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A radiant, exquisitely told portrait of a young woman growing up between cultures in search of her future self. At first, you are a child at home in your mother''s belly: a beloved daughter, a vision of the future. But who will you become? At the Dol ceremony on your first birthday, dressed in a bright fuchsia As your family moves from Seoul to snowy Minnesota, you and your mother find yourself in a new American life that you must navigate together, mastering its language and customs. Soon enough, you are in pursuit of perfection--your mother marshalling you through a childhood of achievements to shape you into the person she most wants you to be. But you are not just your mother’s daughter, despite her sacrifices. As the years go by, you want to build a life between these two cultures that feels Told in incandescent prose, Cay Kim''s debut novel is a portrait of a brilliant young woman growing up between worlds, and a glorious love letter to girlhood, family, and the great dreams we hold for ourselves, no matter where we’re from.
About the author
Cay Kim was born in Seoul in 1998. She received her BA from Stanford University, where she won the Urmy/Hardy Poetry Prize, and her MFA from Columbia University. Her writing has appeared in Granta. This is her first novel.
Summary
A radiant portrait of a young woman caught between cultures, and what is lost and found in the struggle to succeed
Before you are anything, you are a daughter.
At first you are at home inside your pregnant mother: a beloved daughter, a vision of the future. But who will you become?
As your family moves back and forth between Korea and the United States, you find yourself caught between two countries. Prioritizing your future over her own happiness, your mother marshals you through a childhood of homework and violin practice and academic achievement to shape you into the person she most wants you to be. Is hers the ultimate form of love? And, despite her sacrifices, is there a world somewhere between your motherland and homeland that can feel like your own?
Told in incandescent prose, Cay Kim’s exquisite debut novel is a portrait of a brilliant young woman growing up between cultures, and a love letter to girlhood, family, and the great dreams we hold for ourselves, no matter where we’re from.
