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출판사 리뷰

출판사 서평 정음서원 추천의 말 작가는 10살에 미국으로 이민간 한국인입니다. 한국의 문화와 미국 문화에 대해 이토록 쉽게 읽을 수 있고 또 쉽게 이해할 수 있는 책은 찾아보기 어려울 것입니다. 이민자들이 많은 미국에서는 문화의 차이로 말미암아 어려움을 겪는 많은 이들에게 널리 읽히고 공감을 주는 독특한 내용을 담고 있습니다. 2011년 처음 출간시에도 국내에서 인쇄제작하였으나 영어로 쓰여져 있어 미국내에서만 판매하고 국내에 선보이지 못했지만 이번에 증보판을 내면서 미국에서 판매되는 원본 그대로 독자 제현들에게 선보입니다. 특히 한국 ... 정음서원 추천의 말 작가는 10살에 미국으로 이민간 한국인입니다. 한국의 문화와 미국 문화에 대해 이토록 쉽게 읽을 수 있고 또 쉽게 이해할 수 있는 책은 찾아보기 어려울 것입니다. 이민자들이 많은 미국에서는 문화의 차이로 말미암아 어려움을 겪는 많은 이들에게 널리 읽히고 공감을 주는 독특한 내용을 담고 있습니다. 2011년 처음 출간시에도 국내에서 인쇄제작하였으나 영어로 쓰여져 있어 미국내에서만 판매하고 국내에 선보이지 못했지만 이번에 증보판을 내면서 미국에서 판매되는 원본 그대로 독자 제현들에게 선보입니다. 특히 한국 문화를 영어로 표현하는데 관심 있으신 분에게 추천합니다.

<한편 읽어보기>
이 책의 마지막 장입니다. 가벼운 마음으로 작가가 무슨 말을 하고자 하는지 훑어 보시기 바랍니다.

Chapter 30
Embracing Two Cultures


Today I feel fortunate to live within two different cultures. The path I’ve chosen has had its challenges and its blessings, but with patience comes wisdom. I realized I could not prevent myself from embracing both my Korean and my American identity. Neither wholly defines me. The path toward my identity is an unfinished one.
When I first started school in 1978, the English language sounded like indistinguishable noise to me. Still, I had a strong desire to make American friends. I may not have known the word for “friendship,” but I still managed to form those bonds. I played with all of my classmates regardless of their appearances. Some of them had blonde hair and blue eyes, while others had curly hair and dark skin. Even my own cousins had physical characteristics I’d never seen before. However, all this didn’t keep me from loving them equally.
There are some subtle cultural differences between Koreans and Americans. Some Americans do not take their shoes off when they enter their homes or bedrooms. That was a shock for me to see because at my house, we never wore shoes into our bedrooms. Also, Americans don’t bow their heads when greeting someone as they do in Korea. American children are not responsible for the same show of respect for their parents or elders as are Korean children. In American households, the youngest person eats first while the oldest male eats first in Korea. However, these are only practices that define our histories, not our value as individuals.
After I joined the International Club at American River College, I knew being a Korean American was something to be treasured. I was the only Korean American in the group. There were people from Germany, Spain, Poland, France, Peru, Columbia, Argentina, Czechoslovakia, Jordan, Iran, Ethiopia, India, and the Philippines. It was like the United Nations. Once a month, we got together at someone’s home and just had a good time. We didn’t compare our cultural differences, instead focusing on what we had in common, learning to trust one another, and building friendships.
I decided in the seventh grade that I would focus on the similarities instead of the differences in all of us. We all have the same desires for education, health, happiness, safety, and peace.
Today, I try to greet as many people as I encounter and learn as much about them as they care to share with me. I think it is only the fear of the unknown that keeps one group of people from understanding another. The way we look and dress may separate us temporarily, but when you take the time to get to know a person, you realize how much that person has in common with you.
Having friendships with people of different cultures can invite so many new possibilities. There is a wealth of colors and flavors beyond the culture into which you are born. Having friends from so many different countries and ethnic backgrounds invites only blessings into one’s life.
When I was a child, I thought being rich meant having fancy cars, a big house, and expensive clothes. As I grew older, I realized that those are just temporary materials on the path of one’s life. You cannot find true happiness in what you wear. Being truly rich is to give love generously and to allow yourself to receive it. My soul is awake at this moment, and for that, I feel eternally rich.

목차
Foreword by Wayne Maeda 8
Author’s Note 12
Acknowledgments 16
Part I Korea
Chapter 1 Life on the Farm 23
Chapter 2 Before the Farm 31
Chapter 3 Sweet Potatoes and Watermelons 34
Chapter 4 Thirsty Cow 43
Chapter 5 Frog Legs 46
Chapter 6 Catching a Snake 50
Chapter 7 Yangban Burial Process 55
Chapter 8 Unni 66
Chapter 9 Fall 71
Chapter 10 The Winter 78
Chapter 11 Ghost Elementary School 85
Chapter 12 A Chicken for Dinner 94
Chapter 13 A Package from America 97
Chapter 14 Komo 106
Chapter 15 Leaving for America 111
Part II America
Chapter 16 The First Night 121
Chapter 17 Our First Home 133
Chapter 18 Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream 140
Chapter 19 Stacey 152
Chapter 20 Sixth Grade 159
Chapter 21 White Tennis Shoes 169
Chapter 22 Dreaming in English 175
Chapter 23 Learning by the Bible 178
Chapter 24 Third Daughter 184
Chapter 25 Sink or Swim 188
Chapter 26 Bleeding Steak 193
Chapter 27 Cordova Lancers 207
Chapter 28 American River College 217
Chapter 29 Moonlight Cleaners 225
Chapter 30 Embracing Two Cultures 243
Afterword by Dr. Heather Sellens 248
Glossary 251