The Young Will Remember by Eve J. Chung

February 26, 2026

The Young Will Remember by Eve J. Chung

Korea 1950. Ellie Chang is an American reporter covering the recently begun Korean War, sent by her newspaper because she speaks both Japanese and Mandarin. As one of the few women journalists in Korea, she struggles to be included in press and military briefings. To get a story on the UN evacuation, she hitches a ride with an American pilot heading to the front lines in North Korea to pick up a load of wounded soldiers. On the way back to the American base, their plane is shot down by the Korean military. Mistaking Ellie for Chinese, they are about to shoot her when an unknown Korean woman intervenes and persuades them to let her take Ellie away, claiming that Ellie is her long-missing daughter.

I don't know about where you went to school, but the Korean War was largely skipped over in the U.S. history courses that I took. I think most of what Americans know about this war came from the TV series MASH. Like most wars, the people making the decisions didn't have to live with the consequences, like bombing North Korea for 90 days straight. Nothing is black and white in this story. Even among those that are supposed to be the enemy, Ellie finds kindness and help. If you enjoy historical fiction but are tired of reading about the world wars and the Holocaust, this is a different take on a different war. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Pyongyang, capital of North Korea, after UN forces fire bombed the city 

Daughters of Shandong by Eve J. Chung

July 31, 2024

Daughters of Shandong by Eve J. Chung

The cultural revolution erupts in China in 1948, but in rural Shandong, the Ang family is living according to 10th century traditions and is more concerned about the lack of a male heir. The oldest son's wife produced only daughters, considered to be useless mouths to feed until they marry and leave. When the Communists take control of the country, the son and his parents flee, leaving his wife and their daughters behind at the family home, with little food and no money. When they are evicted, the mother and daughters decide to go to the city to try to find the rest of the family.

Based on the author's grandmother's story of fleeing China for Taiwan during the Cultural Revolution. The Chinese treated their girls like crap; they may still. And the mothers and grandmothers not only put up with it, they encouraged it. Not that the Chinese have a patent on treating daughters with disdain - my own parents weren't that crazy about having a daughter (I was the only one) and made it obvious that they much preferred my brothers, until they got old and then having a daughter to look after them was a good thing. Inspiring story but depressing at the same time.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Cutting off a man's pigtail, considered to be a sign of the ruling or wealthy class, during the Cultural Revolution