So Far from the Bamboo Grove - by Yoko Kawashima Watkins (Paperback)

About the Book

Though she is Japanese, 11-year-old Yoko has lived with her family in Korea all her life. When World War II comes to an end, Koreans rise up to take control of their homeland. Yoko and her family are forced to flee their home, and their harrowing journey to safety is the backbone of this remarkable survival story.

From the Back Cover

In the final days of World War II, Koreans were determined to take back control of their country from the Japanese and end the suffering caused by the Japanese occupation. As an eleven-year-old girl living with her Japanese family in northern Korea, Yoko is suddenly fleeing for her life with her mother and older sister, Ko, trying to escape to Japan, a country Yoko hardly knows.

Their journey is terrifying--and remarkable. It's a true story of courage and survival that highlights the plight of individual people in wartime. In the midst of suffering, acts of kindness, as exemplified by a family of Koreans who risk their own lives to help Yoko's brother, are inspiring reminders of the strength and resilience of the human spirit.

Review Quotes

"Simply but compellingly told." - The Horn Book

"Yoko's story is spellbinding... Readers will be riveted by the events of the escape and struggle for survival, and enriched and inspired by the personalities of the family. ." - School Library Journal (starred review)