“What distinguishes The Calligrapher's Daughter from other Asian mother-daughter novels – and there are many – is its setting in Korea under Japanese occupation. Because Korean history is not well-known in the United States, Eugenia Kim's debut novel feels particularly fresh.

More straightforward in presentation than an Amy Tan tale, The Calligrapher's Daughter draws the reader's attention through well-developed characters. An old-fashioned sweeping narrative carries the daughter, Najin, through 30 turbulent years, from the summer of 1915, when she was 5, to December of 1945 and the end of World War II. It's gripping and often unpredictable.

Kim, a child of immigrants, says she based the story on her mother's life.” ...