book review: The Lucky Gourd Shop

This book, a novel by Joanna Catherine Scott, tells the story of "what really happened" to the parents of 3 Korean siblings who were adopted to the U.S. when the oldest was 6 or 7. I liked it a lot. I thought the author did a great job of making you feel like you were in Korea. A couple things stuck out to me as odd or not very realistic, but otherwise it was an enjoyable, if heartbreaking at times, read. It's one I won't soon forget. And yes, it did make me cry. :-)

I also started reading one called Then She Found Me by Elinor Lipman. I saw that Helen Hunt is making a movie out of it and it was adoption-related so I thought I might like it. It's about a woman who is "found" (almost more like "stalked") by her biological mom 30+ years after she placed her for adoption. So far, I'm only 3 or 4 chapters in, but it's only so-so. The characters are pretty one-dimensional so far, and not particularly likable, at least not yet. There are a lot of references to the bio. mom as the "real" mom, which bugs me just a wee bit, as you might guess it would. :-) Not that she isn't "real," but you know what I mean. I wonder if the author has any personal connection to adoption or just thinks it's an interesting topic and makes a good story.