I’m partially through a personal project to “get to know” the world better. After reading quite a few translated books set in countries I’m not too familiar with last year, I realised how much enjoyment I get out of learning more about the rest of the world through books!
So this year, and on-going, I’m attempting to learn more about different regions of the world through literature. I want to understand their history, their politics, the cultures and the varying conflicts between groups of people and ideologies and so much more!
Currently I’m “exploring” China, Korea and Japan – mostly from the Korean occupation and the Second Sino-Japanese war, to the Cultural Revolution, to present day. And more in between of course.
I’ve read Frog (Mo Yan), Pachinko (Min Jin Lee), Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea (Barbara Demick), Life and Death in Shanghai (Nien Cheng) for historical context. I’m aware the fiction may not be completely accurate, but it does fill in many gaps that my Western education never taught me! I have a long list of more books to follow, and after 3 months I’ll move on to another region.
And as another disclaimer, I know this won’t teach me everything nor will it necessarily accurately represent any of these nations or its people. But I do think there’s benefit in learning, even when it’s incomplete.
So inspired by my own silly idea, what have you learned about the rest of the world through literature that you can’t believe you weren’t taught?
Mine would be the extent of the Korean Occupation by Japan. For some reason, I just assumed it was for the few years during WWII!
by First-Statement-3848