The Year Of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi

This is an engaging book that takes place at the tail end of World War II. I really enjoyed this book, although it can be quite hard to read at times due to its mature, and sometimes depressing, themes and plot. For example, the main character Sookan works in a sweatshop sock factory while her brothers work in Japanese labor camps. Another very interesting aspect of this book is when the Russians occupy the village Sookan lives in and attempts to convert to their language, customs, and communism. The most engaging and interesting part of the story is when Sookan and her family attempt to escape South Korea. The young girl and her brother are separated from their mother and forced to try to escape by themselves. Overall, I thought the book was extremely well written and a worth while read. I would certainly recommend this book to older readers such as 6th graders, and I think it would work perfectly in connection with a history unit about World War II.