Pachinko

The novel follows the family from 1910 to 1989, moving steadily through the decades. In Osaka, Sunja and her husband, Isak, live with his brother Yoseb and sister-in-law Kyunghee in a crowded Korean neighborhood. When Isak is imprisoned, the women must support the family, and Sunja sells homemade kimchi and sweets in the market. Hansu, meanwhile, watches over Sunja and her son from a distance, offering help that comes with complicated strings.

Sunja's sons take very different paths. Noa, studious and gentle, longs to belong in Japanese society and attends university, but a revelation about his origins changes his life. Mozasu, more practical and tough, finds his place working in pachinko parlors, the pinball gambling halls that were one of the few businesses open to Koreans. Later chapters follow Mozasu's son Solomon. Throughout, Lee shows the discrimination Koreans faced in Japan, even those born there, and the quiet strength of women who held families together. The book is long and spans many characters, but each is drawn with empathy.

Absorbing and emotional, inspiration for a television series. About 512 pages in the Grand Central paperback.