Grace Kim’s niece completed her first novel

RELATIVELY SPEAKING

By Grace Kim

LW contributor

My niece, Julie Lee, published her first novel titled “Brother’s Keeper.”

Julie was born in Philadelphia and graduated from Cornell University with a degree in history. After working in market research in Manhattan for more than 10 years, she decided to pursue writing full time. Julie currently lives in Georgia with her physician husband and three daughters. The book “Brother’s Keeper” is about the Korean War and an escaping refugee. During the war, many families escaped from North to South Korea for freedom. There were many lives lost by Russian, Chinese and North Korean armies during the attempted escapes. Some families were separated from one another during the bombings.

Haunting, timely and beautiful, this harrowing novel is inspired by the experiences of the author’s mother.

“I’ve never read anything quite like this story. Unbelievably powerful, this hauntingly beautiful story was so intense that, at times, it had me afraid to turn the pages. I never knew what to expect around the corner,” said Linda Williams Jackson, Jane Addams Children’s Book Award Honoree and author of “Midnight Without a Moon”.

I myself experienced crossing the 38th parallel with my family. I have seen many refugees who were killed and children separated from their parents. I was only 14 years old and very nervous and scared. Fortunately, my family arrived to South Korea safely. But four years later, just as we were finally settling down in the South, early on the morning of June 25, 1950, a well trained North Korean Communist Army made a surprise attack on South Korea. They were trained and supported by the Soviet Union to attack South Korea with the plan to create a unified Communist country.

I could not put down this book, I finished it in one day, and all of the memories of my own struggles and hardships I had to endure came back.

You can purchase “Brother’s Keeper” at Barnes & Noble, Amazon and other places where books are sold.

Julie Lee holding her first book, "Brother's Keeper"