoul, South Korea in the 1970s. I found some of the cultural references interesting, especially in reference to class/family standings, education and family life.

At the heart of this book are two young women who met as middle school students. Namin comes from a poor family, is brilliant and carries the weight of responsibility for her family on her shoulders. They sacrifice so that she can succeed and take care of them. Jisun is from a wealthy, powerful family. She struggles against her dad, doesn't care about money, and goes from one activist cause to another.

Both women become involved with Sunam, a smart but not extremely motivated young man who is flattered by Namin's attention yet drawn to Jisun. Sunam is also involved with Juno, Jisun's brother, who is his mentor and tries to move him into the future.

I just never felt engaged with anyone but Namin and the ending left me feeling more sad than anything else. It was a good read, just not a great one to me.

Everything Belongs To Us started off being particular interest to me, as my father also grew up in a post-war Seoul in the same generation as the main characters. In the book, it is 1978 Seoul, South Korea, a turbulent and dynamic period in South Korea's history; it is during this time that Korea catapults itself from a poverty stricken nation into a highly educated world superpower. Sunam, Juno, Jisun, & Namin are four Seoul National University students, who are all representative of Korea during this time. As the four students make their way at Korea's most elite university, their visions of the future vary greatly; some eschew wealth, others claw their way out of poverty, & others don't know what to make of a changing Korea. As their personal lives become entangled with one another, each must decide what success and happiness are worth sacrificing. This book had so much potential to dissect and tell the mostly unknown story (to Westerners) of South Korea's economic and societal metamorphosis, for it is a stunning history of a reversal of fortunes & the sheer will of a nation, and the price it obviously paid to achieve prosperity. However, and disappointingly, Wuertz focuses more on the tawdry passions and romantic faux pas of the characters, which turns the book from a potential historically relevant book to just one that ends as a soap opera affair, Verdict: not enough historical perspective or meat, too much romantic love triangle irrelevance,