The Year of Impossible Goodbyes By Sook Nyul Choi

The Year of Impossible Goodbyes is a historical fiction novel that follows a ten year old girl named Sookan on a life changing adventure. This book shows a Korean’s perspective on the Japanese’s occupation during Word War II. As Sookan was faced with the negative aspects of war such as seeing her mother work in a sock factory, being terrorized in her own home, dealing with death and other turmoil, she faced the challenge of reaffirming or developing a new self identity. I believe that this book would be an excellent book to include in the classroom. This book provides excellent text to connect to other text, to the self and to the world. The Year of Impossible Goodbye could be a great way to introduce a historical concept. Children reading this book could also relate to Sookan in some ways. For example, she is ten years old and also questioning her identity. Although this book many introduce controversial concepts, I believe that discussing concepts that The Year of Impossible Goodbyes will provide many benefits in the classroom.